Horse Feathers - House With No Home (2008)

Horse Feathers - House With No Home (2008)

My interest in Horse Feathers began with the fact that lead singer and main member Justin Ringle composes all songs on his own. Later Peter Broderick mixes everything and adds in all of the orchestra to go along with his music. This isn't a bad thing whatsoever, and Horse Feathers is able to inhabit the chamber-folk genre quite well. But it does make the inception of the songs a more interesting prospect. Would these songs work better as solo guitar songs (like Iron & Wine?) or do they succeed with the additions of strings, banjo and percussion? In most cases, yes, and quite well.

Horse Feathers aren't my kind of music whatsoever. Not to say that I don't enjoy a good folk band every now and then, but folk music is one of those genres that it's easy to sound like he's imitable. Only so many times can someone seem like a Bob Dylan suck-up or Iron & Wine, to the point that being an ambient band is hard not to get compared to Animal Collective or Aphex Twin to some extent. When a band does a genre successful, it's immediate that anything that sounds similar will be labeled impersonator, thus making their music fake.

Justin avoids these trap falls for the most part. Sure, some of the songs fall into this category and don't attempt to do anything with the genre but inhabit it, but the songs on here that excel at it are really worth the time to listen. Ringle's wavering falsetto is the strong point of the band that sets it apart, never has vulnerable sounded so real in folk music while still singing about a message. The album starts out strong enough and maintains well, even though "Rude to the Rile" never seems to get its building momentum going. "Working Poor" is an excellent banjo-laden track that accelerates with such subtly into a call-and-response, breaking down immediately and building back up again. "Albina" does a similar technique as well, the instruments on the album emphasizing the urgency in Ringle's lyrics.

The slow songs work too, as "Helen" and "Heathen's Kiss" prove. But overall there is a sense of laziness throughout the album, not on the band's part, but on an ability to expand this genre further. There are some really good songs on here that inhabit it quite well, but what hasn't been heard here before? Halfway through the album the music suffers and falls into background music category, which is a shame because the stuff on here is good enough. There is something that Horse Feathers has going and with each attempt I feel they will get there, but until then it's all genre and nothing breakout. That doesn't mean that they should do something crazy, but without one track that really illustrates what separates this band from the rest make it hard to hear what all the fuss is about. They'll get there.

Standout Track: "Working Poor"
Overall Rating: 7.5

Some fun facts not mentioned in the review:

* Justin Ringle's band are labeled as being from Portland, OR, which is true, but the guy was born and raised in Lewiston, ID. He simply moved to Portland in 2004 and would play under the moniker Horse Feathers until Peter Broderick heard his stuff and became another member as producer.

* Peter Broderick's other works include: Norfolk & Western, Dolorean, and Loch Lomond.

* Peter's sister, Heather, plays Cello on the records, but does not tour with the band.

* Singer Ringle doesn't intend that all lyrics are understood clearly, but has stated in interviews that he wants more to match mood than add clarity.

* Some more of Ringle on my favorite track, "Working Poor:" "I think in 'Working Poor,' for instance, the contrast between the words being about hardship, yet the music staying somewhat upbeat, kind of gives some sense of hope." Read more of an interview Here.

Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes/Sun Giant (2008)

Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes/Sun Giant (2008) *

On first listen I took Fleet Foxes sound for granted. I didn't get what they hype was about that surrounded the Seattle band, they just sounded like folksy group that were doing what others have done before and wasn't that impressed. But after seeing them at Sasquatch I have to admit that my appreciation for them has grown immensely. That's not to say that I'm still thinking they pulled a Vampire Weekend last year and got a little too over-hyped, but it was deserved to say the least (IMO I think Gaslight Anthem deserved more of the praise, but that's when we get to the G's people).

So lets break it down why Fleet Foxes has left an impression on the music world. They have a unique sound to say the least, a combination of impressive vocals from singer Robin Pecknold, his baroque poppiness invested into their folksy sound that is matched by the wispy guitar and harp throughout the album. Never before has an album been able to match space so well, creating a very unique area where this music exists and the instruments are free to float in and out of each song in such a heavenly way. Listen to the guitars and vocals mix together on "English House" and it's apparent right away how important the building of each song is to the band. They're quick not to use the gimmick over and over (thus not making it a gimmick) and instead use it as just another instrument.

Of all the songs from Sun Giant, "Mykonos" stands out the most. The breathy chorus lifts Pecknold's beautiful voice to, again, a heavenly state, creating the most pop-like song that's been made in some time in the folk tradition. The breakdown in the middle of the song slows everything down. "Brother you don't need to turn me away/I was waiting down at the ancient gate/You go wherever you go today/You go today" they sing in perfect harmony, making the song more like a battle call-to-arms than you're simple folk song of the past.

On their debut album the songs are much focused, more of this quality of songs. Here they change their style a bit more and take light risks, but risks nevertheless. "White Winter Hymnal" starts off with a beautiful opening a Capella sing-song that carries the whole song, joined by the whole band and continued through the song. Folk rock has never sounded like it could fill an arena more than here. Repeated listens of the album will showcase these qualities more, the little touches throughout the album of how seamlessly it flows from their giant whispering anthems to an immediate breakdown with the whole band in full force.

They also change their style up more to take full advantage of their strengths. "Tiger Mountain Peasant Song" focuses on just the lead vocals and a solo guitar, still floating in space but more somber than many of their other pieces. They prove that they don't need to do the whole choir thing every song to still craft a lovely piece of music. Or the more awkward (in a good way) "He Doesn't Know Why," that staggers to it's eventual beat in an unconventional way. "Your Protector" is a humble cry to wanting to keep a love as close as possible even though that love wants to run free. Their imagery the lyrics evoke are matched by the rustling guitar and strings in each song, the building drum in the back that makes each song more of a war march than a ditty.

If there's anything that FF suffers from it's their choice of style. I'm not implying that they should go out and make a punk rock opera anytime soon, but because each song follows the same pattern that makes it so good is also what makes it suffer too. "Meadowlark" is one of the only lulls in the album, not because it is a slower song (even by their standards) but because it never seems to find itself. Their album changes this pace up quite a bit to the point that it's masked but still present, which will make for interesting releases from the band to come. For now it's a great way to start and sets the stage for what is to come from Fleet Foxes. Hopefully they can stay their own unique path instead of using their gimmick to its full extent to become exactly that, utilizing their poetic lyrics and beautiful harmonization to continue to create such pretty, complicated songs.

* I combine these albums into one because their EP was later released as a bonus disc to their debut album, so it makes sense to simply combine the two.

Standout Track: "He Doesn't Know Why"/"Mykonos"
Overall Rating: 8.6/10