Monday, March 03, 2008

Staring At The Sink Of Blood And Crushed Veneer

As is the case with many an artist, a break-up can do wonders for your work. All that frustration, grief and turmoil needs to be let out, so why not channel it by doing something creative, no? Newly solo singer-songwriter Bon Iver is no exception, although his break-up wasn’t with a lover. It was with his long-time band DeYarmond Edison.

As winter rolled in, Iver picked up and moved to a remote cabin in northern Wisconsin. He spent a total of three months living the simple life, filling his days with tasks such as chopping wood. The result of this self-exploration were the songs for his debut album For Emma, Forever Ago.

The album is certainly a thing of beauty. Below is an excerpt from Last.fm:

For Emma's tracks consist of thick layers draped in lush choral walls, with rarely more than an ancient acoustic guitar or the occasional bass drum providing structure. Vernon sings the majority of the record in falsetto, which painfully expresses the meanings behind its overt, yet strangely entangled words. This newfound vocal path acts as each song's main character and source of melody.

A big thanks goes out to my friend Adam. While I already had his first single, Skinny Love (listen to it below), it had become buried by a slew of other new songs that came in. He mentioned the artist to me on Friday and I picked up the album over the weekend. It is highly recommended.




Like what you hear? Check out more on Myspace or buy the album on using one of the links provided below:

Bon Iver
US

1 comment:

sam said...

actually, Bon Iver DID break up with a girlfriend, but also his old band.

good words, though.