I'm gonna give it a go tonight. I hated his last album the first time I listened to it. Now I listen to it more than any of his others. He's not a guy to keep the same sound and I like that to a degree. [Reply]
This album is extremely disappointing. I have no idea what he's doing.
I always appreciated his classic country sound with a modern twist. Vocals with a unique tone and great lyrics.
What's the reason they make it sound like he's singing into a tin can on almost this entire album? I understand mixing country and rock beats, but this just feels like a jumbled mess. He's not expressing anything that he's talented at on this entire album. I don't see me listening to this more than a handful of times ever, it's that bad. [Reply]
I mean... if you read anything leading up to this, you kind of had an idea what to expect. I like the album, but it is closer to Arcade Fire meets ZZ Top than anything in his past. He’s said he’s going to do 5 albums, each with its own statement and sound, then move on.
He’s a weird, heady dude who has a specific artistic vision. It doesn’t surprise me that he got tired of a specific sound and moved on. It also doesn’t surprise me that fans who loved his country sound don’t like it. Just like I wouldn’t expect most of those fans to like CAN or Dungen or some other modern psychedelic band. [Reply]
Originally Posted by NewChief:
I mean... if you read anything leading up to this, you kind of had an idea what to expect. I like the album, but it is closer to Arcade Fire meets ZZ Top than anything in his past. He’s said he’s going to do 5 albums, each with its own statement and sound, then move on.
He’s a weird, heady dude who has a specific artistic vision. It doesn’t surprise me that he got tired of a specific sound and moved on. It also doesn’t surprise me that fans who loved his country sound don’t like it. Just like I wouldn’t expect most of those fans to like CAN or Dungen or some other modern psychedelic band.
Originally Posted by Pablo:
I've listened to it twice now. I don't hate it. I don't love it. I'll listen to it another couple of times and have a solid opinion.
He may have hit his peak w/ 'A Sailor's Guide to Earth'.
I'm kind of in this boat with it, as well.
It's not unlistenable, but it's not something I absolutely HAVE to hear again...
Hope he gets back to actual songs sometime, because there's 3 or 4 songs and then a bunch of cool sounds.