Ys

Alright, I'll pretend that anyone actually read this blog before two month hiatus and that you guys are really upset that I haven't been blogging. I am making a vow, however to have at least one post a day for one month in order to make it up to you.

After all of the hype about it, I thought that Joanna Newsom's new album simply title "Ys" would disappoint me greatly. After one listen though, I can say that it completly blew me away. Not to hate on "The Milk-Eyed Mender" but "Ys" puts Newsom's freshman effort to shame. This time around, so much is going on in each song, that I am certain that I missed about 90% of the themes going on in each masterfully crafted song. But the 10% or so that I picked up is enough to put it towards the top of the list for this years finest releases.

Although it's not quite "The Crane Wife" yet, we are talking about one listen. A good reviewer would give himself time to understand the album more beofre giving it a justifiable review, but I feel that first impressions while listening to an album are really important.

One song in particular, "Monkey & Bear," almost brings me to tears. Newsom's song-writing skills really shine in a story of two friends, and the decieveing tricks we will play on our firends, regardless of the consiquences, just to benefit ourselves. Newsom's voices weaves maticulously through fantasy and reality to make some of the most breath-taking moments in recent music memory. Each song, ranging in the five to sixteen minutes range, tells a beautiful story.

It also is a great bonus that Newsom's voice is actually bearable on this five song mix. Again, it's not that I did not like her previous release, I thought her voice was weird for the sake of being weird. This time, we get a more polished, beautiful version of the pierceing voice that plagues "Mender."

I've never been a big Newsom fan, but if there ever were a time to convert, it is now. Check out "Monkey & Bear" to get a taste of the beautiful album.

Check out the Hype Machine for more Newsom tracks from fellow bloggers.





Monkey& Bear