For Emma, Forever Ago (Bon Iver, 2008)

For Emma, Forever Ago (Bon Iver, 2008)

I am confused about this album. I like the songs and whenever I put it on, I’m smitten by it at the beginning but then feel tired of it towards the end. The vocals, I think, gets old very fast.

The album was the result of musician Justin Vernon isolating himself in a cabin for a few months and recording the album by himself.

1) Flume: 4/5

2) Lump Sum: 4/5

3) Skinny Love: 4/5

4) The Wolves (Act I and II): Not sure about this song. It has moments of absolute beauty, but then it pushes you out of the moment with the long pauses. 3/5

5) Blindsided: 3/5

6) Creature Fear: I realize the more you closely to the songs, the better they sound. Listen to the the falsetto part, as the song raises, the voice turns into a falsetto, and the song becomes lively and energic.4/5

7) Team:Pointless song, no vocals, and repetitive. If you listen to it carefully, you realize how irritating the repetitive beat is. If you don’t concentrate on the song, you sort of get pulled out of the album and it loses the grasp on you it had so far. At just around two minutes, it’s not that it’s a very BAD song, but that it spoils the album in a bit way.1/5

8) For Emma: The songs don’t offer anything new anymore. It has a been there, done that feeling to it by now.2/5

9) re: Stacks: 3/5

Average Song Rating: 3.11

Diversity: Soft indie-rock all the way through. 0/1

Atmosphere: More the most part, you get lost in it. The gentle voice, the low guitar, the soft music, you enter the cabin with Justin.0.5/1

Listenability: It is easy to listen to, BUT, and this is a confusing BUT, I’m rarely in the MOOD to listen to it. It feels like it needs a special mood to listen to it and usually I feel like while I like it, I don’t want to listen to it at that moment in time.0/1

Average Bonus Rating: 0.17

Total Album Rating: 3 (3.28)