i,i - Bon Iver: Review
is an indie folk collective originating from Wisconsin and founded by singer-songwriter Justin Vernon.The first Bon Iver record For Emma Forever Ago was released independently in 2007 where Pitchfork Media played a huge role in promoting it alongside many other indie folk releases around that time and helped make Bon Iver into an indie must hear. They followed this up with yet another critically acclaimed record Bon Iber, Bon Iver in 2011 before taking an extended period off and returning in 2016. The third Bon Iver record 22. A Million was also met with critical praise but reached for a very different sound, interpolating electronica heavily into their previously warm and folk cetntric sound. With teaser tracks that also dipped into the abstract electronic Bon Iver seemed to predict a continuation of this path making, i,i a quick turn around on what will likely be an artistic evolution for the group.
Review By Lavender:
For a time before I began regularly reviewing albums my take on Bon Iver was a controversial one that attracted the ire of many an indie fan I debated with. It's no secret that along with many other folk inspired bands Bon Iver's come-up was supplemented by Pitchfork and the moment it came along the stories of Justin Vernon hiding himself away in a cabin to write the record became indie folk history. While the music really had the opportunity to stand for itself, and there some truly amazing moments Bon Iver provided what may be by far the most boring take on the indie folk revolution of the late 2000's. That is until I heard the follow up record from the group 2011' Bon Iver, Bon Iver. While I have criticized this record A LOT it comes from a serious place of disappointment as I continue to completely miss what makes this record appealing to so many, even 8 years later. I re-listened to this record before i,i came out to see if there was any amount of re-contextualizing that could help clarify why this record wasn't really getting to me. But the dreadfully slow minimalism and complete lack of song structure makes so many of these songs a painful listen. But my perception of Bon Iver changed in a MAJOR way in 2016, when the group dropped not only their best set of singles to date but also far and away their best album. 22, A Million was a groundbreaking electronic folk odyssey that grabbed you with immediate instrumentation and tangible song structures that opened up a completely new world for Bon Iver and was one of my favorite albums of 2016, the first year I ever published year end lists (Where it landed at #13). Given how much I love Bon Iver's last album and that I enjoyed most of the songs released in the lead up to this record before it was surprised released two weeks before its anticipated release date, I had a feeling I would enjoy this thing and while it may not quite be the masterpiece its predecessor was it is by all means one of the best records I've heard this year.
There we're four songs dropped ahead of the strange and unconventional release of the record one song at a time two weeks before its announced release date. Despite the confusion the four songs we had on our hands before the record was released are good for the most part. Hey Ma was an early favorite of mine that I totally fell in love with. The track features some distant rhythmic keys backing a gorgeous and incredibly catchy title refrain sung by Justin and is one of the catchiest and simplest songs on the record. With lyrical themes obviously relating to family there isn't much mystique to unpack with this track but its simplicity is captivating. The companion song to this was U (Man Like) a by the numbers piano ballad that actually features some guest vocals from Moses Sumney. But for the most part the song is an atmospheric cut with some keys hovering in the mix and a pretty solid vocal performance that features both Justin and Moses, as well as a childrens choir.
The second drop of singles brought with it yet another masterpiece in the incredible track Faith, a song that featured an attention grabbing co-writer credit in Francis Starlite of Francis And The Lights. The song has an absolutely gorgeous sting section that blew me away from the moment I first heard it. The track features a spacey breakdown that comes rushing into Justin's incredible singing on the hook which kicks off with not only a killer refrain but also some booming drums and a brass section re-introduction that completes one of the most captivating musical moments I've heard all year. The song blends the grandness of a full orchestral composition with the intimacy of Justin's passionate and strained singing for a track that is certain to be one of my favorite singles of the year.
Unfortunately the companion to this single provides one of the only moments on the record I have some major complaints about. Jelmore really does have a decent tune at its core and its one of the more abstract songs here, but unfortunately the track is centered around this really messy and wandering synth line that sounds straight up ugly and kind of ruins the songs reserved energy.
After a brief and somewhat unnecessary introductory track i,i opens up with two straight home runs. iMi features James Blake and Aaron Dessner in its liner notes but thankfully avoids the pitfalls of Justin and Aaron's very underwhelming Big Red Machine project. The song features some heavy percussion in the back of its mix and a string of gorgeous keys in the front along with some incredible group vocals. The electronic coldness of the keys in the second half paired with the warmth of the brass section and the incredible singing is a winning combination that makes for an excellent opening track. We is another excellent tune that could have fit in easily on 22, A Million. Though Justin's singing steals the show on the shorter song the track builds on its electronic instrumentation throughout its first half before it all drops off completely and makes for a sweet and memorable closing moment.
After this comes two of the less perfect tracks in the tracklist here. Holyfields, is a synth led ballad that is intimate and driving in its first half but gets much louder and more abstract in its second half and this is when it begins to lose me. As the instrumentation gets more lose and distant it sounds like Justin is singing over a near cacophony with tons of space in the mix and the song seems to just fizzle out without concluding so much of its complicated instrumental. Naeem is the next song and it doesn't get off to a very hot start. I am not a huge fan of the "I Can Hear Crying" refrain that dominates the first half of this song, however, the second half of the tune is an absolutely genius build of rattling snares and a huge drum kick that turns into one of my favorite moments on the entire album. The dramatic, anthemic and swelling instrumental build in the second half of the track is absolutely brilliant and the meticulous attention to detail that it must have taken to assemble it all creates an absolutely stunning end result that I can confidently say is one of my favorite musical moments this year.
While the singles make up the middle of this record the best series of tracks by far has to be the final four songs on the album, which together create a brilliant string of tunes that end the album off on nothing but straight high notes. Marion is a short acoustic guitar led love song that sees Justin getting incredibly intimate with his vocals. The lyrics are simple for once and very effective in clearly portraying the dejection of heartbreak and what appears to be the end of a relationship, with a stripped back and sad instrumental that completely fits the vibe of the song it is the perfect combination and runtime. Next up is Salem a straight up catchy tune with some simple tappy percussion and warm piano. The instrumentation builds behind an increasingly dramatic performance fro Justin and comes together perfectly to be sneakily one of my favorite songs on the record.
Sh'Diah allegedly refers to the "Shittiest Day In American History" when Donald trump was elected president and the lyrics certainly seem to support this. The highlight of this song is the icy and distant chants of "Keep It Rational", as well as the fact that this track would have also fit in well on 22. The song also has an incredible saxophone passage in its second half that justifies the presence of the brass section on this album all by itself. Then we have the closing track RABi which once again features an incredibly catchy refrain over some busy keys and a sexy electric guitar passage. There is an overwhelmingly nostalgic essence to the track that sees Justin telling stories of times passed and is the emotional highlight of the record, as well as an incredibly impressive and fitting closer. It's instrumental palette and choice as the closer of the record proves how in touch with this sound Justin Vernon and his collaborators truly are and caps off a brilliant run of songs in the second half of the record.
i,i is not as immediate as the brilliant album that preceded it, but that is nothing worth holding against it. The record is a brilliant combination of musical dichotomies, pairing the rigidness of electronic instrumentation with the gorgeous life Justin Vernon breathes into these songs with his vocals, as well as pairing huge and busy soundscapes with some of the most somber and intimate moments of the groups career back to back. The consistency of the albums execution paired with its soaring high make for one of the best things I've listened to all year and officially convinced me that 22, A Million was no fluke and that Bon Iver is here to stay and hopefully continue making excellent records like his last two. 9/10
