Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues [2011]
Fleet Foxes are one of those bands that arrived so fully formed that it was hard to imagine where they’d take their sound next, and judging by the long gap between their debut LP and the upcoming Helplessness Blues, it seems the group may have struggled with that notion some as well. The eponymous lead single from the record finds them honing their intricate baroque folk while at the same time trying out a more straightforward, lyrical approach. The most notable difference between “Helplessness Blues” and the Sun Giant/Fleet Foxes material is that frontman Robin Pecknold’s words and vocals are front and center, high in the mix. Over a surging acoustic instrumental, he sings about existential fear (“What’s my name? What’s my station? Oh, just tell me what I should do”) in a hopeful and earnest way. Some will probably call these lyrics hokey, but they’re delivered with such sincerity (and vocal warmth) that I can’t help but go along for the ride. The song is essentially two halves, and around the three-minute mark, the whole band appears, and it bursts into a more reverberant, orchestral section that just shimmers. It’s here where you remember how great these guys sound when they’re firing on all cylinders, and it’s easy to think there could be more of this kind of lovely sprawl on the record’s other tracks. -pitchfork
The Decemberists – The King Is Dead [2011]
For those who weren’t on board with 2009’s lavish rock opera The Hazards of Love, Colin Meloy and company are giving you another variation on their brand of theatrical, literate indie pop. Direct Current Music and a handful of other sources report that on Jan. 11, The Decemberists will release The King Is Dead. It’s the band’s sixth full-length album, their third for Capitol Records, and most likely not their first Morrissey bon mot. Possibly attributable to the influence of special guest Peter Buck (R.E.M.), Meloy promises listeners a more straightforward, folk-rock approach on The King Is Dead — and it shows in “Down By the Water” and some of other new tunes the band has been playing live. You should still probably keep a thesaurus handy and the Wikipedia entry on the 19th century bookmarked. -Prefix Mag
Swans – My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky [2010]
Michael Gira has “re-activated” Swans for their first U.S. shows in more than a decade. […] the band’s releasing My Father Will Guide Me Up A Rope To The Sky, the first album of new material since 1997’s Soundtracks For The Blind. It was recorded by Jason LeFarge at Seizure’s Palace in Brooklyn and […] mixed by Gira with Bryce Goggin at Trout Recordings. -stereogum
(you should know by now where to look for the goods)
Shearwater – The Golden Archipelago [2010]
Shearwater was formed by two bandmembers of Austin, TX’s Okkervil River. Okkervil’s singer and guitarist, Will Sheff, and back-up vocalist and accordion/keyboard player, Jonathan Meiburg formed Shearwater so they could write softer, more folk-influenced music. Band members today include Jonathan Meiburg, Thor Harris, Kim Burke, Jordan Geiger, and Kevin Schneider. To date, Shearwater has released six full-length albums, ‘The Dissolving Room’, ‘Everybody Makes Mistakes’, ‘Winged Life’, ‘Palo Santo’, ‘Rook’ and ‘The Golden Archipelago’ as well as an EP entitled Thieves and a split album with Okkervil River entitled Sham Wedding/Hoax Funeral. Beginning at some point in 2005, Will Sheff lessened his role in the band. Jonathan Meiburg wrote the entirety of Palo Santo. As a biologist, Jonathan has a particular perspective. The songs of Palo Santo were partly written at the Galápagos Islands in the footsteps of Charles Darwin. And he evolves with beautiful ‘pictures’ of nature at Rook.
A Rocket Named Justice – The Sparrow & The Whale [demo] [2009]
http://www.wix.com/arocketnamedjustice/a-rocket-named-justice
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Megafaun – Gather, Form and Fly [2009]
http://www.myspace.com/megafaun
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Wye Oak – The Knot [2009]
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Murder By Death – Split with Amanda Palmer [2009]
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