New Bon Iver Album: 'i,i' (Out 8/30/2019) *

"Hey Ma" sounds like Coldplay meets "Alvin & The Chipmunks"

 

Well, my wife and I just got tickets to see him in Missoula (I owed her since she has to go to Slayer with me) so we will have to pick this one up for the drive out there.

Indigo Girls are opening. That's an odd pairing, IMO.

 

I lost the way with Bon Iver after the second album. Was immediately in love with For Emma when it came out and felt lucky to have a record like that which it seemed nobody else knew of, like my own personal therapy.

I can’t blame Justin for changing and evolving, and you’re not going to bring everyone along with you, so all the luck in the world to him. I’ll always have those memories to look back on.

 

The new album has been released to streaming services, release date is 8/30.

 

Just saw that. Wonder if it leaked, or if he chose to do an early digital release.

 

According to Pitchfork, this was his doing.
On one listen it's very good, akin to the last Bon Iver and his work on the Big Red Machine album.

 

On Spotify it shows that he released all the tracks as singles in a playlist, rather than as an "album".

I'm not 100% sure as to how album sales data are tracked so this may be completely incorrect, but is it possible that he will release all the tracks as an album rather than a playlist on the 30th, and album steaming totals will then be boosted by the three weeks of "single" streams that he accumulated?

 

The full album is up normally on Spotify now. I gave it a listen. I'm sorry to say that it doesn't do much for me. I actually tried to listen to it last night but stopped after three songs because I was just not feeling it at all. I decided to try again today when I was more in a heavy listening mood and I'm still not feeling it. I liked the first two tracks released (and still do) but they are among the most melodic on the album. There's a lot of glitchy chopped up bits and falsetto and all the things that were on 22, A Million. I think the novelty has worn off for me and I found a lot of this album atonal and irritating.

I'm generally a fan of traditional song structure and organic sounds, so take that into consideration when reviewing my opinion. For Emma is my favorite Bon Iver album. We've wandered really far away from that.

 

i like it and after three listens it's starting to grow on me. i think the production, singing, etc. is fantastic but the melodies don't seem as developed as his other releases and therefore it may be a step down after three consecutive masterpieces.

 

The melodies are there, it just seems like he buried them a bit more this time around. I love this style that he's embraced, nothing is obvious, not the tune, not whatever it is he's getting at, it's all laid out, but it's never truly clear on the first few listens. The last two albums open up very slowly but when they do, they're beautiful. The Big Red Machine album is also highly recommended if you like Vernon in this mode.

 

you're saying the last two albums were growers, but i took to them immediately. regardless, it will be getting plenty of spins from me. Bon Iver is one of my favorite currently-working artists.

 

It would be nice if he would enunciate... no one is going to bitch about the autotune here like they do in every other thread?

I am listening on Spotify and am not impressed...

 

I like autotune.

 

I don’t mind it to be honest — but Madonna is especially crucified for using it and HE gets a pass...

 

Well, duh.

 

New album's fine, but I honestly think his best album is still "Repave" with Volcano Choir.

 

I kind of feel the same way. Lived with the debut for month. Saw an astonishing show in a small room on that tour. Really liked the second record and saw a further 3 brilliant shows. The third? Hard work - and I didn’t enjoy the show at all.

This one isn’t doing a great deal for me, either. Fair play for pushing the boundaries though...

 

I agree. That record is stunning. If it was a ‘Bon Iver’ album It would have gotten more love.

 

The opening of the album was not what I wanted to hear when I put it on after a day of work to feel calm. So, I waited a few hours and then gave it another go.

I like the new album, but can understand already seeing in here the word "grower", as to me it makes sense.

 

Love this album. Any feedback on the vinyl yet?

 

Man I haven't streamed the entire thing yet because I'm waiting for the vinyl to arrive this evening, but I love the videos he's put out. I think it's his best most interesting work yet. Seems like he's a more emotionally mature and confident artist, and the sound is a balance between his early sound and 22, a Million. It peels back those layers but still makes sense as a progression. Definitely more collaboration with his full band, a lot of th songs developed from jams of 5-6 people in a room playing together.

 

Ok, I’ve changed my mind. I really really like it..seems to cherry pick all of the things that made his other records so special.

 

This is a pretty great, in-depth interview with Justin about his life now and the new album. It helped me get into the right headspace to listen to his new songs:

 

Same with me really, still a big fan of Emma though, maybe i should check this stuff out ...

 

Haven't listened to the album yet, just wanted to give everybody a quick impression of the CD: the clear plastic printed sleeve and the digisleeve with its interplay of matte and glossy are beautifully made. The booklet is thick, and has only one flaw: the text is a little bit small (scaled down from the vinyl?).

DR values for those who are interested (is there any way to get DROffline to list them in the correct order?) ..