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| | Monsters Of Folk | | | Music Artist : | | Monsters Of Folk | | Music Style : | | General | | Record Label : | | Shangri-La | | Release Date : | | 2009-09-22 | | Store Price : | | $18.98 | | Artistopia's Price: $7.99 | | Usually ships in 24 hours | | |
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CD Tracks/Songs
Disc 11. Dear God ( sincerely M.O.F.)
2. Say Please
3. Whole Lotta Losin'
4. Temazcal
5. The Right Place
6. Baby Boomer
7. Man Named Truth
8. Goodway
9. Ahead of the Curve
10. Slow Down Jo
11. Losin Yo Head
12. Magic Marker
13. Map of the World
14. The Sandman, the Brakeman and Me
15. His Master's Voice
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Other Artist Albums
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Customer Reviews of This Album/CD |
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 Monsters Folk The World
Submitted on: 2009-11-20 |
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In one of the more unlikely combos since Tinted Windows came out this year, Jim James (or as he has taken to calling himself Yim Yames) of My Morning Jacket, blues/folkie M Ward and Dylanesque folk-monger Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes have teamed up to mingle their overlapping tastes for this album. Add producer and Bright Eyes multi-instrumentalist Mike Mogis, and you get a thoroughly enjoyable folk album that draws on each members' individual bests.
I got to see the Monsters on tour at Philadelphia's Academy of Music and was astonished at just how well these guys blended together. Oberst is probably the closest thing to an old-school folkie of the bunch, with Ward being more a blues singer and James adding a southern accent to MMJ's psychedelic pop-rock. When they unleash a traditional folk song like "Man Named Truth," they hit everything dead center. James brings in the Neil Young school of other-worldliness, used best on the closing "His Master's Voice" or the The Grateful Dead sound-alike "The Right Place." Ward leads on "Slow Down Jo" and the others add harmonies that hold up the Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young comparisons that have been tossed at this album.
That kind of hype is a bit unfair to the band, as the Monsters don't seem to have an agenda like CSN did, and "The Travelling Folkberries" seems more apt. There's plenty of great moments here, like "Map Of The World," "Say Please" and the previously mentioned songs. But there's also the occasional trip-up, like the pretentious opener, "Dear God," or the tossed off sounding "Goodway." But again, when they hit the bulls-eye, this is some top-flight stuff. And I have to add, after seeing him playing live, Jim James is a real monster...on guitar. Even more so than the denseness of his MMJ albums reveals. |
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 conor oberst is a monster of folk
Submitted on: 2009-11-18 |
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| so i bought this album at hot topic because conor is a monster of folk. there is something about his voice and his lyrics from Bright eyes that make you feel like he understands you and he puts in words so eloquently. |
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Didn't know them, now I do.
Submitted on: 2009-11-14 |
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I have to admit the only member I was even remotely aware of was Conor Oberst, who was featured in a RS piece some months ago. A brief mention of this venture was all I remember, other than his hiatus from making genius music.
So, I was intrigued when my wife bought this album from Sound Garden Records in Syracuse, NY before we attended the SSO concert that night. We listened before going into the symphony and we both thought it "just ok".
My wife brought it to work and played it in the vault for a couple of days and brought it home without a word. Later that week I took it out and asked her how it was received. She said that it just seemed to go a bit unnoticed and wasn't great background music (she works with cancer patients and plays music during the radiation treatments).
I started listening to it a couple of weeks ago, to and from work, and it has surely grown on me. One of the reviews I read stated that this effort seemed to lack cohesiveness and was a bit disjointed. Although it does exhibit these two results, I think it's to be expected from this so-called "supergroup", especially theme-wise (as was implied in the critique), song-to-song.
But, musically, these four sound like they have been together as a band for years and are at that point in a band's career where its time to compile a "Greatest Hits" record. I think the music is just that good and the musicianship is simply stellar. Each song has a distinct flavor all its own, which speaks to the talent of each member, and the depth of talent and richness of melody each can bring. The lyrics are a real treat as well and don't let the listener down.
Let me give my song by song run down:
1. Dear God (Sincerely M.O.F.)--Deeply moving, spiritual song.
2. Say Please--Killer guitar. Beat is Beatlesque with strong influence of
Harrison.
3. Whole Lotta Losin'--Credence opening. Petty vocals. Travelin Wilbury
vibe. This isn't a copy, though. Its original; the real thing.
4. The Right Place--The second most folksie song on the record. A great
little ditty.
5. Baby Boomer--The first most folksie song on the record. Can you say I was
influenced by Arlo Guthrie ladies and gentleman? Great lyrics/commentary,
too.
6. Man Named Truth--Great pickin'. The third most folksie song on the
record. The mandolin shines through. Great story tellin', too.
7. Goodway--The most "country" of them all. An interesting element to this
song is the "excerpt from an anonymous letter read immediately before being
burned" inserted at the end of the song, read quietly, just audible below
the melody.
8. Ahead of the Curve--Great country rock acoustic number.
9. Slow Down Jo--Great vocal harmonies on this one. Like its name, it slows
things down and brings vocals together, at times, mixed with a terrific
steel guitar.
10. Losin to Head--So Beatles. All Beatles. Again, this is not imitation that
feels wrong, but is original with distinct influential undertones. There is
a guitar in this song that sounds like John was brought into the album to
play guitar (no not George, I know).
11. Magic Marker--The first time you are reminded of the "How many licks does
it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop", and you think, "What are
they bringing that up for?" But, the nostalgia is brought along with a
melody and harmonizing done so well that, in the end, you feel yummy just
like the song. There is a guitar part in the center and it tastes oh-
so-sweet.
12. Map of the World--Good song. From the website: "James, who has lately been
producing solo material under the moniker Yim Yames, concurs: `It was very
peaceful and hilarious. No ego. No drama. Just a lot of song-trading and
ideas floating around and good times. We worked hard on the songs and the
ideas, but it never felt strenuous or rushed. There were several moments
during the Malibu sessions where we would all be in the room recording all
at once - on `Map of the World,' for example, or `Losin Yo Head' -- and
they were really magic. I think we all felt like we were in high school
again, picking up new instruments for the first time and just losing
ourselves to the moment and having fun.'"
13. The Sandman, The breakeman and Me--Classic train song. Well done.
14. His Master's Voice--If you don't have a spiritual side, maybe the subject
matter will be off-putting. For me, the subject matter combined with the
acoustic guitar and vocals make this one simply magical. probably my
favorite one on the record.
Buy it today.
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Monsters surprises, impresses and grows on you
Submitted on: 2009-11-13 |
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You always have to worry when disparate artists join together for the not-so-novel "supergroup," but the team on Monsters of Folk deliver the goods. It is a cohesive collection that plays as if the four artists have done this before, and the results make it one of my favorite new albums of the year. Their voices compliment each other beautifully; the songs are eclectic but always accessible.
You have to love an album that you can listen to time and again and find yourself loving more and more on each listen. And just see if you don't find yourself humming the melodies long after the music is turned off!
Here's hoping Monsters of Folk tour the festival circuit in 2010. |
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Fantastic Album
Submitted on: 2009-11-05 |
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| Didn't know any of these artists before I got this album. My husband read a review in The Week magazine and asked for this album for his birthday. I loaded it on my IPOD and started listening to it and really fell in love with it. Seems like many different styles not just one. Hope this group stays together as it works. |
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