ah, yes. its time once again for a joy electric album! truly the happiest time of year!!! i was very excited to get this one, considering that the last album, 'the otherly opus', was their best since 'the white songbook'.in this album ronnie has once again gone in a different direction. with his last album the focus was squarely on the vocals, which led to some beautiful layered harmonies. but this time, he shifts back to an equal weighting between vocals and music. the singing on this album is not quite as melodic and airy as his last effort, but the vocal shift is not too drastic, there was a bit stronger vocals similar to this on 'red will dye these snows of silver'. its a bit of a change, but still good.
the thing that continually impresses me about this band is its ability to write a catchy tune. as i listened to it through the first time i had a bit of a strange feeling- though it was only the first time i had ever heard them, they felt like songs i had known all my life! as i listened i wondered 'how could this have never been written before?!?' i guess that just speaks to the amazing gift ronnie has with writing a catchy melody.
the tune that immediately struck me as a favorite was 'whether by horse, or horseless'. it is a beautiful melody, and surprisingly deep lyrics. this is true of the entire album, ronnie seems to have taken his songwriting to a new level. gone are the constant references to lilly pads and gumdrops, replaced by honest critiques of love and relationships. i always loved the light hearted aspects to his lyrics before, but it is a welcome change to hear some deeper thoughts.
the pinnacle of the album is definitely the title track. the song is actually a trilogy of songs, bookended by instrumentals that echo the melody and guide us to the song and out into the bigger picture being presented.
an impressive addition to the joy electric catalogue. it will spend many many months in my cd player...
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