Folks,
The Avett Brothers, those bearded bards from Concord, North Carolina, released a new album, “The Gleam II” on July 22, 2008. I’ve been listening to these guys for a couple years now and have never been disappointed by any of their albums. “The Gleam II” is no exception. At only six songs it is a short release for the brothers who often put two to three times that may songs on their albums.
“The Gleam II” follows the format of it’s sister album, “The Gleam” which was released in the fall of 2006. Six songs, no frills, fleshed out emotion, The Gleam II is a great addition to the Gleam series.
As August approached quickly at the end of a rainy July this summer in northern New Mexico, where I was working, I hadn’t really been thinking about the Avetts, let alone a new album. Then a friend and co-worker of mine told me that the album came out. So, naturally i did what anyone in my place would have done, I got online and ordered the album. To ensure that i got my super saver shipping i ordered Tim O’Brien’s newest book “July, July” as well as a book on knitting and “The Gleam II.” But Amazon was being difficult that day and i had a hard time understanding the ordering website. I placed my order and went back to work, then realized an hour later that i had just made a big mistake. I had ordered the album on vinyl. This wouldn’t be such a big deal except that the only record player my family has is back home in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. And I wouldn’t being going home for about five months.
When i got my package in the mail, my fear was confirmed, i really had purchased “The Second Gleam” as it is known, on vinyl. Yes i got two bonus songs but i wouldn’t be able to listen to it for what seemed like an eternity. I moped for a little while then again, got back to work. That weekend I made the ten hour drive to Phoenix to visit with a friend of mine. On the way I stayed the night at the Zuni Indian Reservation in Zuni, New Mexico. I had an excellent time in Phoenix but on the ride back I was growing tired of the Uncle Tupelo and Country mix cds I had made for the trip.
After lunch at Fratelli’s, a tasty and inexpensive pizza joint in Flagstaff, Arizona, on a whim, I stopped at Barnes & Noble, just to see if they had the new album. They did.
I gladly spent a second eight dollars for the album, on a cd this time, and rushed to my car to take in what I hoped would be the best (although only) album i had purchased all summer.
The album starts out with the story song “Tear Down the House.” The guitar walks along with steady bass notes as the banjo plunks along a light afterthought of a harmony. The song tells the tale of the memories of a child hood home that is now gone. Timothy Seth Avett’s matter of fact singing makes this song sound like the escape from memories that the story is about. Lyrically it is classically Avett, clear, concise, girls and love. The line in the song that makes me really feel the music is:
“I remember cryin’ over you
and I don’t mean like a couple of tears and I’m blue
I’m talking about collapsing and screaming at the moon
but I’m a better man for having gone through it
yes I’m a better man for having gone through”
It’s lines like these that I think make the Avett’s so special. They reach into the pit of emotion and draw out a bucket of smiles, tears, and fury. I think they make it hard to avoid feeling deep connections with the words, the stories and the music itself, that they have given to all those who choose to listen.
The second track on the album is the much awaited studio version of “Murder in the City.” The song had been popular for more than a year before it was recorded and was a staple of the Avett’s live shows. The first time I heard the song I sitting around with a couple guys who were just jamming. One of them, who just happened to be from North Carolina, played this song and everyone’s jaws dropped.
Although the song is about dying, it is anything but sad. The the slow and bouncy guitar and Scotty Avett’s singing gives the song a restrained and joyous sound that is backed up by lyrics that are a musical epilogue for the singer’s life. The last line of the song:
“Always remember there was nothing worth sharing like the love that let us share our name”
is another one of the Avett moments that starts the tears welling up inside of you. I don’t know how the Avett’s parents, sister, and wives can listen to this song without breaking down into some screaming at the moon type tears. It is definitely one of the best of the best songs they have written and I would be willing to bet that it will be played at weddings and funerals for many of their fans.
The next song “Bella Donna” was definitely my least favorite song on the disc when I first heard it. Then something strange happened. I watched the video for the song on youtube and I changed my mind.
Something similar had happened when I read Jon Krakauer’s “Into The Wild.” I didn’t know what to think of Chris McCandless, then i saw the movie, saw the last scence, saw that picture of Chris in front of that bus and it hit me. It was beautiful, he wasn’t a martyr he wasn’t a fool he was just a guy looking for something and he found it then it was too late.
The video online features the brothers sitting side by side in front of an old piano. Their short haircuts make them look like little kids with big beards. A silent and sleeveless Scott picks his guitar as Seth sings a simple love song. What the video does for this song is show how much they believe in the song itself. Often you can hear the emotion from Avett songs but this is one where you need the visual. The package of audio and video together makes it easy for me to understand why this song is on the album and why the brothers think it is important.
Track 4 : The Greatest Sum
“Not even the Sun, not even the clouds, not even the past, no nothing that this world can bring or anything someone could do, could hold me back from you”
Straight-forward, rolling guitar with an eventual hint of a xylophone make this a calm and reflective tune that keeps the album moving into the last two tracks.
The second to last song on the album is “St. Josephs.” Seth sings high and clear as he documents the trials of a man and woman who deal with a difficult time in their life. My interpretation of this song is almost the antithesis to Ben Fold’s “Brick.” The Fold’s song about an emotional hospital visit for a tearful abortion in the dead of winter, is driving and catchy with light piano, bold cello and brisk percussion. The song is a hopeless apology with no resolution.
“St. Joseph’s” goes a different direction. The emotion is there and the situation is similar but “St. Joseph’s” like so many other Avett songs is, in the end, about love getting people through the hard times. Unlike in “Brick,” a child is born and the parents love for each other overcomes the emotional hurricane that came with the child.
“What was our reason for fighting
Selfish and centered at best
I give up on trying
To understand why we were blessed”
The man in the song admits to himself that everything he was feeling earlier wasn’t helping anything and that in the end, there is a blessing to be found.
The intricate riffs of both guitars that force the up and down melody, mirror the up and down words and theme that are all over the song. This song is a bit of a surprise but I really enjoy the absolute self denial and humility Seth brings to the album.
The last song on the EP is “Souls Like The Wheels.” I’m not that sure what the song is about, which probably isn’t a good way for me to end my review, but it’s the truth. The dynamic and syncopated guitar and voice only song goes a lot of places. It’s fast, it’s slow, it starts, stops, then starts again. It is a pleasant song with good intentions and mysterious lyrics.
It is an open-ended finale for an album that leans toward the sadder end of the feeling’s spectrum. “Souls Like The Wheels” is a solid transition out of an excellent record.
The Avett Brothers now have taken the beginning steps toward recording a new album with infamous producer Rick Rubin.
Rubin, most famous for his work with the Beastie Boys, Jay-Z, Johnny Cash and Neil Diamond, surely will bring the Avett’s to the forefront of the music scene. Who knows what is coming next from the Avett Brothers? I sure don’t. But “The Gleam II” may be a flagship album for them as their last recording for local, North Carolina based, Ramseur Records. What the boys sound like from year to year is up to them and often changing. But Avett fans can find comfort in “The Gleam II.” It captures what we love so much about the brothers and their songs, simple tunes with complicated messages that are overflowing with love, hate and everything else that makes us feel like the songs were written just for us.
1 Comment
September 9, 2008 at 2:35 am
Well struck. The REGA awaits.