Thursday, February 17, 2011

sigh no more

I have kind of a love/hate relationship with Mumford & Sons.

Their debut record, Sigh No More, has gotten mixed reviews. Pitchfork only gave it a 2.1, other online music websites have given lukewarm reviews, but I do have a lot of other friends with respectable taste who like it. So, I bought it.

At first listen it's pleasant. The songs are mostly upbeat, catchy and full of pretty solid harmonies. Some of the first songs have interesting crescendos and they're emotionally charged. They are talented instrumentalists as well...I really dig the banjo parts. So I thought maybe I liked them.

Then I kept listening. And I thought for a second that iTunes was on repeat. But it wasn't...the songs just sound the same. Those lovely harmonies that first peaked my interest grew tired and kind of sad, the crescendos and the raw emotional became predictable.

This leaves me at a crossroads since I do like some of the songs. I really like their style too; they're cute. And honestly, Marcus Mumford great alliterative name. Enjoy this video...they are great performers.

2 comments:

Alyssa said...

I find some of the lyrics to be overwrought. For instance, I love the instrumentals and chorus of "Awake My Soul," but that opening verse ("How fickle my heart and how woozy my eyes/I struggle to find any truth in your lies") is just a tad overdone.

carina said...

Agreed. The other thing that bugs me about that song is the tempo. I could tell that something was off, but it took me a while to figure it out. The whole song is in 4/4 time, but for some reason they just speed up halfway through. It doesn't change, just is faster. And that annoys me.