[rating=3.50]
I’ve long wanted to be more into folk – or modern, folk-esque – music. I love the idea of it: nostalgic, simple, true to roots, etc. Indeed, I love seeing folk music live, and invariably leave each show swearing I’ll spend more time playing my banjo, guitar, or other musical instruments. Somehow, though, my ear rarely stays fixed for long on recorded folk music. I don’t know why – I’ve long thought that perhaps it is simply one of those things where “you need to be there.”
Upon first listen to The Red River’s Little Songs About The Big Picture, I was grabbed by its nods to Iron and Wine, Sufjan Stevens, the Cave Singers, and Animal Collective (and even occasional hints of early Bright Eyes, as on “Grand Fasse”). However, it’s got something more… it feels like something one could listen to on one’s porch, happily sipping some summery drink while rocking back and forth. It carries a melancholic joie de vivre, if that’s possible – a sense of awareness of things beyond one’s vision, carried all the while on a melody that reminds one of life’s short, bittersweet nature.
Occasionally, The Red River dallies into electro-pop land, as in the Postal Service-esque third track, “When We Are Wild” and the Sufjan Stevens-deadringer, “I Will Give Thanks.” However, even those tunes fail to move too boldly into territory that could be considered upbeat. That said: “St. Bernard’s Lily” is a dead-ringer for a never-released, upbeat Simon & Garfunkel song… minus Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel.
This is a solid album that will bear repeated listening, whether over a glass of wine and one’s own diary or in the company of dear friends.
Also worth noting: this is the first, and to date only, CD I’ve ever received wrapped in onion paper. I’m just sayin’.
