Bon Iver - 22, A Million

Bon Iver
22, A Million
2016
Spotify

Did you hear it? The shriek of bearded glee echoing from the "coolest" cities in the US? All of hipsterdom has united in celebration because their golden god Bon Iver is back and they can pretend it's six years ago again. However this is not the Bon Iver you have grown used to, his new record 22, A Million is incredibly experimental, glitchy and haunting all at once. It is a real departure from his neo-folk roots that is interesting yet rarely melodic. The sound of the record is lush and expansive while being minimal at the same time. However it does feel directly tied to Anohni's Hopelessness coming to the same sonic conclusions but while Anohni was trying to make a protest album for 2016 Bon Iver is more focused on relationships and uncertainty. Much of the album retains Bon Iver sweetness even if the subject matter has changed, but the delivery seems much more like an artist trying something new, or using a new instrument they just found. It all seems disjointed and off kilter from the start and the first time it seems to actually come together in a real way is on "666 t" (the T is upside down in the real track title). That song seems to be where we were going all along but the fact that it took six tracks of fucking around to get there is maddening. There is also the issue of the sound fading in and out like a messed up record or something. Perhaps this is meant to be cute or give the spirit of listening on Vinyl, but it ends up being so damn annoying and cliche.

"21 MooN WATER" is one of the more egregiously experimental track on the record, and it seems like He is just throwing sounds together because He can. But for a song like "21 MooN WATER" that really does suck, there is a track like "8 (circle)" which takes all the things Bon Iver has been fooling around with and puts them together expertly. "8 (circle)" may very well go down as one of the best songs of the year and this album could be absolutely full of them, but sadly it is not. The song also might be more of a throwback to early Bon Iver, but musically it is right in line with the direction of this current album. The final third is much more composed and focused that the early parts, allowing for melody, but that twitchiness still remains throughout. It doesn't feel like Bon Iver is going for some kind of gimmick here, but It does seem that the things he wants to do He may not be able to do just yet. Clearly the man is an incredible songwriter and his body of work speaks for itself, but this album is very aware that it is making a very particular impression, and it is Bon Iver almost putting a thumb into the eye of his previous work. He is basically asking the audience "what will it take for you to not like me", and seemingly their response is that it is almost impossible. Love him or hate him his talent is undeniable, this album however falls a bit short.

7.2 out of 10