We'll be the next Omaha

It's now September, which for most of us in the Northern Hemisphere means that summer is ending and it's time to head back to school or work.

However, we all have a few favourite songs that serve as constant reminders of the freedom of summer days and the long evenings that seem to last forever. For me, 'The Great Salt Lake' by Band of Horses falls into that category, probably due in no small part to the awesomely low budget video:



Band of Horses - The Great Salt Lake (live)

The guys have been playing some brand spanking new songs during recent fesival appearances including 'Older', written by BOH keyboardist Ryan Monroe:

Band of Horses - Older (live at Glastonbury 2008)

- a.m.p.m.

Friday Grab Bag

Atlas Sound is the solo project from Deerhunter frontman Bradford James Cox. To be honest, I don't know a lot about Deerhunter but positive responses seem to be pretty common with most listeners. What caught my attention with this project is the intriguing album title, Let The Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel. The sound is understated but heavily layered, a bit in the vein of Panda Bear, but judge for yourself. "Quarantined" is the standout track, one of many on the album worth hearing.

Atlas Sound - Quarantined

Nico's "These Days" remains one of my favorite movie songs of all time, as it fit brilliantly within the distinctive confines of The Royal Tenenbaums. Band of Horses opener Tyler Ramsey has his own crack at it, slowing the tempo and singing with a contemplative croon that's quite akin to Neil Young. The song is the eighth track on Ramsey's album A Long Dream About Swimming Across the Sea, which may put you to sleep, but should not be slept on...

Tyler Ramsey - These Days
Tyler Ramsey - A Long Dream
Nico - These Days

- B.A.

Goin' Back To The South

Sure, it's borderline country if not outright rockabilly. Call it what you like, but 'Lamb On The Lam (In The City)' is currently my favourite track from Band of Horses' upcoming new album Cease to Begin. This toe-tapper features Ben Bridwell's newly confident and clear vocals, is infused with honky-tonk piano tinkling and layered acoustic guitars, and conveys a spirit of earnest Southern hospitality.

I can't stop listening to 'Ode To LRC' either; it is the album's second track and fits perfectly in its place following Cease to Begin's opener 'Is There A Ghost'. It starts off as a typical BOH rockout that wouldn't have been out of place on previous album Everything All The Time, but the track's fantastic tempo changes are masterfully pulled off and hint at the new level of maturity achieved by the band that can be heard throughout the album. And when Bridwell sings "the world is such a wonderful place" at the song's close, you know he really believes it.

Bridging the Atlantic already gave you all the new album details a little while ago. Now the album has been leaked, and after a few cursory listens it would appear that it could be as solid as Everything All The Time. In addition to the tracks mentioned above, 'Cigarettes, Wedding Bands' and 'No One's Gonna Love You' are growers that impress me more with each subsequent listen. Even 'Islands On The Coast', clocking in at just 52 seconds, is a microcosm of beauty that you'll want to hear over and over again. Considering that EATT was in many a blogger's top ten album list for 2006 (including mine), this could be major.

I'll be picking up my copy of Cease to Begin on October 9th; you should too.

- a.m.p.m.

Band of Horses - Lamb On The Lam (In The City)
Band of Horses - Ode To LRC

New Band of Horses Album/Songs

When I saw Band of Horses back in May at the Scala here in London the boys tested out a few songs from their soon to be released new album. At that time, no one in the venue knew the upcoming album name or song titles, but the audience's reception of the new material was enthusiastic, to say the least.

Turns out that the one new song that got everyone talking after the gig was 'Is There a Ghost'. This super-catchy little ditty was released on the band's myspace a few days ago and it will be the first track (and maybe the first single) on the new album.

'Ode to LRC' was also extremely well-received; check out this clip from a show in June (ignore the video - the sound quality is decent):

This new song is a bit more upbeat than the average BoH tune, and I found myself humming if for days afterwards:

The Horses declared that recording and production for the new album had wrapped at the end of June, and more recently revealed its title (Cease to Begin), cover art (see above), release date (October 9th) and tracklist:

01 Is There a Ghost

02 Ode to LRC

03 No One's Gonna Love You

04 Detlef Schrempf

05 The General Specific

06 Lamb on the Lam (in the city)

07 Islands on the Coast

08 Marry Song

09 Cigarettes, Wedding Bands

10 Window Blues

- a.m.p.m.

Band of Horses - Is There a Ghost

More of Everything

Although I'm always quick to embrace an excellent new single, I'm really a connoisseur of the quintessential quality album at heart. It's no wonder then that I'm a huge Band of Horses fan. Ben Bridwell and Mat Brooke were responsible for one of my favourite albums of 2006: Everything All The Time. I loved every single track; 'Funeral' and 'The Great Salt Lake' especially were in heavy rotation throughout the year.
Well, the boys will be back in the studio after completing their current tour and plan to release their sophomore album later this year. Nothing new has made its way onto the Interweb yet, but as tracks become available Bridging the Atlantic will be among the first to let you know. For now, I've managed to scrounge up a few BOH rarities you may not have heard. The live studio cuts of 'Wicked Gil' and 'I Lost My Dingle On The Red Line' are pensive and charming; this version of 'Wicked Gil' drastically differs from the album as it seems about 30% slower and 80% sadder. 'The End's Not Near' is a typical instantly catchy, irresistably relistenable Band of Horses track that feels like it would have fit perfectly in the middle section of Everything All The Time.
I've heard from a variety of sources that Bridwell purposely applied layers of effects to his vocals on EATT as he was not confident in his vocal skills. However, his voice comes through clean on these tracks and he really needn't have worried - it's excellent. I'm very much looking forward to seeing them here in London on May 22nd.

Band of Horses - Funeral (Original Version)
Band of Horses - Wicked Gil (Alternate Version)
Band of Horses - I Lost My Dingle On The Red Line
Band of Horses - The End's Not Near

-Andrew M