Mumford and Sons - Sigh No More
Rating
RIYL
Fleet FoxesArcade Fire
Glen Hansard
Release Date
02/16/2010
Label
IslandTracklist
1. "Sigh No More"2. "The Cave"
3. "Winter Winds"
4. "Roll Away Your Stone"
5. "White Blank Page"
6. "I Gave You All"
7. "Little Lion Man"
8. "Timshel"
9. "Thistle & Weeds"
10. "Awake My Soul"
11. "Dust Bowl Dance"
12. "After The Storm"
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It’s strange to think that an album so heavily influenced by bluegrass, folk and southern gospel could be one of the most lush and beautiful records in recent memory, but Sigh No More definitely fits the bill. Somehow the Londonite trio Mumford and Sons (composed a guy named Mumford and 3 other guys who are not his sons) have created an album that would likely fit in a pickin’ jam in some barn in the prohibition era South, and will also most likely be relished in the most elite hipster bar.
The first thing that hits you when you listen to Sigh No More are the gorgeously lush harmonies that come at the listener at the outset of the title track. The singers definitely have a gift for creating rich and dense harmonies on par with anything ever done by The Fleet Foxes or The Beach Boys. But where band like The Fleet Foxes get boring relatively quickly, Mumford and Sons inject exciting dynamics to change things up. After beautiful, but fairly bland, harmonies for the first minute of the song, “Sigh No More” opens up into a densely orchestrated hoedown with pounding floor toms, horns, strings, organs, banjos and the same soaring harmonies they already proved to be so deft at. The transformation of the song from tame to raucous occurs pretty quickly, with only a quick swell of sound between them, but it is a welcome change, proving the band to be adept at creating dynamic layers and swells of sound to reel the listener in. The drums pound at a steady and trance inducing pace, and it soon becomes irresistible to not close your eyes and feel the beauty and weight of the music.
In fact, the band is so adept at the formula of loud/quiet dynamics with an emphasis on lush, soaring harmonies and pounding, steady rhythms that they utilize it in every song on the album (except for the delicate “Timshel”, which stays quiet, despite forceful harmonies). Songs like “Little Lion Man”, “Awake My Soul” and the standout “Roll Away Your Stone” are upbeat, major-key ditties that have fleeting moments of quiet that soon give way to exploding voices and instruments, creating a feel of musical ecstasy and rapture. This may sound like hyperbole, but the eruption of sound at the end of “Awake My Soul”, with layers of harmonies piling on higher and higher borders on orgasmic and is so beautiful that it leaves this reviewer feeling emotionally spent after hearing it.
“White Blank Page” and “I Gave You All” are more minor-key affairs which lean more heavily towards the introspective before exploding in levels of devilish intricacy towards the end of the songs. “I Gave You All” is a classic song of regret about past loves, complete with mournful horns, piercing percussion and backup vocals that sound like wailing ghosts. While lead vocalist Marcus Mumford definitely displays a scruffy and soulful vocal prowess (not unlike Glen Hansard in the film Once) in every song, it is in the minor tracks that she shows his true range. In the aforementioned “I Gave You All”, his voice moves from broken and sad to angry and accusing. In the swinging great depression throwback “Dustbowl Dance”, he sounds absolutely murderous when he seethingly shouts, “I’ll go out back and I’ll get my gun / you haven’t met me yet I’m the only son,“ over uncharacteristically loud clanging cymbals and frenzied atonal electric guitar squeals.
Although there have been some great releases recently in the old-timey folk revival in today’s music scene, Mumford and Sons are obviously and deservedly vying to be kings of that scene. While staying true to central tenets of folk and bluegrass, they have infused their music with urgency, relevance, depth and beauty. Sigh No More is lush, dense, beautiful and just plain irresistible. To put it bluntly, this is a near flawless album that needs to be listened to.
--Stephen Harris
Comments
I love this record so much. It was one of my top releases from last year. Incredible band.
http://www.myspace.com/paulson
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http://www.GetFreshUSA.com
Sounds pretty diabetic. Banjo's rule.
San Jose, CA
Good album, but a little forgettable
last.fm/user/thetsaiguy
Dallas, Texas
It's good shit.
Sunshine Coast, Australia
"If you want something done right, get a fucking Australian band to do it" - Chris Cheney
Porland, OR
There are parts of the album that pass by without really catching my attention, but the stronger moments on the album cannot be matched by much of anything out there.
www.inwiththeawesome.blogspot.com
Fishers, Indiana
Chiming in a year later to say that I love this album. "White Blank Page" may just be the most epic folk song I've ever heard.
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These guys are ok, but it amazes me that people love these guys and have never heard of the Avett Brothers. A much better band, IMO.