Silver Jews - Tanglewood Numbers
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Free Music Notes for Tanglewood Numbers
Free Music Review: Love it to the Max!
Hit: 4 Stars
If any of my frivolous nuisance lawsuits against Fortune 500 companies ever bear financial fruit, I would take some of my proceeds and hire David Berman to be "artist-in-residence" at my garlic farm / spiritual retreat. This is a tremendous record, noisy and accessible, with poetic lyrics and crisp production. The Eggleston photo of Martin, Bobby, and John on the front cover does an excellent job of getting this record started. Highly recommended and the perfect length for a recording - in and out in 35 minutes!Free Music Review: very good very quickly
Hit: 5 Stars
i found this album by way of cdnow.com's similar artists links and the people that bought this also bought that section. usually they send me some random works but this time they sent a diamond. i never heard of the silver jews until about a week ago (so i missed their rather large catalog thus far) but this album alone made me a fan for life. the bassy lead vocals and the occasional female voice makes this countrified rock opus sound like the new pornographers jamming quick 3 minute songs with my morning jacket. this album is 35 mins long and every second is great. start at track 1 and after track 10 repeat repeat repeat!Free Music Review: I Saw God's Shadow on this World
Hit: 5 Stars
We all experience this. You find the perfect bar, you frequent it every chance you get, start to soak in its character, invite friends to experience it with you and question the strength of your friendship when they don't react the same, then as soon you're worried it'll lose its charm, you find another perfect bar. The Silver Jews are like that. Dave Berman doesn't release records on a regular basis, which works to his advantage, as it allows listeners to live in the worlds of the songs, decompose the lyrics for hidden meanings and memorize each chord progression. Then, just in time, a new one is presented to the world, and a new obsession is begun. The bar comparison is a tad inappropriate this time out, Tanglewood Numbers is an attempt by Berman to document the last years of drug and alcohol addiction, and subsequent rehabilitation. What's fascinating about it is how different it sounds from the last Jews album, and how rocking it is. This is due in no small part to the aforementioned Malkmus on guitar and his Pavement bandmate Bob Nastanovich on drums (both were members of the original SJ incarnation and record off and on with Berman.) Still intact are the lyrics that are the real draw to any Jews album. Sadly, I don't have the liner notes in front of me to quote, but suffice it to say that song titles include Sometimes a Pony Gets Depressed and How Can I Love You if You Won't Lie Down?
Free Music Review: It won't get more profound
Hit: 4 Stars
One thing the following reviews make clear: Jews' fans are weird, man. Look at some of the reviews below. What are these people thinking and/ or talking about?
I will give you the skinny: this album is a little more rocking than the other releases (i said, a little, meaning there are some nicely sprawling guitar parts--thank you Malkamus), it's pretty fun, and it's equally genius as some other Jews' albums. Even the depressing songs are funny: "I've been living in a k-hole/ ever since you went away" and "woncha take this magnet and put my picture back on your fridge". Those are just classy lyrics, I think. You probably already own this album, if you're reading this. But if not you should probably check this out. And buy this album, too, for the cover art, because it's really nice.
Free Music Review: Welcome back, old friend.
Hit: 4 Stars
It's difficult to believe that at one time, David Berman was known as little more than Stephen Malkmus' fluky college roommate. Now an accomplished writer with a collection of poetry (Actual Air) headed quickly towards cult status, and five acclaimed albums on the highly credible Drag City imprint, Berman seems to finally be getting his dues as an artist. In the time since his career-best album, Bright Flight, Berman settled down into life in Nashville, domesticated himself alongside his new wife Cassie, presumably drank 20,000 (more) beers, became addicted to some hardcore substances, and alas, attempted to take his life. A true poet indeed. Luckily, Berman lived to write another album, the results being the recently released Tanglewood Numbers.
Once recovered, Berman began spending his days at home, collecting modest royalty checks-living off of less than $25,000 per year, a ridiculously low amount, considering his 1998 album, American Water, was regarded by many critics to be the year's best release. In time, Berman got the writing bug like he never had before, eventually calling on his all-star cast of friends and past band members to help him record what was to become his fifth full-length album in the spring of 2005. Along for the ride on one of the years most anticipated indie releases was Bob Nastanovich (Pavement), Will Oldham (Bonnie `Prince' Billy/Palace), his wife Cassie (Linda to his Richard Thompson), Steve West (Pavement), Bobby Bare, Jr., Paz Lenchantin (A Perfect Circle), Mike Fellows, and on again-off again Joo, Stephen Malkmus.
As far as album formats go, aside from the absence of his customary instrumental composition, Berman's auteuristic habits continue to be a key element on Tanglewood. Yes, as has been the case with each of his works to date, Berman's vocal quality has once again changed. Album one saw a new artist that really wanted to sing showing youthful conviction, then there was the clever whip of a bearded Berman who seemed to secretly love country music on album number two. Album three saw Berman and Malkmus often sharing vocal duties to indie-friendly results while 2001's Bright Flight saw D.C. transformed into a raspy country singer with all the answers. Truth be told, if you were to listen to TN alongside any other Jews album, you might forget it's the same band. Sounding old and beaten, campy and funny, Berman finally seems to be just singing; not over-thinking or calculating, Tanglewood might be the first true account of what David Berman really sounds like.
Musically, TN takes a slight step away from the Americana sound of recent releases with oftentimes poppy art-rock compositions. The songs are strange yet immediate as Berman takes the role of a modern day Shel Silverstein. Some songs, such as "Sometimes a Pony Gets Depressed" and "Animal Shapes" seem to be borderline kids songs in the vein of the Silverstein-penned "A Boy Named Sue." A good portion of the remaining tracks are, more or less, children's songs for adults; check the titles alone, "How Can I Love You if You Wont Lie Down," "I'm Getting Back Into Getting Back Into You," and "Sleeping is the Only Love." Berman's lyrical quality, while clearly strange, is still very multifaceted and rewarding, most significantly the open account of his suicide attempt on "There is a Place." Also of note is the return of Berman's great storytelling ability on the seven minute, word heavy-epic, "The Farmer's Motel," which is co-written by Stephen Malkmus.
Since the release of his second album, The Natural Bridge in 1996, Berman has been the songwriter to watch, delivering the indie classic American Water, as well as the Americana gem, Bright Flight. While the writing on TN can't stand up to such past masterworks as "I Remember" and "Random Rules," Berman has no doubt released another poignant collection that's sure to keep all his songwriter chums in check.
Everyone has a different Jews album of choice, and while Tanglewood Numbers might be his first release not to outdo it's predecessor, it still stands as a reflective, solid piece of work for Berman; and given the circumstances surrounding it, maybe the most important of his career. If you "get it," TN will leave you laughing, crying, and searching for the "repeat all" function. How many people really "saw God's shadow on this world?" Berman has, and as he sings "there was a place past the blues I never want to see again," on the closing track-you know he'll be back soon with more stories, jokes and coy insight.
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