Love Is Simple is the sound of Akron/Family truly finding their feet as a band, and then stretching their limbs out as far as possible in many directions. A concept album only in the loosest sense, with its basic rubric concerning the core concepts of love of natural beauty, Love Is Simple is mostly riveting and only occasionally trying. For a band that already defies easy categorization, their fourth album is particularly all over the map; as the music races through vastly disparate styles, it veers between sounding whimsically profound and maddeningly fleeting. Despite its sheer charm, the constant shifts in mood assure that one will never be able to lose themselves completely to the album -- the joy is more in just watching it unfold. As the enigmatic Akron cult/band continues to expand its attention-deficit approach to eliminating easy classification, they end up moving even farther beyond the obvious "freak-folk" and "psychedelic" tags into all sorts of world music, classic rock, and post-rock. Perhaps the easiest way to understand this music, however, is to simply call it "indie rock," since an emerging trend with so many like-minded groups such as Animal Collective, Battles, and Deerhoof, is to forge similar paths into fractured indefinability. There's certainly enough neo-hippie guitar noodling and singalong chants to carry this material well into jam band territory, if it weren't for the precise structures and catchy melodicism which abound throughout. Akron/Family is one of those bands which make sense of an oxymoron like "planned improvisation." Coming after the subdued opening track, "Ed Is a Portal" is perhaps the prototypical track here, with its droning guitar line, tribal beat, and chanted, nonsensical lyrics dissolving into a beautiful Led Zeppelin-style acoustic break before everything slowly rebuilds again, only to end with a minute-long trip-hop excursion which feels like a completely new song. Indeed, it's difficult to think in terms of whole songs here rather than segments of songs -- even the track breaks start seeming arbitrary after awhile. The two extended tracks in the middle of the album, "Lake Song/New Ceremonial Music for Moms" and "There's So Many Colors" act as the centerpieces, and contain both the best and worst elements of Akron/Family's sound. The former contains a majestically subtle interplay between bells, acoustic guitar, light percussion, and vocal harmonies which adds a beautifully placed flamenco-esque guitar solo for maximum effect, but as the track shifts focus, it becomes increasingly grating, until the last three minutes are little more than meandering screams and noise. Immediately following that are the two minutes of chanted group singing that open "There's So Many Colors," which can make for a tough patch to get through -- that is, until a guitar starts playing a riff which quickly morphs from sounding like King Crimson to Spacemen 3 to Phish, bringing the song finally into a bluesy romp which becomes a definite winner. The latter half of Love Is Simple creates a more blissfully reflective mood all in all, with briefer, more self-contained songs such as "Pony's O.G." and "Crickets," which are a real pleasure, if not quite as memorable. Earlier, on "I've Got Some Friends," Akron/Family sings "That's how it should be/that's how it is." That outlook permeates through all the songs here -- the band will take any sound or aesthetic they feel like, and incorporate it into the grand scheme of things, no matter how unlikely the combination. Most often, this approach works wonders in creating a fascinating auditory journey which is satisfying on multiple levels.
“Now that my bodies grown the lonely heart poetryDroning in hearts becomes songs that all objectsSing to each other like friends telling stories” (from “Ed Is A Portal”)To compare Akron/Family to anything, you kind of have to compare them to everything. Either way, you’re risking a deserved reviewer’s remorse. While you can hear the classic rock influences so forcefully at moments, th
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2007 was poised for greatness. Around this time last year, we knew that we'd have new records from Modest Mouse, Arcade Fire, Radiohead, New Pornographers, PJ Harvey, Andrew Bird, Iron & Wine, and scores of other established acts. The future of popular music never looked brighter. And while none of those records were by any means terrible, my personal expectations were slightly less than met, a...
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Here's a track off the latest album from indie folk outfit Akron/Family, who record for Michael Gira's Young God label. The new album is Love Is Simple. Where's they ever get that crazy idea?
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...with Akron/Family's Love Is Simple. I'm all caught up in the bizarro - hippie-love - acid - trip - in - the - woods feel of the record, and I just keep hitting repeat. There have been plenty of "really good" records so far this year, but few have cut me to the core like this one. Definitely a contender for best of '07. Here's one of my favorite tracks:The album cover (more info on it "here":...
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After the Angels of Light brilliant record "We are Him":http://www.younggodrecords.com/product.asp?P_ID=46, it looks like "Young God records":http://www.younggodrecords.com/default.asp is about to release another contender for this year's best albums.According to Michael Gira, "Akron/Family":http://www.akronfamily.com/mainstreet.htm are _four extremely nice, sincere and well-mannered young men...
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The Brooklyn based four-piece folk group Akron/Family have announced the release of their second full length. ??Love Is Simple?? drop September 10 via Young God Records.In support of their sophomore venture, the group has also committed to a what a spokesperson described as a grueling North American tour.Akron/Family - "Love Is Simple"Following the release of their self titled debut in 2005 the...
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Forgive me in advance if this gets a little...well gets a little out there...in the ether. I was driving home tonight without my glasses (my eyesight isn't TOO bad but i should probably still wear glasses to drive) and i was listening to the Akron/Family album Love is Simple, and it struck me as something hypnotically human. I, like most of you, am a serious music listener. I take things apart,...
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“Now that my bodies grown the lonely heart poetryDroning in hearts becomes songs that all objectsSing to each other like friends telling stories” (from “Ed Is A Portal”)To compare Akron/Family to anything, you kind of have to compare them to everything. Either way, you’re risking a deserved reviewer’s remorse. While you can hear the classic rock influences so forcefully at moments, th
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Originally posted on Puddlegum.netAkron/Family is about to release the anticipated Love Is Simple, set for September 24 on Young God Records. The four piece is known for energetic live shows, and has received much love from music blogs for their experimental freak folk songs. Akron/Family spent two weeks tracking the album with Andrew Weiss (Ween) at Zion House Of Flesh in New Jersey.Akron/Fami...
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 "Love Is Simple")
