Okkervil River continue to break the glass between messy nerves and orchestrated elegance on their fourth full-length, Black Sheep Boy, titled after the lovely song penned by Tim Hardin with which the band opens the record. However, their take on the song feels a bit rushed and uneventful, which knocks the tender breath from the lyrics and presents a clumsy start. Opening the record this way is the singular yet major complaint of the album, ironically pushing "Black Sheep Boy," the intended centerpiece, to the outskirts of the album's overall feel. Thankfully, the song spans only a short minute, so when "For Real" gently slips into motion, then cracks with a surprise beating of guitar stabs, that's when the confident dynamics Okkervil River established on their fine 2003 album, Down the River of Golden Dreams, break free. This confidence never wanes through the remainder of the album; it is here that the bandmembers sound like they are emotionally attached to the material and here that the album should've begun. Black Sheep Boy's mix of warm strings with Wurlitzer, barroom piano, horns, and vibes effectively creates a spatial and moody balance to the electric guitar attacks and roomy drums. With these songs, clear desperation creeps through and gives the impression that the band could've fallen to pieces at any moment -- but somehow held it all together -- and the catalyst of the whole passage is Will Sheff's thick, spitting voice pleading with the cascading dissonance and majesty of the arrangements. Tracks like "In a Radio Song," a song similar to the moody explorations of Saturday Looks Good to Me's precursory group, Flashpapr, are where these arrangements take the foreground, but equally effective are the forward, uptempo tracks that are less expansive, such as the super-hooky "The Latest Toughs," with its compressed falsetto singsong backing vocals, and the bouncy screaming "Black." Save the title track, Okkervil River continue to deliver the quality of Down the River of Golden Dreams, and though sonic evolution is barely existent from that recording, perhaps it doesn't need to be; certainly Sheff's songwriting still floats above that of his peers.
Rating: 9It's friday...the ol' office chair manages to press against my spine in so many terrible ways... the crisp fall air bounces off the office window, unable to penetrate through, and i'm left to breath the stale, sterile, modulated oxygen pumping from the office vents... it's time for a little emotion. A little angst. Cue up Okkervil River... If you've never heard Will Sheff dig into h...
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Wed 22 August 2007 - "Okkervil River":http://www.last.fm/music/Okkervil+RiverReviewCheck out the full review over at "pitchforkmedia":http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/20552-black-sheep-boyWill Sheff sounds mad. Not angry mad, but the other mad-- nearly hysterical. On Okkervil River's fourth album, Black Sheep Boy, he oversings beyond the limits of taste and vocal cords, eithe...
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Duuuude. So today I finally went up to Volume, my favorite local record store, and stocked up on some new music. Get this - Adam, the guy that owns it, got a promo poster from Menomena in the mail, and he saved it for me and gave it to me today. It's fucking awesome, it has all this cool artwork on it and stuff. So this is what I picked up on vinyl:*The Worst of Jefferson Airplane*, which i...
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It snowed! It snows here maybe once a year, and melts by morning. But this weekend "it snowed for real":http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2006/11/27/bc-schools.html! I was in Vancouver, where it snowed first, and then I spent seven hours trying to get home to Victoria while the storm was moving over here. Epic snow!After the long, soul-crushing adventure with travel delays and col...
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I sometimes wish that Okkervil River's album Black Sheep Boy was a person so I could make out with it; It's that good.
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Ok...now that I have vented about this ridiculous living situation I feel better...and I will post about music! I have been loving the latest Okkervil River record, The Stage Names, so much that I dove into some of their older stuff today to get reacquainted. I had forgotten how much I loved their album Black Sheep Boy, and specifically the song 'A Stone'...I'd be willing to bet everyone has an...
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Rating: 9It's friday...the ol' office chair manages to press against my spine in so many terrible ways... the crisp fall air bounces off the office window, unable to penetrate through, and i'm left to breath the stale, sterile, modulated oxygen pumping from the office vents... it's time for a little emotion. A little angst. Cue up Okkervil River... If you've never heard Will Sheff dig into h...
More >
Okkervil River were on Letterman and performed 'Pop Life' from their 2008 release "The Stand Ins". You can watch the performance below. Okkervil River - Song of Our So-Called Friend [zshare]
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Duuuude. So today I finally went up to Volume, my favorite local record store, and stocked up on some new music. Get this - Adam, the guy that owns it, got a promo poster from Menomena in the mail, and he saved it for me and gave it to me today. It's fucking awesome, it has all this cool artwork on it and stuff. So this is what I picked up on vinyl:*The Worst of Jefferson Airplane*, which i...
More >
It snowed! It snows here maybe once a year, and melts by morning. But this weekend "it snowed for real":http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2006/11/27/bc-schools.html! I was in Vancouver, where it snowed first, and then I spent seven hours trying to get home to Victoria while the storm was moving over here. Epic snow!After the long, soul-crushing adventure with travel delays and col...
More >
And I think I believe that if stones could dream, they’d dream of being laid side-by-side, piece-by-piece, and turned into a castle for some towering queen they’re unable to know. And when that queen’s daughter came of age, I think she’d be lovely and stubborn and brave, and suitors would journey from kingdoms away to make themselves known. And I think that I know the bitter dismay of a lo
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Wed 22 August 2007 - "Okkervil River":http://www.last.fm/music/Okkervil+RiverReviewCheck out the full review over at "pitchforkmedia":http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/20552-black-sheep-boyWill Sheff sounds mad. Not angry mad, but the other mad-- nearly hysterical. On Okkervil River's fourth album, Black Sheep Boy, he oversings beyond the limits of taste and vocal cords, eithe...
More >
I sometimes wish that Okkervil River's album Black Sheep Boy was a person so I could make out with it; It's that good.
More >
| Title | Lyrics | Buy |
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| 1 Black Sheep Boy |
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| 2 For Real |
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| 3 In a Radio Song |
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| 4 Black |
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| 5 Get Big |
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| 6 A King and a Queen |
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| 7 A Stone |
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| 8 The Latest Toughs |
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| 9 Song of Our So-Called Friend |
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| 10 So Come Back, I Am Waiting |
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| 11 A Glow |
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Click to purchase…
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 "Black Sheep Boy")
