S. Carey - "Two Angles"

Most people know Sean Carey from his work alongside Justin Vernon in Bon Iver, as the group's resident drummer but the man is also a talented solo artist in his own right. Releasing his debut album All We Grow in 2010, S. Carey is now set to release a brand new set of tunes in the form of his Hoyas EP.

The new tune "Two Angles" is a bit of a departure from All We Grow which features rushes of emotion and artistic moment-capturing. Instead we get a much more experimental. The layering of S. Carey's debut is still there however instead of clarinets, piano, and drums, Carey goes a bit more digital. It's a new direction but one that is no less entrancing - one that makes you anticipate the EP's release.



S. Carey's Hoyas EP is out May 8th on Jagjaguwar.

Bon Iver releases video for "Holocene"

Proving that you never really can predict what he'll do, yesterday Justin Vernon premiered the all new video for "Holocene" off current summer fave Bon Iver, Bon Iver on the National Geographic website. You might be asking yourself: Why National Geographic? Because, like bandmate S. Carey, Vernon had his video shot in the wilds of the Nordic north. Director Nabil Elderkin has captured the lovely Icelandic landscape in all it's microcosmic glory: pairing rocky volcanic region with expansive green fields, frosty glaciers, and peaceful shorelines. Though Vernon has handed conceptual duty to Elderkin on this one, it captures the same sort of dramatic nature-inspired simplicity as "Calgary".

Enjoy the video for "Holocene":

Bon Iver releases new video for "Calgary"

With almost a week to go until his album's release, Bon Iver has released an official video for the album's first single "Calgary". The video begins simple, with large blocks of ice and snow floating in a water before the camera pans out to reveal a bed that sort of gives birth to a woman. First she appears as a image on it (Not unlike a Japanese body pillow) before she is pushed out and becomes corporeal. That pretty much sets the stage for the rest of the video which has her traveling through a swampy area before eventually meeting up with other people who no doubt went to the same trials she did.

The video is artsy and imaginative, without being pretentious. Sure, it's cryptic but the plot is actually rather easy to follow despite the elusiveness of it's meaning. It's a pretty cool way to feature the song. Not bad, Justin Vernon, not bad. Watch the new video for "Calgary":

Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver (2011)

Album opener "Perth" with it's martial drums and swooping brass sets the stage for Justin Vernon's latest venture: a much more loud and grandiose effort than debut For Emma, Forever Ago. "Perth" with its complexity, organic growth, and depth wouldn't be out of place on an Explosions in the Sky CD if not for Vernon's vocals. Bon Iver manages to use the skills Vernon gained from his multitude of other projects and display them without actually replicating anything he's done before. Departing from his creaky, Wisconsin cabin where he recorded For Emma, Bon Iver, Bon Iver is brighter and yet sometimes just as wintery. It continues with Bon Iver's heavenly sense of quiet even with its use of flittery string arrangements, bolstering brass, and electronic hisses and hums.

In waiting awhile to return to Bon Iver, Vernon has essentially ensured that the music remains fresh, sincere, and largely different than his first outing. Sure, the songs still pack their emotional punches but remains staunchly diverse. Bon Iver, Bon Iver is an album that manages to transcend the boundaries of track names and title, with each track cascading into the next with very little warning. It's incredibly easy to put the album on and forget about everything else til it's all over and the dust settles. And that's a skill Vernon has mastered with surprising efficiently. Each track differs from the other and yet remains part of the same grand tapestry that Vernon has woven, held together by an dizzying amount of sonic experimentation and Vernon's always soul-rousing tenor.

Bon Iver is now streaming at both NPR and the NY Times until it's release on 6/21.

Bon Iver releases "Calgary"

Justin Vernon has always been the sort of man who keeps his hands in many pots, joining project after project, creating band after band, holing up in random secluded cabins in Wisconsin when time allows. So when he announced that there would indeed be a follow up to Bon Iver's For Emma, Forever Ago, color me surprised. I had thought the man was far too busy with his various side projects to even think about revisiting his Bon Iver moniker. Well now, Vernon is giving listeners a taste of the new album he's been teasing at in the form of new track/single "Calgary". The first of his place-inspired tracks it combines what fans love about Bon Iver: the slow building sonic cloud and Vernon's falsetto with a newfound form. "Calgary" is similar to Bon Iver's normal dewy, atmospheric vibe but is essentially a two part-er without actually committing to it. Not entirely. The second part is where things thaw, get brighter, more uplifting. It's enough to make you absolutely giddy for the album's release - only you know in a more relaxed, zen-like way.

Preview Bon Iver's new album with "Calgary"