Heartland

Heartland by Owen Pallett

Owen Pallett may or may not be a name that you know already, seeing as he just recently dropped the moniker Final Fantasy due to confusion and possible trademark issues. Either way Owen Pallett is a name that should stick with you, because the music that he produces is brilliant. So brilliant in fact that he's produced string sections for Beirut, co-wrote string sections for Arcade Fire's "Funeral", wrote string sections for The Last Shadow Puppets debut, and much more. Upon first listen most will notice the glaring similarities of Owen and the revered Andrew Bird. The comparison is not very far-fetched seeing as Owen uses the same violin loop pedal style as Bird and does so just as well. Heartland is Owen's third studio album under the Final Fantasy/Owen Pallett name and is a concept album based on "Lewis, a young, ultra-violent farmer, speaking to his creator" and that's quoting the man himself.

Heartland opens with a track that immediately draws you in with it's unique blend of poppy hooks, electronic beats, and violin parts on "Midnight Directives". The rest of the album follows the trend of the first track in the way that all of the tracks sound a bit similar but also have their own individual feel to them. Each song sounds like it should be in the soundtrack to a wacky 'Alice in Wonderland' type dream, and I mean that in the best way possible. Pallett's brilliance shines through the most on the track "The Great Elsewhere" which has such a grandiose sound one can't help but want to put it on repeat and listen to it for hours. However, you shouldn't do that...at least not on the first listen. The album flows together in a brilliant way, the upbeat orchestral masterpieces are woven together with the softer more somber songs in a way that can't be described, only heard. The scary part about the whole thing is that he has been putting out albums for less than ten years...just imagine where he will be in the next ten. Owen Pallett is certainly over looked when it comes to discussions about brilliant composers but if he continues to churn out such beautiful pieces of music then that won't be for very long.

Rating: 8/10

Standout Tracks: "Midnight Directives", "The Great Elsewhere", "Tryst With Mephistopheles"

Contra

Contra

by Vampire Weekend

Vampire Weekend were thrusted into the limelight early in their career and had their debut album hailed as the best of 2008. Their self titled was certainly worthy of all the praise that it got, it was definitely very catchy and very upbeat and the songwriting was fantastic. However, as most bands get their naysayers once they've risen to the top, Vampire Weekend got the haters coming from the very beginning. Many didn't think that they were deserving of all the fame that they got from the album, most people immediately throwing the "hipster bullshit" label on them. Vampire Weekend certainly had a lot to prove with their second studio album, "Contra". The band had a chance to prove the haters wrong if they followed up their self titled debut with something bigger and better than the first album, which they definitely did with "Contra".

While the album is nowhere near as catchy as the debut, the album more than makes up for that in substance and individuality. The band meshes sounds from many different musical genres between the more electronic sounds that they've started using, the classic indie pop sound, orchestral sections, and the familiar African styled music from the first album. The album opens up with "Horchata", a calypso sounding song that echoes parts of the self-titled, much like the rest of the album, while still adding in new elements. "White Sky", the second track of the album, kicks in with a beat that at first reminded me of "One" from the first album, but immediately exceeds my expectations of the song. "White Sky" proves that the band can continue to add depth to their music without losing their catchy choruses. Ezra Koenig brings out that ever familiar falsetto in the song, making it one of the standouts of the album.

The album truly doesn't have a low point to it, all of the songs are very listenable and keep the listener waiting to see what the band is going to do next. Not to mention the lyrics on this album are far better than the last one. No longer do we have to hear about the love on the college campus, instead we get the quickly spat lyrics of "California English" that speaks on the nature of people and their need for commercialization in nearly everything around them. The albums first single, "Cousins", really sticks out as the strongest track on this album. The song perfectly encapsulates the "new" feel of Vampire Weekend, still catchy as hell but much deeper than your average indie-pop Ivy League band. The band has truly evolved in sound and style and I can only imagine where they hope to go from here with their next album, because the possibilities are truly endless.

Rating: 9/10

Standout Tracks: Cousins, Giving Up The Gun, California English, Taxi Cab