The Rock Blogger

Fleet Foxes . Ragged Wood . 2008. Sub Pop. 5 stars .

Seattle’s Fleet Foxes offer a beautiful slice of Americana with their debut album, playing warm psychedelic folk songs full of glorious harmonies and earnest songwriting. While there may be some immediate comparisons to contemporaries My Morning Jacket and Band of Horses, Fleet Foxes expands on the rural sound with a more open and optimistic approach, crafting something that truly has an air of timelessness.

These songs are full, lush and exquisitely executed, centered on gracefully finger-picked guitars and Robin Pecknold’s stunning falsetto which is often supported by soothing harmonization from his band mates. The incorporation of banjos, pianos, flutes and even the mellotron also add to the sweeping drive of this record. Its not grand, epic or pretentious, but rather inviting and melodic, as these progressive elements help illuminate the sunny imagery conjured up by the serene vocals.

While I could go into detail describing each of these 11 excellent songs, I wouldn’t want to spoil any of the pleasant surprises within. I can tell you that this is as comforting as indie rock gets, and its natural-sounding rhythms are sincere and vigorous. This will easily be remembered as one of this summer’s most engaging albums, rivalling Panda Bear’s Person Pitch (2007) as one of the sunniest psychedelic works to grace this decade. Listen, Absorb, Explore.

This entry was posted on Sunday, June 8th, 2008 at 12:02 pm and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.