Top Albums of 2011 - No. 2

2.  Bon Iver – Bon Iver

Bon Iver achieved something special with his 2008 debut, For Emma, Forever Ago.  It was an album so intimate, it was no surprise it was created by one man during three months of self imposed exile.  Everything that seemed to have driven Justin Vernon away from civilisation poured itself into song, creating a masterpiece of heartbreak and disillusion.  It was so good, and so popular, that it seemed a follow up could only crash and burn.  So what did Vernon do?  He took a few years to let everything settle.  He released a slightly experimental EP, he collaborated with a few friends on the Volcano Choir side project and he worked with one of the most well known musicians in the world, Kanye West.  It seemed as though he was doing everything he could to avoid following up For Emma, Forever Ago.  But here we are, at the end of 2011 and Bon Iver’s second album is one of the finest releases that I have heard this year.  So how did he manage to pull off the impossible and create an album that sits comfortably along side his debut?  He simply followed his instincts.  He didn’t try to replicate For Emma, Forever Ago as he is in a much different place than he was in 2006/7 and an attempt to recreate it would have fallen flat because it would have been an album by a man pretending to be who he use to be, not who he is.  Therefore, where his first album was a reflection of who he was then, so is Bon Iver a reflection of who he is now.  He has done nothing more than follow the sounds in his head and my, aren’t those sounds beautiful.  The soaring harmonies and the obscure lyrics are still intact, but the musical expression is much larger than it was before.  The result is an album that twists and turns and plays with the listeners expectations and leaves them with no option other than to begin it all again, particularly after the stunning closing tracks; Calgary, Lisbon, OH and Beth/Rest.  For best listening, use some big headphones and enjoy.