Devendra Banhart - Cripple Crow
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CD Details
Artist: Devendra BanhartEdition: Music CD
Audio: English (Original Language)
CD Release Date: 2005-09-13
Music Label: Xl Recordings
Soundtracks:
- Now That I Know
- Santa Maria De Feira
- Heard Somebody Say
- Long Haired Child
- Lazy Butterfly
- Quedate Luna
- Queen Bee
- I Feel Just Like A Child
- Some People Ride The Wave
- The Beatles
- Dragonflies
- When They Come
- Inaniel
- Hey Mama Wolf
- How's About Tellin' A Story
- Chinese Children
- Sawkill River
- I Love That Man
- Luna De Margarita
- Korean Dogwood
- Little Boys
- Anchor
Music reviews of Cripple Crow
Music Review: A Diamond : Banhart Redefines the Limits of Musical Genre
Rating: 5 Stars
While "Smokey Rolls down Thunder Canyon" may be his 'best' album sonically, "Cripple Crow" is easily his most extended, experimental record by a mile. You certainly have to be cut from a different cloth to enjoy such music (most people I've played it to have termed it 'monotonous', 'slow' and 'long'). To be fair, they do have a point. Banhart isn't exactly the master of brevity. Like Tori Amos, he believes in giving his audience every minute that can be put onto CD, which is why many of his albums clock in at nearly 80 minutes a piece.
That said, "Cripple Crow" is even longer. This version is the Standard US Edition that is generally available. However, do try getting your hands on the 2-Disc Japanese Edition that has a second disc of gorgeous songs that never made the final cut (many of them being as essential as this core album). "Cripple Crow" also has fascinating cover-art, reminiscent of that momentous Beatles CD (only none of the faces, save for Banhart, are recognizable at all).
Like all Banhart records, there is no cohesive 'theme' at work, nor is this a 'concept record'. Many of the songs seem to be about love, death, and relationships, but almost all of them deal with loneliness and an inability to communicate effectively. All of this seems to be addressed in purely esoteric terms, with large emphasis on melody, melancholy and a rambling set of tunes, that once heard, cannot be easily forgotten (in that sense, I would compare it to Joanna Newsoms' masterpiece "Ys")
As always, Devendra's quaint Spanish accent works well on those tracks, and this is especially evident on the absolutely luminous "Quedate Luna" (according to this writer, its also the single most affecting track on the entire disc). Some of the Spanish tracks, such as "The Beatles" seem to have a sense of humor (and fantastic rhymes and vocal rolls).
Musically, this is certainly the 'easiest' album to love by Devendra, as it has some soaring choruses and singalong bits, most visible on "Hey Mama Wolf", a ponderous, beautiful melody offset by Banharts' almost Buckleyesque vocals. The shortest song, "Dragonflies" is a spellbinding duet that lasts less than a minute, but the lyrics are terrific. The same can be said of "Little Boys", a controversial (upon release) track that tells us the tale of a hermaphrodite and what he 'wants from life' through his eyes.
I had a friend once that said that only Devendra's music seemed to 'speak to his soul'. That is true for many people, and certainly true for this writer as well. Joanna Newsom comes close, but she seems to be soaring in the sky rather than reach down to interact with the more earthy elements. "Inaniel" once saw a friend of mine through a grueling ten hour drive to a hospital cross-state where he was sure to be greeted with bad news. He put it on repeat, and though it couldn't obviously change the outcome, it made him peaceful. Not much music you could say that about.
Devendra Banhart is a spiritual performer, but also one that is in touch with a number of things in life that deserve more attention - like humor. His "Chinese Children" seems silly at first, but when you regard the sequencing in the album, it falls into place. Like "Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon", this is one album that is filled with one sonic masterpiece after another, and its virtually impossible to choose one track over the other. For what its worth, this is pure audio gold, and if you are at all interested in the freak folk scene (though that tag is unwarranted), this is the album for you.
For lovers of Banhart, the closest thing would be Vetiver (an obscure band that deserves far more recognition). Also check out the following albums to build a sophisticated folk-album collection in general. I dislike using the word 'folk', but these albums will best suit you, should you decide this is the kind of music you appreciate:
1. Joanna Newsom : "Ys" (No doubt about it, this is a must-own. This is the greatest album ever recorded, in my opinion, and everyone needs to own a copy)
2. Vashti Bunyan : "Lookaftering" (Her second album in 35 years, and a quiet, peaceful record that is a must-buy)
3. Ane Brun : "Changing of the Seasons" (From Scandinavia, this underrated album deserves a wider audience as its a classic of its' genre)
Five Stars. Superb and Flawless.
Description of Cripple Crow
This is his fourth studio album and first in the US through XL Recordings. Devendra exploded on the international music scene three years ago, quickly accumulating devoted fans as well as an unusually hefty amount of critical kudos with his debut and subsequent releases. "There's something about Banhart's muse that defies words and logic, something to these songs that hints at a deeper connection to the cosmos than most of us share. Jeff Buckley might have had that gift; John Lennon and Van Morrison certainly did. Add to that list Devendra Banhart, an astonishing talent whose future work promises to bring us to exciting new places" - Harp Magazine. "...it's Banhart's gift for melody that ultimately carries the day, littering the album with slyly entrancing tunes that recall the pleasure of old campfire songs. It's enough to cure even a hardened cynic" - Blender.Devendra Banhart's fourth album is his most pretty and accessible. It's lush, warm, and inviting. It's likely to make the uber-talented singer-songwriter new fans; unfortunately, it's just as likely to cost him a few old ones. The man is clearly a complex individual capable of visionary music that causes the listener to question many things, including whether or not the artist is putting him or her "on." As the moment-defining, awesome, and potentially self-parodic cover image implies, Mr. Banhart went to great lengths to enshroud himself with some of his most talented friends: Adam Forkner of White Rainbow, Andy Cabic of Vetiver, the free-folk band Feathers, and producer Thom Monahan among them. But this is no freak-fest; the album is subdued, and very much on an early ?70s tip. Recorded at Bearsville near Woodstock, NY, there are touches of Gilberto Gil,! George Harrison, Donovan, T. Rex, Randy Newman and Bobby Charles.
The only thing missing is Devendra himself, to be perfectly honest. The man's a fabulous mimic, as is amply demonstrated throughout this expensive retro exercise. But Devendra's trilled and affected vocal delivery, gorgeously minimalist accompaniment and eccentric recording methods have all been toned down, or jettisoned entirely. As anyone who's seen him live is full aware, the man's capable of much more than his albums reveal, including Afro-funk jams. The finest songs on the sprawling Cripple?which is a fine album, to be sure--are the most simple and direct; "Hey Mama Wolf," for instance, is gorgeous, as are all the songs sung in Spanish. More than one song here is explicitly anti-war, making more than musical connections to the Vietnam era, as well as the present, of course: "I heard somebody say that the war ended today/ It's simple, we don't want to kill."Amen to that. ?- James Conde
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