Greets,
First time poster, long time follower here. Daviohead.
A month ago I came across the best album I have heard this year - Hospice by The Antlers. Hospice is a concept album about a 13 year old girl with bone cancer and her carer. Hearing the idea itself initially conjures a sense of distaste, as it's not the nicest thing to write about, but then you hear the music. The songs are tender and beautiful, think a mixture of bon iver with the sounds of arcade fire, and they cover the wide emotional spectrum the patient experiences with great skill and care. Highs and lows are covered, Imagining her 21st birthday (Bear), The carers denial (two) and her posthumous impression (Epilogue).
I never considered myself a sucker for a male falsetto, but it turns out it's a common denominator for my favorite albums both this year and last year (For Emma, Forever ago by Bon Iver). There is also another, deeper denominator at work here too - Social Isolation. Both Justin Vernon and Peter Silberman shut themselves off from the world (Wisconsin & New York respectively) in order to write their albums, both later recruited their bands and went onto great critical acclaim and on 'repeat all' in my ears over and over. So, going on this premise, I should finish a stonkingly good album by the end of the month. The antlers will shortly be playing a few dates in the UK, and Hospice is out now.
daviohead.
