I had the opportunity to see Isakov live in a very small venue recently, and I was floating on air the rest of the night! What a soothing, patient, story-telling voice.... beautiful songs, every single one. The duet That Moon Song, with Brandi Carlile is so lovely.
Excellent album from start to finish. I never tire of listening to this. Well-written arrangements with strong, literate lyrics. There's nothing not to like here.
I've seen the live show too. It's all just fine in a technical sense. The man can sing and play his instrument. Missing the good lyrics though- very mediocre- no soul. He needs to get into a few bar brawls and write some songs about it, then he'll be great.
This was my album of the year for 2009. His voice is out of this world. My advice to you is to catch him live if you have the chance! He switches between a carbon mic and a regular one, and also plays banjo and harmonica. Totally flawless.
A little Jeff Buckley, a little Gillian Welch, a little Mark Kozelek... this is a quality record from start to finish. Production is excellent, and his arrangements are quite beautiful, especially 'Light Year' and 'Big Black Car'. It lacks a little bit of the complex, smoldering emotional intensity of a Kozelek record, which it sounds like what he's aiming for (though of course that's only a guess). That is a minor complaint, though. I've listened to it a number of times and it's just getting better.
This song stopped me in my tracks when I heard it on the radio. Amazing strings and banjo. I became an instant fan. His songs become deeper and more complex with each listening.
She does vocals on a few tracks. Also recommended if you like good music.
This is one of my 2 favorite albums of 2009. (Lost Channels by The Great Lake Swimmers is also wonderful.) The beauty of This Empty Northern Hemisphere seeps under your skin and pleasantly haunts you for days at a time.
I have always been a fan and enjoyed his last release very much but it is almost as if everything finally has fallen into place. This is a beautiful, haunting album... My personal fave is Master & Hound a paradigm of the mood of this under-stated but deep and rich music. So start there and then download 'That Moon Song' or 'Dandelion wine' or the Cohen cover that closes this great record... hell download any of them as there is no filler. 'Evelyn' is both poignant and upbeat. It is far beyond most singer-songwriter stuff in terms of song-writing, arrangement and production. I think you'll agree.
The office folks at Righteous Babe Records put this playlist together for eMusic. It has some choice songs from the Righteous Babe catalog but also some friends, openers and influencers we either work with or just plain like to play. Hope you enjoy! more »
