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Avg: 4.0 (156 ratings)
- Date Released: September 9, 2008
- Genre: Country/Folk
- Label: Razor & Tie
This sweet, smart songstress pushes into some challenging new territory.
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We Say...
Dar Williams' voice may remain as even-tempered as ever, but Promised Land, her eighth release, finds her employing it in the service of more challenging themes. Her narratives are constantly changing tone: a plain-Jane research subject recollects her disturbing experience with the Milgram obedience experiments in the '60s on "Buzzer," while an ex-lover recalls getting dumped for a head case on "The Easy Way." Though it is frustrating at times when Williams' pretty-pretty voice doesn't change as often as her perspectives, she does stretch her range with rougher or faster tracks like "The Book of Love" or the dramatic waltz "The Business of Things," which recalls Elliott Smith's doom-filled dances. There's also a chillingly minimal take on "Midnight Radio" from Hedwig & the Angry Inch, and a rock-pop coffee-shop interpretation of Fountains of Wayne's "Troubled Times."
Producer Brad Wood (recently re-noted for his work on Liz Phair's seminal Exile in Guyville) puts Williams' voice out in front with extra sheen, even when a hundred things happen at once, like on the huge chorus of "Summerday." Williams also enlisted help from friends like Suzanne Vega, Marshall Crenshaw and Gary Louris to add texture. Don't look for the break-neck speed and experimental nature of previous Williams songs like "Are You Out There" or the cuddly intimacy of "The Beauty of the Rain"; just be ready for some unique new stories from this sweet and smart songsmith. -
They Say...
At heart, Dar Williams is a folkie who also loves pop music, and while her affection for the stuff is genuine, she doesn't always seem sure about how to integrate it into her own music, sometimes making for a graceful fusion and other times sounding like a shotgun wedding between the gentle and the forceful sides of her personality. For her seventh studio album, 2008's Promised Land, Williams went into the studio with producer Brad Wood, who previously worked with Liz Phair, Tortoise, and Pete Yorn, and given his knack for dealing with both smart songwriting and edgy musical backdrops, Wood seemed like a fine choice to help Williams resolve her musical mind/body conflicts. While Wood was clearly a sympathetic collaborator, Promised Land surprisingly leans to the folkie end of Williams' spectrum rather than the pop; while there are a few bright uptempo numbers here like "Go to the Woods" (which features a guest vocal from Suzanne Vega), "Buzzer," and "It's Alright," the band never pushes Williams any harder than is comfortable, and more often the songs are married to subtle, unobtrusive arrangements that offer much more in atmosphere than energy, such as "Holly Tree" and "You Are Everyone." Presumably Wood was smart enough to realize this was not the right collection of songs for Williams to embrace her inner pop goddess; clearly an album that reflects its time, Promised Land is a set of introspective meditations on a troubled world, and while these songs are not without wit and occasionally cast their eye on romance, the worried woman in "Buzzer" who contemplates her own complicity in a corrupt culture, the people who retreat into a pastoral refuge in "Go to the Woods," and the homage to the artists who sustain us through difficult times on "Midnight Radio" all cast different reflections on a world that teeters on the brink of madness. Despite the deep shadows of this music, Promised Land is an album that carries a fervent hope in its heart, and Williams and her collaborators (including Greg Leisz and Marshall Crenshaw) find a cool and sustaining beauty in these songs that serves them and their composer very well.
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| 01. |  |
It's Alright
|
3:27 |
|
| 02. | |
Book of Love
|
3:34 |
|
| 03. | |
The Easy Way
|
3:31 |
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| 04. | |
The Tide Falls Away
|
2:46 |
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| 05. | |
Buzzer
|
2:57 |
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| 06. | |
The Business of Things
|
2:31 |
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| 07. | |
You Are Everyone
|
4:30 |
|
| 08. | |
Go To The Woods
|
2:54 |
|
| 09. | |
Holly Tree
|
4:13 |
|
| 10. | |
Troubled Times
|
3:34 |
|
| 11. | |
Midnight Radio
|
4:27 |
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| 12. | |
Summerday
|
3:22 |
|
12 Total Tracks, 41:46 Total Length
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Credits
- Marshall Crenshaw - Guitar // Suzanne Vega - Vocals (Background) // Steve Holley - Drums // Greg Leisz - Guitar // Travis Aaron McNabb - Drums // Michael Visceglia - Bass // Brad Wood - Bass // Brad Wood - Producer // Brad Wood - Engineer // Brad Wood - Mixing // Brandon Mason - Producer // Valerie Clark - Artwork // Ben Butler - Guitar // Traci Goudie - Photography // Traci Goudie - Layout Design // Traci Goudie - Booklet Design // Richard Bruce - Artwork // Lara Meyerratken - Keyboards // Noah Goldstein - Engineer // Noah Goldstein - Assistant // Christopher Albert - Artwork // Aidan Draper - Artwork // Simon Draper - Artwork // Kathy Feighery - Artwork // Marnie Hillsley - Artwork // Pelle Hillstrom - Guitar // Matthew Kinney - Artwork // Stephen Robinson - Artwork // Grey Zeien - Artwork
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Composers
Rob Hyman // Gary Louris // Lara Myerattken // Chris Collingwood // Stephen Trask -
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