The Antlers

VIMTV Album Review #334: The Antlers – Burst Apart

 

Jake: 76/100

Tom: 81/100

Verdict:  Recommended if you like the emotional aspects of Hospice but wanted a little more movement from the instrumentals.

Overview: The Antlers continue to make moving music on Burst Apart, and succeed brilliantly in evolving their sound. They incorporate some thicker soundscapes and bring the tempo up a bit at times, providing needed contrast and and making the album engaging from start to finish.

 

Jake’s Track Picks: 

  • 3. Parentheses
  • 4. No Widows
  • 6. Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out
  • 9. Corsicana

Tom’s Track Picks: 

  • 3. Parentheses
  • 4. No Widows
  • 5. Rolled Together

VIMTV Research Links:

Parentheses

No Widows

The Antlers Interview

VIMTV Episode #95: The Antlers – Hospice

 

Jake: Recommended, 79/100

Tom: Recommended, 75/100

Overview: The Antlers’ “Hospice” is as far from being a pick-me-up as you can get. This album is mood creating to the max, which will probably be polarizing for many listeners– some won’t be able to take the darkness, and others will inevitably be drawn to it regardless of whether they really think highly of the music itself. In reality, it’s a solid mix of the two extremes: the powerful moodiness is a saving grace that helps to make up for what’s lacking in instrumental allure.

Recommended Similar Artists: Grizzly Bear, Magnetic Fields, Nick Drake

Jake’s Track Picks:

  • 2. Kettering
  • 7. Two
  • 10. Epilogue

Tom’s Track Picks:

  • 2. Kettering
  • 5. Bear
  • 7. Two

VIMTV Research Links:

 

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  • Highnuff
    #1 written by Highnuff  8 months ago

    Hospice is my favorite album of all time. It’s just awesome and it was really what introduced me to most of the good music I listen to now.

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    • Holden
      #2 written by Holden  2 months ago

      I have to agree with you. This is in my top twenty favorite records. The lyrics, the atmosphere, and the overall scope, how that all comes together is nothing short of musical genius. It’s even kind of catchy. It is dark. It goes to some grim places, but the end of “Wake” is definitely a glimmer of light.

      Also, and this is just personal philosophy, I don’t believe that “Bear” is about abortion. Most people who have made comments about that particular track say that it is, but I can’t get behind that. For such a consistent narrative, that doesn’t seem right. The general theme is there, but to me, it seems more about how this relationship is going to end sometime, and that it can’t keep going. Something to that effect. It reflects more on the futility of their relationship. This is apparent with the fact that it ends just a couple of tracks later. So maybe aborting their union? I’m not sure. But to me, that makes more sense than a baby.

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