A happy 10th, indeed.
4/5
If you have never heard of post-rock group The Album Leaf, it is not too much of a shock, but really, by all means you should have by now. The California-based group, led by singer/guitarist/everythingist Jimmy LaValle, is releasing this fifth album of theirs in honor of the ten years that The Album Leaf has been a musical entity, and these ten years have not been spent with the group just sitting on their ambient behinds, recording music every couple years. What with the headlining of the Metamorphose festival in Japan, the scoring of multiple movies, and an expansive world tour, the group has garnered quite the reputation.
However, with the release of A Chorus of Storytellers, now is still a great time to get into their music. The album is filled with some truly great vibes, especially on the opening two tracks “Perro” and “Blank Pages”, which flow together very nicely. Interestingly enough, vocal parts become a central focus on many of the songs on A Chorus, a characteristic that is commonly absent from ambient artists. The vocals on songs such as “We Are” or “Falling From the Sun” do a very good job of transforming the songs while still keeping the trademark Album Leaf sound.
The album is now out on Sub-Pop records, and I highly recommend giving it a listen (especially those of you who have studying to attend to— great thinking music). You can also check out “We Are” down below.
We Are - The Album Leaf
Thanks for reading, everyone!
Remember, you can check out the radio show for You! Listen! Now!, called The FYI, every Thursday night from 6 to 8pm, streaming online at kuteradio.com.
Cheers!
