Aldhils Arboretum

of Montreal

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 9, 2004)
• Original Release Date: September 10, 2002
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Polyvinyl Records
• ASIN: B00065GIKU
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #11,052 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Strange Album , May 2, 2005

By	jacktheidiotdunce "weezeridiot" (Racine,WI) - See all my reviews

Aldhils Arboretum was my first Of Montreal CD. It is a very interesting CD and it seems like a good place for new-comers. They'll probably appreicate it more than hearing all the without hearing the supposedly awesome original neat concept albums like "Gay Parade"(which I'm dying to hear). It seems like old fans were kind of bored with this one for that reason. This seems just like a weird pop album without a concept like the others.

Songs like the humorus "Blank Husband", "Isn't it Nice?", "Emily" and most of the songs are off-beat pop songs, some are enhanced with horns and cello. All in all, Kevin and Of Montreal rock too. Lots of catchy songs. Definitely worth the ten bucks it is here. Oh yeah, neat artwork too, not too much but it look looks great.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Growing "Arboretum", November 30, 2004

By	E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Elephant 6 band Of Montreal is at its best when they make goofy, quirky concept albums, or at the very least weird songs that make you wish you had whatever they're smoking. That endearing surreality is missing from "Adhils Arboretum," which is a fun indiepop album, but feels somehow too toned down and laid-back.

It opens with the disjointedly bouncy "Doing Nothing," which fits the lead vocals like a four-fingered glove. Things improve somewhat with the clinky pop of "Old People in the Cemetary," which one-ups the "What a drag it is/getting old" with lines like "It must be hard to relate/after the world of your youth/totally evaporates."

There's a more garage-rocky vibe to songs like "Isn't It Nice?" and the ringingly percussive "We Are Destroying the Song." But hints of their older style peep out in the second half of the album, like in the lilting "Predictably Sulking Sarah," perky piano-pop "Natalie and Effie in the Park," and the psychedelic swirls of "Kid Without Claws."

It's hard to know why, after the glorious psychedelic tapesties they've woven, Of Montreal would opt for a sound that is so... ordinary. It sounds a bit like garage rockers on acid, which is a cool idea in itself -- but Kevin Barnes and Co. sound pretty uncomfortable with such a stripped-down sound.

Their colorful pop has been toned down to some slightly muffled guitar melodies and solid percussion, augmented by cello and some electronic flourishes. But in the second half, the band starts slipping back -- they use a drooping violin, sprightly piano, robotic vocals, odd wavery keyboard, and a sort of French folk-club sound, complete with brass. That's more like it, people.

Kevin Barnes sounds good in songs like "Pancakes For One," where his voice flows naturally with the melody. In the rockier numbers, he sounds uncomfortable having to mold himself around the angular music. Their songwriting is is also less colorful, but they miraculously retain that childlike weirdness. It has meditations on aging and death, an incontinent Yorkie who brightens a little girl's life, what foods shouldn't be eaten alone, and climaxes with "I want to dance so I don't have to think anymore/about the steam cleaned caterpillar in the pinafore."

The stripped-down songs are a step backwards for Of Montreal, but "Adhils Arboretum" brings back their colorful vibe in the second half. Flawed, flighty fun.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars We All Need At Least Some OF MONTREAL, September 2, 2005

By	Steve Stokl "I Should Coco" (Canada,Ontario) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

More acoustic giutar's used on this album but it doesn't take away. These songs are as great as all of there other stuff but it feels like this CD is more at heart especially with the lyrics even though they can be silly you'll see why if you get it. Another fine adition to there work and i hope they keep making music for a very very long time





Please Make The Right Decision And Purchase This It Such Nice Music