Customer Reviews

The Animal Years

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

When the market is flooded with sensitive male singer/songwriters at the moment, how does one find room for one more? Easy, when one of them writes music as timeless, classic and important as Josh's. Mr. Ritter writes beautifully crafted songs; scattered with poetic lyricism and visual imagery that imbeds into your psyche long after the disc has ended. Josh is one of those special singer/songwriters that has slowly built more ground with each new release and quietly he has become of this generation's greatest songwriters. And even though this is only Josh's fourth release, it promises and solidifies his place in history. An equal balance of folk and rock, political and personal, upbeat and low. Drawing on inspiration from Dante to Mark Twain. Josh, band and producer Brian Deck (Iron & Wine, Wheat, Modest Mouse) have created a classic, timeless sounding, American singer/songwriter record. Yet, it also sounds like very much a band, in production and musical scope. With each listen you discover something unique and new. The subtle little sounds Mr. Deck weaves in and out of the songs showcases the man's talent as producer. Strong imagery has always been a major plus in Josh's music. On this disc he's pushed himself into the category of Townes Van Zandt, Leonard Cohen and John Prine (all who are influences on Josh). I doubt anyone will top this disc on my year end poll.

I became interested in Josh Ritter only to prepare myself for a concert in which my favorite band (HEM) was the opening act, and we'd have to stay through the Josh Ritter portion. Well immediately upon listening to the first track of The Animal Years it was clear that "enduring" Josh Ritter in concert would be no trouble at all. I like that the album sounds underproduced. There is a quality of "not quite there yet" to it that makes it feel more honest. So I listened to the music to prep for the concert and found myself looking forward to seeing him as much as HEM.

Last night was the concert. If you can see this guy perform live, you should. He just looked like he adored what he was doing. I don't think he stopped smiling the entire set, and he was both sweetly nervous and funny in his anecdotes. I couldn't help but like him, and I actually ended up enjoying his set more than HEM's. It was very powerful. A mix of him alone up on stage, him with his full band, and he even performed one song completely without a mic (it was a small venue).

Anyway, what a great way to stumble on an amazing artist. I highly recommend this album.

You can't blame Josh Ritter for getting to this point in his career and feeling some kind of need to make a statement, get a bit more serious as an artist, join the ranks. To me it feels very much like `The Animal Years' (a reference to his early days as a musician, apparently) is Josh saying, okay, here I am, I'm as good as anyone else and I claim my place. The animal years are over.
Many fans will have watched Josh's music progress from his charming, and at times humorous first album, through `Golden Age of Radio' and the breakthrough `Hello Starling'. Part of the charm at the start was that he didn't appear to be taking himself too seriously. Now he is.
But that's okay if you can pull it off without sounding pompous or silly, and of course he does pull it off. I'm not sure I particularly enjoy all nine minutes odd of `Thin Blue Flame', but I've sat with the lyrics and it's brilliantly written. Along with the more tuneful `In the Dark' `Thin Blue Flame' is the unavoidable comment on today's bad, bad world, but one is direct and uncompromising, the other light and melodic, beautiful even.
Ritter's writing is changing: the themes here are identifiable but not so easy to access as before. You have to stop and figure out what these songs are really about, you have to interpret the meaning.
Other things are changing too. Josh sounded, or tried to sound gruff like Dylan on his first record. Now he's almost borrowing Ryan Adams' `other voice' and often sings high, sweet and open, like on the plaintive `Idaho' or `One More Mouth'. This guy can sing.
`Thin Blue Flame' manages not to unbalance the album luckily. In fact, there's a nice balance between `Hello starling' type songs that have a driving rhythm, lighter songs like `Good Man' and sparse, quiet songs like `Idaho'.
I'm not a huge fan of songs like `Lillian', which I find a bit noisy and monotonous. But there are some cracking songs, some that really hit the spot. `Good Man' is brilliantly put together, catchy, intricate, unusual. `Monster Ballads' is spacious and deliberate, atmospheric, iconic. There are at least two others that seem destined to become all-time favourites.
So I can't help giving this the full five stars. It's very good. I just wonder though whether I don't LIKE those early albums just a little more. Time will tell.

This is, by far, one of the best albums I've bought recently. Oddly enough, it's not because it's perfect. The imperfections on this album make it what it is.

Ritter's voice, clearly influenced by Dylan, flows evenly over this CD. He has a way to inject an incredible amount of emotion into each of his songs. It is this power that far overshadows his singing talent, although that talent is there as well.

The music is also layered around the lyrics. It may be a subtle bass beat or the crescendo in "Thin Blue Flame" that evaporates into nothing just as Ritter ends his own climax of emotion.

Every song could be your own highlight. Each person needs to choose their own favorite songs. Mine are "Girl in the War", "Idaho", and the 9 1/2 minute epic "Thin Blue Flame".

I give this CD a perfect rating because Ritter has done something that few artists can do. Listen to this CD and find out what it is. I don't even know.

You can't blame Josh Ritter for getting to this point in his career and feeling some kind of need to make a statement, get a bit more serious as an artist, join the ranks. To me it feels very much like `The Animal Years' (a reference to his early days as a musician, apparently) is Josh saying, okay, here I am, I'm as good as anyone else and I claim my place. The animal years are over.
Many fans will have watched Josh's music progress from his charming, and at times humorous first album, through `Golden Age of Radio' and the breakthrough `Hello Starling'. Part of the charm at the start was that he didn't appear to be taking himself too seriously. Now he is.
But that's okay if you can pull it off without sounding pompous or silly, and of course he does pull it off. I'm not sure I particularly enjoy all nine minutes odd of `Thin Blue Flame', but I've sat with the lyrics and it's brilliantly written. Along with the more tuneful `In the Dark' `Thin Blue Flame' is the unavoidable comment on today's bad, bad world, but one is direct and uncompromising, the other light and melodic, beautiful even.
Ritter's writing is changing: the themes here are identifiable but not so easy to access as before. You have to stop and figure out what these songs are really about, you have to interpret the meaning.
Other things are changing too. Josh sounded, or tried to sound gruff like Dylan on his first record. Now he's almost borrowing Ryan Adams' `other voice' and often sings high, sweet and open, like on the plaintive `Idaho' or `One More Mouth'. This guy can sing.
`Thin Blue Flame' manages not to unbalance the album luckily. In fact, there's a nice balance between `Hello starling' type songs that have a driving rhythm, lighter songs like `Good Man' and sparse, quiet songs like `Idaho'.
I'm not a huge fan of songs like `Lillian', which I find a bit noisy and monotonous. But there are some cracking songs, some that really hit the spot. `Good Man' is brilliantly put together, catchy, intricate, unusual. `Monster Ballads' is spacious and deliberate, atmospheric, iconic. There are at least two others that seem destined to become all-time favourites.
So I can't help giving this the full five stars. It's very good. I just wonder though whether I don't LIKE those early albums just a little more. Time will tell.

After two excellent studio sets, "Golden Age of Radio" & "Starling," Ritter's first set for V2 records is a fitting successor. Perhaps in an era shadowed by war and international disharmony, Ritter loses some of the tongue-in-cheek humor that graced earlier recordings for a more direct style. "Thin Blue Flame" is probably the tour de force track @ 9 & 1/2 minutes with its strong political indictment and its pounding piano that builds with chords exploding like bombs, "Streets named for heroes that could almost exist, the fruit trees of Eden & the gardens that seem to float like the smoke from a lithium dream." It's not a happy track, but it is tremendously moving and powerful with Ritter's emotional vocals packing a wallop. Ritter is an Idaho native and howls like a lonesome Hank Williams on the slow & lonesome track named after his native state, "So I gave up a life of crime, I gave it to a friend of mine." "Lillian, Egypt" is a humorous escapade about a guy who absconds with a banker's daughter from Illinois. The catchiest tunes on the set are probably the two openers. On "Wolves," Ritter marries a beautiful melody to amazingly original lyrics and sells it with strong vocals & Sam Kassirer's glorious piano, "I still remember the time when we were dancing, We were dancing to a song that I'd heard, Your face was simple and your hands were naked; I was singing without knowing the words." "Girl in the Water" is a magical track with the high pitched guitar part sounding like raindrops falling that matches the ending lyric line, "They sparkle bubble over & in the morning all you got is the rain." "The Animal Years" is another excellent set by this sparkling artist. It's a treasure & a pleasure! Enjoy!

Josh Ritter gives you a soulful look into life. You can imagine long drives, scenic mountains, haunting eyes of wildlife in his music. He also gives each song as a tale. Some of his songs are fun, some are perfectly soothing without being boring. Intelligent and talented piece of work. I was inspired by his cd to check him out live in Philadelphia and was not disappointed. His music draws people of all ages with it's timelessness.

The task: follow up the critically acclaimed "Hello Starling" with something of comparable or (gasp!) superior quality.

The verdict: at least the former, perhaps the latter.

It's never easy for a songwriter to follow up their first well received album with something other than a disappointment. To put it another way, average artists seem largely incapable of this, and great artists can do it -- but not always. With the release of "The Animal Years" Josh Ritter has clearly identified himself as a songwriter with staying power.

I think "Animal Years" is a more consistent album than "Starling." If it perhaps lacks any single song that reaches the romantic/poetic heights of "Kathleen" or "Wings," it makes up for it with more-than-solid offerings like "Girl in the War," "Good Man," "Thin Blue Flame," and "Lilian Egypt" (sure to be one of his best live tunes for years to come).

A fantastic album from one of the era's best songwriters -- don't miss it!

My favorite song of the year by a longshot is Girl in the War. This is one of the more solid lyrical pieces to come along in some time. Musically, it's intro will snare you--and the rest of the song hits all the right beats as it builds in emotion.

More than that though, this song has soul.

I don't know what or who Josh was/is talking about in this song. I do, however, have a definite girl who comes to mind when I hear this song. I pray for her every day--and every time this song plays.

I know the Angels can hear me yell.

The rest of this CD is pretty engaging stuff of quality that varies from excellent to pretty good. All in all, I'm glad to have it in my collection.

Girl in the War is the song that's worth every penny.

OK, perhap's he's not that new, but new enough. I just discovered him this past weekend as he gave a free mini-concert at a record store, and then I went to his concert at night in Boise, Idaho. Wow! Amazing stuff.

I shouldn't have been slow to the game here, Josh is from my hometown. I was fortunate to have met him at the record store, where he graciously met his fans and was very nice and kind. Classy guy -- very refreshing.

Back to the music, this album is tremendous. I've been waiting for the next great songwriter/singer, this guy has it. On this album, I like every song, particularly "Wolves," "Monster Ballads" and "Idaho."

He shows great depth in his songwriting. He can drift from subject to subject, he's not just another guy writing sad love songs, though he can do that, too. The remote West region in which Josh lives is a powerful landscape, I'm thankful he writes about that, too!

An amazing talent -- I'm off to get his previous albums!