Customer Reviews

Big Black & the Blue

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Swedish may be their native language, but this group produces great American folk music. It's not bluegrass, but it's similarly plaintive and primitive. The more I listen, the more it moves me.

Sisters Klara and Johanna Soderberg have powerful voices that entwine with one another in perfect harmony. Their instrumentation is simple and spare, and their lyrics, alternately mournful and exultant, reflect on the meaning of our lives and relationships.

In 2010, First Aid Kit performed at South by Southwest in Texas and at Amoeba Music in California. A 12-minute, three-song performance is available for online viewing at the Amoeba Music Video Gallery. If you'd like to see them live, buy their album and encourage them to make a US tour!

First Aid Kit is my new favorite band. Their harmonies are amazing and their voices are awesome! They're two young girls from Stockholm who write most of their own songs. The songs are well written both musically and lyrically. They tend to be folksy, though very different from some of the old mainstream folkies like Bob Dylan and Pete Seeger. The songs are beautiful, poignant, and somehow mature beyond the years of the girls. I listen to both this album and their other album, Drunken Trees, all the time. My only reservation is that their studio performances are not quite as good as some of the live performances they've put on YouTube. This CD is better recorded than Drunken Trees. If you love harmony, you have to check them out.

I'm seldom so bewitched by a group. I'm an easy mark for strong female voices like Patty Griffin, Emmy Lou and others in that genre and this group is near the top. The music is, well, just good music, wonderful harmonies and the girls are amazingly centered and seem to be singing for themselves, rather than an audience. Check out the youtube videos of them in the woods singing "You're not coming home tonight." They don't make it to the states much, but were a showcase artist at SXSW last year.

I recently discovered First Aid Kit on YouTube and fell in love. It may take a few listens but you will find so many depths in their music. Mature beyond their years... don't you hate that cliche? But somehow it feels true and right for First Aid Kit.

Fans of vocal-driven pop/folk music will enjoy this refreshing new band. They sometimes remind me of Keren Ann's vocals on Not Going Anywhere. At other times they capture the woodsy, simple charm of Vashti Bunyan but with an indie edge. They're like an arrow to the heart.

Lyrically fascinating and with pure melodies that rise and fall, this is an album to suit your many moods. Whether you're feeling hurt and melancholic, or quite hopeful, you'll find something to enjoy. "It's one life, and it's this life, and it's beautiful..." (from their track Hard Believer).

Ever since I heard FAK's cover of Peasant Mountain from the Fleet Foxes, I have wanted a whole album to bury myself in. I got this one and their ep at the same time and I love them both. Folk narratives with catchy tunes, beautiful singing, and impressive lyrical insight are the keys here. It's notable that these sisters are still in their teens and that though they write in English, they are actually Swedish. Kudos, really, for a fine album.

Saw these girls in Dallas opening for Bright Eyes. Had no expectations. Most of the crowd wasn't even really listening until the middle of their first song. We listened for all the rest. Straight forward and quiet on stage, their singing did all the speaking for them. After the concert I was determined to buy at least one CD and see if what they put together in the studio was as good as what they revealed that evening. It was. And since then I've purchased everything they have, including the new one. Although their writing is young and not always so deep, their sing-song melodies and beautiful harmonies make up for all that. Definitely quality music.

Girly.I recommend their first album if you were to pick. They play April 12 @ the Crocodile in Seattle and are currently on tour in the UK. Nice group but they've lost some of that initial charm in my view.

i bought this as a gift for my sister who has strange taste in music . so i have no idea if its good or not what i can tell u is that if your worried about it arriveing in one peice never fear best packed record i have ever seen .