Last Days of Wonder

Handsome Family | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 13, 2006)
• Original Release Date: 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Carrot Top Records
• ASIN: B000F8DTLO
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #145,728 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Beginning with an image of cosmic apocalypse and ending with a cosmic joke about going nowhere (yet always having somewhere else to be), Brett and Rennie Sparks use their first album in three years, and their most beautiful and accessible since Through the Trees, to explore the magical and disturbing intersections between the human, natural, and spiritual worlds. Recorded at home in Albuquerque, the album unfolds like a country-folk operetta (mostly composed by Rennie) set in idyllic and mysterious locales: haunted suburbia, peaceful but slightly malevolent strip malls, confession-inspiring bowling alleys, and lovesick airports. When they move to the exotic location of a shipwrecked island on "After We Shot the Grizzly," they borrow from Bob Dylan's cryptic "Isis," and make the random, mythic violence their own. Small moments of ennui, whether feeding pigeons in New York or watching kids paint graffiti, reveal unpredictable and unsettling dreams, and the delicate Americana instrumentation only sounds quaint on the surface. French horns, droning bass notes, clippity-clop drums, pedal steel (from Stephen Dorocke of Freakwater), and musical saw (from David Coulter, who has worked with Tom Waits) give even the most macabre songs--not to mention Brett Sparks' Johnny-Cash-on-Thorazine vocals--a light, playful air of discovery and wonder. --Roy Kasten

Product Description

The Handsome Family (Rennie and Brett Sparks) can't ever seem to find it in them to pair lyrics like "When automatic sinks in airports no longer see your hands/Your great journey has begun" with music that reflects their desperate urban majesty. Last Days of Wonder, their seventh full-length collection of Midwest gothic country songs, does push the envelope a tad further than their previous six releases, as Brett has invented a myriad of new ways to manipulate his trusty home computer into a limitless extension of his own creativity, but even a musical saw can lose its backwoods luster when it's being hauled on the caboose of a three-chord train to midtempo Americanaville. That said, the Handsome Family's adherence to highly literate contemporary heartbreak within an old-timey framework is what made them stand out from the crowded sea of young Gram Parsons converts in the first place -- actually, they've always seemed more late-period Johnny Cash than Parsons -- so they've more than earned the right to rest on their laurels a bit, but one can't help but think that just a little bit more spice might have elevated all of these beautiful ideas out of the trappings of their now painfully insular song structures. ~ James Christopher Monger, Rovi --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Are the Handsome Family perfect?, June 20, 2006

By 

Richard J. Bryant "Rick Bryant" (Exeter, UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Last Days of Wonder (Audio CD)

A month ago I had heard of the Handsome Family but never heard them. Now that I have please forgive the following hyperbole, it is the ardour felt for a new love.

Their new album Last Days of Wonder does just what it says on the tin. It asks in a cycle of songs varying from ones that could have been sung in Elizabeth the First's court (Hunter Green) to scary, but funny tunes that will be sung and strummed, no doubt, for years to come around the campfire (After We Shot the Grizzly) to waltzes (Telsa's Hotel Room). But taken as a whole they are asking is science about to remove all sense of wonder from our world, and are we happy about that? This is a profound question but it is asked in a round about way that approaches through the cumulative effect of learning these wonderful songs and not dry and dusty like Philosophy 101. They are asking you to clap your hands if you believe in fairies or magic or have ever felt awe; otherwise all that will be left is the whirl of machines and digital analysis.

And with the incredible song writing team of Brett and Rennie Sparks producing such tunes you are going to be clapping your hands a lot - lovely stories to make you laugh and shiver, they possess so much `back story' that you can pack your bags and spend your vacation in there.

But back to my first question - are they perfect? Well, no. They have tended their very unique garden well but sometimes listening to these exquisite melodies I wish that a superstar producer might have been at the helm, a Daniel Lanois or Rick Rubin (but oh no not Eno) to really get them to take wing fully and reach the stratosphere, but it is hard to believe that such genius songwriters haven't had the opportunity to take that path but have commendably chosen not to. Also, although it says nowhere on their job description that they are here to rock you, it would be nice for a little more punch being applied occasionally. But even here they supply a few toe tapping numbers Bob Wills the King of Texas Swing wouldn't have minded attaching his name to such as `Bowling Alley Bar' and `All the Time in Airport', which with a slight upping of the amperage could easily fit into the repertory of Altcountry Rebel Steve Earle.

So, you are lucky - this near perfect fruit is hanging right within your grasp - pluck it and let it into your life. You won't regret it, and while you are at it, if you are new to this marvel, take a leap of faith and get one or two of their back catalogue while you're at it. I would recommend the equally brilliant predecessor Singing Bones. If my search through the record shops of this market town in England's West country is indicative of the bleak distribution opportunities of minor labels major talent, Amazon is going to be the smartest way to go, and I promise after hearing this great CD you are going to want to hear more of the Handsome Family.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Slightly different, but good., June 13, 2006

By 

Brer Tarp "Card Shark" (San Francisco, CA. USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Last Days of Wonder (Audio CD)

This album marks a change in the Handsome Family canon. Continuing with the slower-paced tradition of their last album, "Singing Bones," this album finds Brett and Rennie Sparks delving into a varitey of topics that somewhat differ from their usual tales of darker fare. Rennie's economical but effective writing shines as bright as ever in the lyrical department, while Brett's songwriting continues to mature and blossom. While the first two tracks start out slowly, one, of the ensuing tracks has an almost Tom Waits feel, while another track features distorted guitar and a moog synth. In another band's hands, these differences could seem jarring, but the Handsome Family does so with ease, making the production changes feel natural and evenly placed. This is another stellar album in a long line of fine work from this under-appreciated group.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Alt-country epics, October 22, 2007

By 

gonzobrarian - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Last Days of Wonder (Audio CD)

Indeed, they are nearly perfect. The Family Sparks seem to have found a winning formula for consistently creating very moving, curious, and eerie records. At first listen, the songs are short and simplistic, both lyrically and musically. Careful inspection though, will reveal a musical lotus unfolding from the mud, abandoned shopping carts, chain-link fences, thousand year old trees, and any other piece of imagery conceived not too far from the back-roads. City vs. country is a prevalent theme throughout the album, set to the minutia of the Sparks' observations at any particular second. Whether at strip-malls, busy airports, lonesome diners, or starving in the back-country, this is a snapshot of the landscapes we are passing through on our great journey, ranging from our grand cosmic origins, to the places we need only to keep the momentum going, like the mini-marts and airports. Ultimately, that is the overarching idea here: the aim our great journey is not the goal, but the act itself. The Handsome Family superbly captures this wonder with wide eyes and thoughtful insight.

Typically, the songs tend toward a slow pacing to fully embellish Brett Sparks' deep and welcoming voice. Obviously, this is a band that takes its time and care when making its albums, and rightfully so. That said, I also agree wholeheartedly that a little extra kick, that is, a heavier rock and roll presence, might just be what's needed to increase their listenership. It appears sporadically in the record, especially in the song `All the Time in Airports', and changes the pace well. It's really gravy, though, because The Handsome Family just does everything so well on "Last Days of Wonder". In addition to the other hyped tracks named elsewhere, the standout tracks for me are `Flapping Your Broken Wings', `All the Times in Airports', `Our Blue Sky', and "Somewhere Else to Be'. They're hauntingly good from a really unique band.