Meadow

Richard Buckner | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 12, 2006)
• Original Release Date: 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Merge Records
• ASIN: B000H8RV2A
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #175,822 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

If such categories mean anything in regard to Richard Buckner, Meadow sounds more like indie rock (or occasionally classic rock) than alt-country. While Buckner's smoky vocals and elliptical lyrics continue to convey as much through sound as sense, here he reunites with producer/bassist J.D. Foster (who helmed Buckner's standout Devotion + Doubt) for a song cycle that has more powerful and propulsive arrangements than is often the case with the artist. Teaming with Foster in the rhythm section is Steven Goulding (from the Mekons and Graham Parker's Rumour), while Guided by Voices alumni Doug Gillard and Kevin March provide the front-line firepower. The melodic lilt and guitar shimmer of "Canyon" and the brooding balladry of "Numbered" (all song titles but the last are inscrutably one word) highlight a set without a throwaway track. As with Son Volt's equally terse Jay Farrar, Buckner's laconic diffidence conveys yearning, conviction, and considerable expressive subtlety. --Don McLeese

Product Description

Buckner's eighth full-length soars and swells around his signature trifecta of enigmatic poetics, swirling melodies, and that voice - a soothing drawl that's somehow road weary and buoyant all at once. The melodies are fleshed out by an all-star band: Doug Gillard (Guided By Voices, Cobra Verde), Kevin March (GBV, Those Bastard Souls, Dambuilders), J.D. Foster, and Steven Goulding (Mekons, Graham Parker, Waco Brothers). Fresh and evocative, poignant and real, it documents "the modern age wrapped up in the frustrations and sympathies of a wanderer" - Austin Chronicle.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars richard buckner changed my life..., May 31, 2007

By 

B. Krnc (cleveland, ohio United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Meadow (Audio CD)

i must have been living under a rock or something because i never heard this guy before i saw him play live with my friends the six parts seven at the beachland taverne. that show totally blew me away and that night my life changed forever. it's hard to explain that, but everyone who was there that day should understand what i mean, i'm sure everyone felt it...with that said, this record paints a small corner of a picture of what happened that night in cleveland. it's not the same backing band but it is CLOSE to what i heard that night, and to me, that is worth it. every once in a while i think i've heard it all, and then someone like richard buckner finds his way into my brain and then all i can do is sit back and shake my head, because it just opens up so many more things...get this and i'm sure you will agree. definately one of the most gifted humans of all time. why aren't musicians like this getting more recognition?

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Richard's reached an impasse, February 26, 2007

By 

bruce watson (Belgrave, Victoria Australia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Meadow (Audio CD)

Great singing. Excellent ensemble playing. Richard Buckner has produced another fine album, but the only problem is that it sounds very much like the last one to my ears - and a little like 'Since' and 'Impasse' in parts. A great buy if you don't own any RB albums (or only Bloomed/Devotion and Doubt, or The Hill), but I was hoping for something a little fresher this time around. (I own six RB albums already). Perhaps his next one will return to the more 'stripped back' work of the early years, or will go off in a new direction. One can only hope, as Richard - as good as he is - is starting to recycle into minor variations on a familiar theme. It happens.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you like your art a little off-centered...., January 17, 2007

By 

James E. Smith "My dog Gromit agrees..." (Caribou, ME USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Meadow (Audio CD)

The thing i like most about listening to richard buckner is that the way the songs are composed and sung. Like interesting art...the more often you return to it the more you see/understand/hear. I like the way the words aren't first and foremost. Yet ultiimately THEY are richard buckner....It's the perfect blend of music and lyrics...poetry in motion if you must. I am still settling in with this one....and enjoying it greatly. I like getting something out the music i listen to... and know that i can listen to richard buckners music and constantly find/hear little wonderful morsels.