Customer Reviews

Nino Rojo

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I cannot comprehend anyone saying "Rejoicing In The Hands" is a better album than "Nino Rojo". A couple going so far to say this is Devendra's "least spectacular". I guess it's respectable that they still perceive it as "spectacular". But don't be fooled, because this is without a doubt his best album yet.

I've been listening to Devendra for a little less than a month now. I first fell in love with his collaborative band Vetiver. After hearing that album, I decided to look more into the individuals involved. And individually, Devendra seems the more accomplished. So I started with "Rejoicing In The Hands".

I love "Rejoicing...", but without going into too much comparing and contrasting, I prefer "Nino Rojo" immensely more. While "Rejoicing..." has my two favorite Devendra songs in "A Sight To Behold" & "Fall", "Nino Rojo" is much more consistently interesting from the first to last song. For one thing, Devendra's guitar playing is much more engaging on this album.

Someone stated the album starts off "simple" with "Wake Up, Little Sparrow". It's folk, as much as I love folk: it's simple music. I wonder if he means simple as in it being just Devendra and his guitar? A lot of folk is like that, whatever. I, however, enjoy this song. My favorite song however is the wonderful "We All Know"; this is songwriting at its best. "Sister" is another amazing song. "Noah" starts off with Devendra (with the help of female vocals) singing "Not everyone can relate/ to what you and I appreciate", which I consider to be a testament to Devendra's ghostly sound. "Be Kind" is good and reminds me of "Fall" from "Rejoicing...", though not nearly as good. "Ribbon", "My Ships", "Yellow Little Spider", "Owl Eyes" & "Horseheadedfleshwizard" are other great songs on this album.

Overall, again, I prefer this album to "Rejoicing In The Hands", but you really cannot go wrong with either.

His tale is already becoming the type of twisted, mystical, mythical saga that is built by whispers and passed on by the followers, building upon the truth until it becomes THE TRUTH. A homeless vagabond, dropping out of a prestigious art school and scholarship to wander the streets of San Francisco, records songs onto his friend's answering machine and plays wherever he is able (not yet of age, he is snuck into drinking establishments as part of the road crew). He took up songwriting through self-initiated epiphany- all he had to do was realize he could do it, and was instrumental in beginning a new genre of music, neo-psych/hippie folk.
Resembling Jesus, Banhart is perhaps the product of an overeager indie press conglomerate playing hypocrite. Isn't "music over image" supposed to be the creed of the underground and independent community? But then again, how could you pass on a Christ-like twenty-one year old homeless man child with a voice that exists beyond time and a guitar that plucks easily and confidently?
At the forefront of his own genre, there is little flash or dazzle about the simple pluckings and wavering quiver of Banhart's easy folk music. His voice stands out as the main instrument- here a high pitched warble, there a whimsical whispering sneer. Recorded at the same session as his debut from earlier this year ("Rejoicing in the Hands"), these are sixteen more of some 50 odd tunes in his collection that he recorded over the span of ten days after being "discovered" by the label head of Young God records.
The tunes are generally plaintive and simple, occasionally a piano or brass was added just for variety. Birds and cicadas can be heard in the background (the songs were recorded in a living room in Georgia with open windows), and some songs have multi-tracked vocals. The main appeal here, if I can take a guess, is the timeless quality that resides over the whole package. There is nothing about Banhart or his music that suggests any sort of time period at all- these could have been recorded in 1934 just as soon as 2004.
He sings about simple things- animals and lots of animals, and complex things- coded lyrics (practically nonsensical) about relationships of all sorts. Drawing you in, this is definitely headphone music- quiet, nighttime music for laying on the dew and staring at the stars and wondering how and why, or staring at a spider spinning his web at your shoulder and wondering the same.
In a recent interview, Banhart summed up his life and meaning: "the `hippies' I grew up with were these Hacky-Sack Phish fans with white dreads. I certainly do not feel any relationship with that...[my parents] were cool hippies-into good music, Eastern philosophy, anti-establishment, anti-authority. Into creating their own rules based upon goodness and healthiness and the care and appreciation of nature."
Yes, this is the hippie side of hippie- odd, nurturing, and natural, in a world where Phish means "hippie" about as much as black means white.

While Devendra continues to release impressive album after album, I find Nino Rojo the least spectacular. But, I wonder if we've all been spoiled by such a talent, you know? I wonder if our reasons for not being as snuggly with the record reside in the fact that the guy has been releasing disk after disk and we've become spoiled by his magnificence.

Regardless, it's not that Nino Rojo isn't another fantastic album, but I think it would be borderline great if this wasn't the 2nd album released in 6 months. Devendra's work, regardless of when or where it came from, is timeless. But are we spoiled?

"At The Hop" is a ridiculously wonderful tune, I wish he worked with Andy Cabic more often. Check out Vetiver, great album.

If you like his previous efforts, you'll most certainly enjoy this one!

I would recommend buying any of Banhart's albums. You could debate which are better, but they are all so good it hardly matters. His music is original, sometime sounds poetic, silly, psychotic or all three. You could name any number of influences, but his work is really just it's own thing.

Although Devendra Banhart sounds nothing at all like the similarly named Django Reinhardt, you can still sense that strong gypsy influence. But really, that comparison should stop at the name. His style, to me, seems like folk music on acid. Which in this case, is a great idea. The songs have a timeless quality. It almost sounds like this is some folk album that went undiscovered for the last 60 or so years, and someone found it and released it. And as awesome as it would be to discover some dusty old album that everyone forgot and re-release it, we know that's not the case. We also know that Devendra Banhart is alive and well and will hopefully continue to make great albums, I know that I have not been disappointed with anything I've heard. I'm not going to write about any specific songs because I feel like an album has to work together as one whole unified thing, not a collection of things. And both this album and "rejoicing in the hands" work 100%.

My only fear is that a major record label gets ahold of him and "cleans up his act." An artist like this needs to stay dirty, gritty, and unique. Thats the problem with underground music I guess. If it's really good, it doesn't stay underground very long. And when is surfaces, it gets exposed to a lot of things that can spoil it. Hopefully Devendra Banhart will never spoil.

I am thoroughly impressed by this early Devendra record. Being mostly acoustic, there is a delicate yet confident vibe throughout.

To me, whether "Nino Rojo" is better or worse than "Rejoicing In The Hands" or any of his other albums is immaterial -- as I don't own any of the others. And I haven't heard them. Yet.

Other than the "Poughkeepsi" demo on the Tracks And Fields compilation, this is the extent of my first-hand knowledge of Banhart. Admitting that does not hinder any ability to have an opinion: this is a great album.

Recorded in a flurry of songs that rendered both albums ("Nino Rojo" and "Rejoicing In The Hands"), Banhart reveals a depth of musical knowledge in his spare acoustic guitar pluckings and confidently cracked voice.

I heard "At The Hop" on MSU's college radio station at a time when my heart had been tenderized by some recent experiences. Two years later I finally tracked the song down on this album. It sits in good company with songs like "Be Kind" and "Electric Heart."

For me, the jury is still out on Nick Drake comparisons: both are acoustic, both take their time melodically, both are adept fingerpickers. But the mood is patently different -- where Drake zigs, Banhart zags. Banhart is exultant. Buy it and compare for yourself.

just wanted to boost the overall rating because this album is amazing. that's all.

this is agreat album, combining finger picked 'folk' with a sort of odd song writing style, but i suppose everyone knows that already. it starts off good with the cover song "wake up, little sparrow," which i really enjoy. (the person here who said that song is simple confuses me. so is basically every other song) the songs shift between lighter tracks - "we all know" and songs with a strange aura - "a ribbon." each style seems to work here, from the slightly insideous "Horseheadedfleshwizard" to the slow country feel of "water may walk." basicaly Banhart can be compared to some song writers such as bob dylan, in that he is not the greatest guitar player, nor is he the greatest singer, but he uses what he has to a great end.

I have to agree with the reviewer below me. I don't see how anyone could say RITH is a better overall album than this one. I know they shouldn't be compared and each holds their own pleasures and I do love that record, this is the Devandra record to have. Of course you should get them all but if you have to pick one, go with this. The songs have much stronger melodies and the guitar playing is much more lively and engaging here. Plus I just like the content of the songs more. You will never hear a song like "Little Yellow Spiders" in your life, I promise you that. This is a good introduction to Devandra and for other similar-sounding and equally great artists I recommend Iron & Wine and Sufjan Stevens as well.