Oh My God Charlie Darwin

The Low Anthem

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 9, 2009)
• Original Release Date: June 9, 2009
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Nonesuch
• ASIN: B0026IZR34
• In-Print Editions: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,178 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

The group's Nonesuch debut, Oh My God, Charlie Darwin, offers an elegant sort of Americana. Its songs about long-ago travels and romantic travails, eternal longing and inevitable leaving are often hushed, dreamy and mysterious. Simple folk-song structures are uplifted by hymn-like, chamber music arrangements. The three young multi-instrumentalists Ben Knox Miller,
Jeff Prystowsky and Jocie Adams recorded the album in the most remote place they could find near their Providence, Rhode
Island, home: 'In the ghostly stillness of a Block Island winter,' as they put it. The intimacy of the makeshift studio they created
in their chilly off-season environs is palpable; Paste declared, 'The Low Anthem's harmonica-and-string-flavored ballads are as haunting as they are gorgeous. This group of Providence up-and-comers knows how to break your heart and make you smile at the same time.' Not everything is understated, though: on 'The Horizon Is A Beltway,' they raise an exuberant acoustic clatter
that recalls Bruce Springsteen's work with his Seeger Sessions Band. They also cover Tom Waits' 'Home I'll Never Be,' a raucous adaptation of a Jack Kerouac poem.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Haven from the World and Her Decay. . ., June 17, 2009

By	Leif Sheppard - See all my reviews

I first bought "Oh My God, Charlie Darwin" directly from the band's website last year. The disc arrived in an artfully hand-stamped, hand-numbered cardboard sleeve. Within that lay a black labeled disc that contained some of the most sublime music of 2008. This wasn't my first introduction to the band, as What The Crow Brings was among my favorite records of 2007. Opening with the darkly hopeful "The Ballad of the Broken Bones" instantly suggested to me that The Low Anthem had a bit of insight into the human soul. Listening to the following tracks "Yellowed by the Sun" and "As the Flame Burns Down" only served to confirm my initial thoughts.

So when I heard of the imminent release of "Oh My God, Charlie Darwin" in August of 2008, I immediately made plans to purchase the record. I admit, I didn't think the band would be able to follow up their previous work, much less surpass it. It's a testament to the artists involved that they not only produced a worthy third album, but created their most layered work to date. First track "Charlie Darwin", which Paste Magazine readers may recall appeared on one of their monthly discs, is absolutely fantastic. Genius. Brilliant. I give up! I can't think of enough superlatives for even the one track.

Speaking of Paste Magazine, their July '09 issue rated this album a 90 out of 100 along with review that favorably highlights the lyric "The lords of war just profit from decay". Curiously, Rolling Stone quoted that same lyric and claimed the album "suffered" because of it. They ultimately gave three out of five stars along with a review that totals all of three sentences. Allmusic, for their part, awarded the album four out of five stars while the English magazine Uncut awarded the same.

Lyrics like "Set the sails I feel the winds a'stirring, toward the bright horizon set the way, cast your wreckless dreams upon our Mayflower, haven from the world and her decay" stick with you long after the track has ended. Then you're immediately faced with second track "Ohio", which isn't as lyric intensive but is every bit as heart wrenchingly beautiful. Suddenly, "The Horizon is a Beltway" blares through your speakers. It's a cacophonous affair, all gravely vocals and foot stomping rhythm, and a marked change from the previous tracks. But it works, and it works quite well.

The Low Anthem stumble a bit with "Home I'll Never Be", as it ratchets up the tempo once more but comes off as a late night drunken jam session. It's not a bad song, but rather a weak one. I've never seen The Low Anthem on stage, so I'm willing to bet serious money this track would translate much better in a live setting. This is a track that demands immediacy, something which simply doesn't come about in a pre-recorded album. "Ticket Taker", a simple acoustic song, comes across much more pleasantly with lyrics like "They say before he bit it, the boxer felt no pain, but somewhere there's a gamblin' man, with a ticket in the rain."

Even the record-ending reprises are gorgeous, particularly "OMGCD", which is a more lively, upbeat take on the first track. It was a welcome surprise to see this album getting a higher profile re-release this year on Nonesuch records, especially since this record wasn't even available by conventional means upon its initial release. I offer the most sincere recommendation to check this music out, which their website accurately describes as "gorgeous chamber folk".

For fans of acts like:
Pinetop Seven The Night's Bloom
Dolorean You Can't Win
Sun Kil Moon April
Magnolia Electric Co. Josephine
Josh Ritter The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding collection of Americana for the 21st century, October 17, 2009

By	Paul Allaer (Cincinnati) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Rhode Island-based trio The Low Anthem issued quite a nice debut album "What the Crow Brings" in 2007. Afterwards, the band retreated, recorded and self-released "Oh My God, Charlie Darwin" in 2008. After slowly gaining buzz within the indie-music community, the band was signed to Nonesuch Records, and the album was re-released earlier this year.

"Oh My God, Charlie Darwin" (12 tracks; 42 min.) brings the band's take on Americana. The opener "Charlie Darwin" is a showcase for the band's gorgeous vocal harmonies (think Fleet Foxes). It is followed by "To Ohio", a beautiful ballad about a lover leaving Lousiana tring to get to Ohio to see his girl, an outstanding track (and reminding me in theme and sound of Sun Kil Moon's track "Carry Me Ohio"). On tracks 4 and 5, "The Horizon Is a Beltway" and "Home I'll Never Be", the band explodes with energy, as if we're in a bar 100 years ago. After that, things slow down again for more mood pieces like "Cage the Songbird" (again with gorgeous vocals) and "(Don't) Tremble". "Music Box is a short instrumental of, yes, a music box (mostly). The final 2 tracks "OMGCD" and "To Ohio (Reprise)" sum up the album perfectly.

In all, this is a fantastic album from start to finish. Not a single weak track, in my opinion. I had the good fortune of catching the Low Anthem in concert at Bonnaroo earlier this year, and they put on a great set, playing mostly songs from this album, check them out live if you can. Finally, it you wonder where you can hear these guys, check out WOXY (BAM! The Future of Rock and Roll), the internet-only station that brings the best indie-music in the country, bar none.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stomping, Haunting, July 13, 2009

By	Hoover Pendleton (Philadelphia, PA United States) - See all my reviews

This album is both haunting and foot stomping at different times - a pretty phenomenal accomplishment. (And I can't believe RS actually published the review they did - not because their critic gave it a mediocre review, but because his three sentence (3 sentence!) review was obviously tossed off without nary a listen. It's like the author just wanted to collect his fee without actually giving the band or the album its due.) I highly recommend this album, but also hope that you will be able to listen without prejudice.