Customer Reviews

Welcome To The Welcome Wagon

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Nestled comfortably in their own space between Contemporary Christian Worship and quirky nerdfolk music, The Welcome Wagon bring the (joyful) noise, as it were. Sufjan Stevens is not afraid of intricate string and horn arrangements, and the record sounds as though a microphone was always on, ready to capture the piano or guitar as a song arrangement was crafted. Vito and wife Monique sing with delicate sweetness and are backed at times with a group of choir-ish singers. All songs on the record are great, some more than others. Songs that stand out to me are Up On A Mountain, Hail To The Lord's Anointed, But For You Who Fear My Name, & Jesus. Highly recommended.

My list of things that are better than The Welcome Wagon

1. World peace
2. sliced bread
3. kittens
and that's really about it.
Get this album and prepare to have your socks knocked clean off.

Outstanding. You can definitely see the influence Sufjan has on this group, but that doesn't detract from it for me.

A brief introduction to me: I am a HUGE music fan, cutting my musical teeth on Earth, Wind & Fire, Parliament, Elvis Costello, the Clash, R.E.M., Radiohead, etc. I have owned two indy record stores in my life, just recently closing the second. I am also a pastor of a local church. I have always been almost ashamed of the lack of apparent creativity coming from most mainstream Christian musicians. I listen to virtually no Christian radio, believing that if Christian musicians were using their God-given talents in His service, we (the church) would be making the most creative and compelling music in the world. Sadly, that has not been the case in my humble opinion.

I was given a pleasant surprise a few years ago with the release of Jon Foreman's "Seasons" series. Well-crafted songs, interesting arrangements, compelling instrumentation. The Welcome Wagon follows in that vein. While much has been written about the Stevens' influence, and it is certainly present, I do not find it to detract from the overall sound or vision of the album.

There is a definite focus on song arrangement, instrumentation, and balanced true-to-life production techniques. A very welcome break from the smarmy, over-produced, breathy vocals of most mainstream "christian" music. I have found this to be very satisfying both in terms of lyrical content and musicianship. We have included this in our rotation for pre-service music and it helps set a positive, creative mood for worship. Well Done. A great start on the next wave of Christian music...and most welcome!

Impossible to label...which makes it fresh. Sweet...but not ironic. The best kind of musical simplicity. Listening to Welcome Wagon is like wading in a mountain stream. Sufjan Stevens' mark is here, but this couple have forged their own way. It's hard to find adequate descriptive words, but take a listen. It's my favorite new album.

dear people, there is heart and soul to be found herein, turn it up! the kindness in the voices and the thoughtful bells and harmonica, horns and strings and fingers winding, all are swept in such arms of happy praise and solemn reverie. i am one small voice, but i will say it loud and i'll say it here, listen up! listen up! hear hear! 'tis wondrous music! wondrous!

I read about this band in Paste Magazine and I wanted to check them out. They sing background vocals for Steven's records and now he produced this album for them. The best way to describe this band is to say Sufjan Stevens if he did Christian songs. You can hear his influence throughout this entire albums (or maybe it's the other way around). Same horns playing in the background, female harmonies, banjo struming, folk guitar kicking etc. that you'd hear on a Stevens record. The lyrics are sentimental and moving for the faithful, but those who are not keen on Jesus will still love it (although it is heavy on the religion, if that sorta thing bothers you). How cool is this band? They do a cover of The Velvet Underground song Jesus. Just get the album. If you're Saved it will fill you with joy, if you're not then you'll just love the music. Plus the artwork is beautiful and Sufjan Stevens writes the liner notes.

A graceful balance between modest lyrics, soft vocals and cerebral musical arrangements. Definitely one asthmatic kitty's shining stars. Highly recommend!

This album is mind blowing-ly good. I saw a plug for "Sold! to the nice rich man" in a list of songs to listen to in Spin Magazine and on a gamble I bought the album. I could have been more plesantly suprised when I got the album. The Welcome Wagon may very well be the best group you've never heard of. I posted one of their songs as my profile song on my facebook and I still get comments on it. At 10 bucks you can't go wrong. Give em a shot, you won't regret it.

I am really enjoying this music. Among my favorite tracks are 'I Am a Stranger' and 'Unless the Lord the House Shall Build.' I'd have to say that this is the first time I've really enjoyed banjo and glockenspiel together! And the backing vocal choir and horns make an amazing mixture. Great album!

Make sure you read through the liner notes, especially the lyrics to Lou Reed's song 'Jesus.'