Rating: 8.0

On returning with their second album for Seattle’s Sub Pop Records, Low have found a way to remain truthful to their unique sound while adding a new element to their music in the form of ambience. Many of the songs feature a dreamlike quality with the inclusion of drum machines and loops. Their last record, 2005’s The Great Destroyer saw them embracing a more discordant and surprising rock sound. This one, however, is a welcome return to their trademark lethargic, late night music. It also showcases an experimental side that reminds the listener a little of their Songs for a Dead Pilot EP from 1997.

Breaker mp3

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Rating:  5.5

The truth? This is nothing new. Conor Oberst is a brilliant writer who can’t seem to do wrong with his lyrics. His poetic folk-pop verses wrench your gut like a bad break-up or a book that entertains you every time you read it—never getting old, always simple and beautiful.

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Rating: 6.0

Jay Farrar’s voice has always been a thing of unassuming beauty, a squeaky yet articulate vehicle for earnest tales of death, drugs and dreams. The tracks on his newest Son Volt release, The Search, find Jay hitting his stride again after a few not-so-great albums brimming with hesitant lyrics. With the addition of a keyboardist, Derry Deborja, this effort sustains a more melodic undertone awash with organ and piano. The brief starter track, “Slow Hearse”, thoughtfully introduces the piano and then plunges directly into a hearty tambourine-shaking track, “The Picture”, a la early Wilcoan style. Son Volt adds their own special grassy horns and upbeat drive, appealing them as the more authentic reproduction of the former, and much hailed, Uncle Tupelo.

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