For a dark album born from an acrimonious time, Band of Horses are surprisingly in top form on Things Are Great.
When we last heard from Band of Horses, it was during the simpler time of mid-2016 and they had just released Why Are You OK. It was a more “mature” album that contained reflections on fatherhood, but was more or less what you’d expect from a band that’s been almost as consistent as Spoon. Despite the (question mark-less) question posed by its title, the band seemed to be doing OK.
The title of Band of Horses’ sixth album Things Are Great is more deceiving. Frontman Ben Bridwell fired the band’s previous guitarist, Tyler Ramsey, and bassist, Bill Reynolds in 2017, after a decade (and three albums) together. Ramsey’s replacement, Ian MacDougall, recorded the album and then quit. There were producer changes as well, with Bridwell scrapping an initial version of the album and co-producing it himself in the end. The band changed its label and manager. Bridwell himself went through a divorce. But for a dark album born from an acrimonious time, Band of Horses are surprisingly in top form on Things Are Great.
It’s a bit of a cliché, but Things Are Great is a “back to basics” album for the band. Why Are You OK had some added flair in the form of a 7-minute opening track (their longest track ever), and a guest appearance from J. Mascis of Dinosaur Jr. The most unusual part of Things Are Great might be the brilliant “You Are Nice to Me,” where Bridwell plays a “three- or four-stringed dobro or cigar box-type of guitar” and there’s a subtle choir singing in the background. Otherwise, it’s nothing but the band’s signature country-tinged rock. The single “Crutch” relies on nothing but some classic post-punk guitar riffs, and delivers the strongest hook on the album. “Lights” teems with energy over heavy riffs, which combined with lyrics about getting busted make it similar to “Weed Party” from the band’s debut.
Mostly, Things Are Great excels at showing off how far the band’s lyrics have come from their barely-decipherable early days, and have a newfound earnestness here. “Warning Signs” opens the album with Bridwell recounting his issues from multiple perspectives, ending with the headstrong “I don’t want help, I don’t want counseling, I won’t go to therapy.” “Aftermath” tells of his recent divorce, opening with “I brought you back, lost myself and you in the aftermath” amidst wolf-like howls. On “Tragedy of the Commons,” Bridwell bitterly recounts his situation in life with the line “Stick out your neck for somebody else, and they laugh in your face like, ‘go fuck yourself.” This line is delivered after a tempo shift so dramatic, you’ll swear the track has changed, but a final refrain of the chorus “Babe, I’m dog tired, can I cancel it all?” ties it neatly together. It’s a real highlight of the album, and has as much emotion as their 2007 hit “No One’s Gonna Love You.”
Occasionally, Things Are Great suffers from the same disconnect as the Killers’ Pressure Machine, where great melodies pair with so-so lyrics and vice-versa. The closing track “Coalinga” sounds like it could be an instant alt-country classic, but lets you know its titular California town smells like cow shit on more than one occasion. “In the Hard Times,” has heart-on-sleeve lyrics, but carries a weaker tune. There are also some peculiar inclusions on the album, like Bridwell yelling at some wild animals at the end of the solid “Ice Night We’re Having.” It’s also easy to say that Things Are Great doesn’t really go beyond the band’s comfort zone, since it’s not that huge of a leap from any of their past albums. That said, it does refine and hone the unique style the band have crafted over almost two decades, and is potentially their most cohesive album. It’s not an uplifting listen, but it is certainly an accomplished one.
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