Album of the Week: The Antlers -- Burst Apart

My appreciation of The Antlers' 2008 album, Hospice, is pretty well-documented on this site (third favorite album from that year). It was a chilling album that I found myself listening to over and over.

I wouldn't say the group's latest effort, released in May, drew me in as quickly as Hospice did, but I have found it creeping into my music rotation more and more often lately. It has some electronic elements that I really dig, as well as the familiar haunting vocals and background noises.

Highlight tracks for me come back to back. "No Windows" and "Rolled Together" are really cool tunes. This band reminds me of Radiohead at times, and I think these songs are pretty good examples of why (especially the latter).

Give Burst Apart a few listens. I think it gets better the more you hear it. I'll be interested to see if it will measure up to Hospice for me in the long run -- but I wouldn't be surprised if The Antlers make an appearance on my Best Album of the Year list once again.

No. 66: The Antlers

The Antlers are not exactly what you'd call an uplifting band. The Brooklyn-based group plays soft, powerful songs that toy with your emotions. The band's 2009 release, Hospice, was one of my top 5 albums last year; I love it. But again, it's definitely not an uplifting collection of songs by any means. Hospice is a concept album centering around the pain caused by the death/loss of a loved one.

Listening to the album feels like reading a book or watching a movie. A sad one. You feel the singer's emotions that include guilt, sorrow, and a hint of hope. Singer Peter Silberman has a great voice, but behind the lyrics is also great music. The keyboards enhance the eerie tones -- almost similar to the eerie songs on Radiohead's Kid A. Highlights of this album include "Kettering," "Two," and "Wake."

Despite my appreciation for The Antlers, I'm not sure I can award them must-see status at Lollapalooza. From concert reviews I've read, the group sounds to be as emotional on stage as on their records. I just don't know how this tone would fit in a large-festival setting. I have the feeling their quieter songs could easily be drowned out by other stages. However, I am excited to check them out and hope they prove that theory wrong.

Antlers on MySpace

Here's video of a series of songs from a Washington DC concert. It sounds pretty good, which makes me a little more optimistic for their Lolla show.