Home
A Black Mile to the Surface
Barnes and Noble
Loading Inventory...
A Black Mile to the Surface in Bloomington, MN
Current price: $14.99
A Black Mile to the Surface in Bloomington, MN
Current price: $14.99
Loading Inventory...
Size: CD
Georgia's
Manchester Orchestra
deliver one of their most balanced and mature efforts with their fifth full-length album, 2017's measured
A Black Mile to the Surface
. Technically, the album is a follow-up to the group's 2014 return to electric guitar-based hardcore,
Cope
, and companion piece
Hope
, which featured acoustic reworkings of songs from
. That said,
also follows on the heels of lead singer
Andy Hull
and keyboardist
Robert McDowell
's much lauded and experimental soundtrack to the 2016 dark comedy-drama
Swiss Army Man
. That album found them crafting entirely vocal-based arrangements that evoked both the layered harmonies of
the Beach Boys
and the minimalist classical compositions of
Steve Reich
. Rather than separate any of these disparate sounds this time out, on
they offer a modicum of all three, shifting from intensely played, post-hardcore-influenced rock to ruminative acoustic balladry and layered soundscapes, often within the same song. That they do so with the assuredness of a veteran band coming into its own speaks to their dedication and hard-won maturity since debuting over a decade ago. Helping to achieve this balance is producer
Catherine Marks
(
PJ Harvey
,
Coheed and Cambria
Interpol
), who, along with
Hull
and
McDowell
, brings a warmth and sophistication to even the most downbeat of the album's tracks.
once again proffers up a set of deeply emotive and literate songs that are well served by the album's overall balanced tone. Barring the
Pixies-esque
"Lead, SD," every song here, like the twangy, ruminate folk-rocker "The Gold," the atmospheric, piano-laden "The Alien," and the swirling, poignant, folk-inflected "The Grocery," have simple, direct titles. It's as if
and his band have crafted an album of symbolic sculptures instead of songs. Fittingly, they find him toiling with myriad personal and relationship issues, like confronting fatherhood on "The Maze," and generally trying to figure out his place as an adult in the world. On "The Grocery," he sings "Want to hold a light to paradigm and strip it to its feet/I want to feel the way my father felt, is it easier for me?" Based on the nuanced opacity of these lyrics and the artful moodiness of the music, the answer will likely remain an elusive puzzle for listeners to ponder. Thankfully,
have made an album well worth pondering over. ~ Matt Collar
Manchester Orchestra
deliver one of their most balanced and mature efforts with their fifth full-length album, 2017's measured
A Black Mile to the Surface
. Technically, the album is a follow-up to the group's 2014 return to electric guitar-based hardcore,
Cope
, and companion piece
Hope
, which featured acoustic reworkings of songs from
. That said,
also follows on the heels of lead singer
Andy Hull
and keyboardist
Robert McDowell
's much lauded and experimental soundtrack to the 2016 dark comedy-drama
Swiss Army Man
. That album found them crafting entirely vocal-based arrangements that evoked both the layered harmonies of
the Beach Boys
and the minimalist classical compositions of
Steve Reich
. Rather than separate any of these disparate sounds this time out, on
they offer a modicum of all three, shifting from intensely played, post-hardcore-influenced rock to ruminative acoustic balladry and layered soundscapes, often within the same song. That they do so with the assuredness of a veteran band coming into its own speaks to their dedication and hard-won maturity since debuting over a decade ago. Helping to achieve this balance is producer
Catherine Marks
(
PJ Harvey
,
Coheed and Cambria
Interpol
), who, along with
Hull
and
McDowell
, brings a warmth and sophistication to even the most downbeat of the album's tracks.
once again proffers up a set of deeply emotive and literate songs that are well served by the album's overall balanced tone. Barring the
Pixies-esque
"Lead, SD," every song here, like the twangy, ruminate folk-rocker "The Gold," the atmospheric, piano-laden "The Alien," and the swirling, poignant, folk-inflected "The Grocery," have simple, direct titles. It's as if
and his band have crafted an album of symbolic sculptures instead of songs. Fittingly, they find him toiling with myriad personal and relationship issues, like confronting fatherhood on "The Maze," and generally trying to figure out his place as an adult in the world. On "The Grocery," he sings "Want to hold a light to paradigm and strip it to its feet/I want to feel the way my father felt, is it easier for me?" Based on the nuanced opacity of these lyrics and the artful moodiness of the music, the answer will likely remain an elusive puzzle for listeners to ponder. Thankfully,
have made an album well worth pondering over. ~ Matt Collar
Georgia's
Manchester Orchestra
deliver one of their most balanced and mature efforts with their fifth full-length album, 2017's measured
A Black Mile to the Surface
. Technically, the album is a follow-up to the group's 2014 return to electric guitar-based hardcore,
Cope
, and companion piece
Hope
, which featured acoustic reworkings of songs from
. That said,
also follows on the heels of lead singer
Andy Hull
and keyboardist
Robert McDowell
's much lauded and experimental soundtrack to the 2016 dark comedy-drama
Swiss Army Man
. That album found them crafting entirely vocal-based arrangements that evoked both the layered harmonies of
the Beach Boys
and the minimalist classical compositions of
Steve Reich
. Rather than separate any of these disparate sounds this time out, on
they offer a modicum of all three, shifting from intensely played, post-hardcore-influenced rock to ruminative acoustic balladry and layered soundscapes, often within the same song. That they do so with the assuredness of a veteran band coming into its own speaks to their dedication and hard-won maturity since debuting over a decade ago. Helping to achieve this balance is producer
Catherine Marks
(
PJ Harvey
,
Coheed and Cambria
Interpol
), who, along with
Hull
and
McDowell
, brings a warmth and sophistication to even the most downbeat of the album's tracks.
once again proffers up a set of deeply emotive and literate songs that are well served by the album's overall balanced tone. Barring the
Pixies-esque
"Lead, SD," every song here, like the twangy, ruminate folk-rocker "The Gold," the atmospheric, piano-laden "The Alien," and the swirling, poignant, folk-inflected "The Grocery," have simple, direct titles. It's as if
and his band have crafted an album of symbolic sculptures instead of songs. Fittingly, they find him toiling with myriad personal and relationship issues, like confronting fatherhood on "The Maze," and generally trying to figure out his place as an adult in the world. On "The Grocery," he sings "Want to hold a light to paradigm and strip it to its feet/I want to feel the way my father felt, is it easier for me?" Based on the nuanced opacity of these lyrics and the artful moodiness of the music, the answer will likely remain an elusive puzzle for listeners to ponder. Thankfully,
have made an album well worth pondering over. ~ Matt Collar
Manchester Orchestra
deliver one of their most balanced and mature efforts with their fifth full-length album, 2017's measured
A Black Mile to the Surface
. Technically, the album is a follow-up to the group's 2014 return to electric guitar-based hardcore,
Cope
, and companion piece
Hope
, which featured acoustic reworkings of songs from
. That said,
also follows on the heels of lead singer
Andy Hull
and keyboardist
Robert McDowell
's much lauded and experimental soundtrack to the 2016 dark comedy-drama
Swiss Army Man
. That album found them crafting entirely vocal-based arrangements that evoked both the layered harmonies of
the Beach Boys
and the minimalist classical compositions of
Steve Reich
. Rather than separate any of these disparate sounds this time out, on
they offer a modicum of all three, shifting from intensely played, post-hardcore-influenced rock to ruminative acoustic balladry and layered soundscapes, often within the same song. That they do so with the assuredness of a veteran band coming into its own speaks to their dedication and hard-won maturity since debuting over a decade ago. Helping to achieve this balance is producer
Catherine Marks
(
PJ Harvey
,
Coheed and Cambria
Interpol
), who, along with
Hull
and
McDowell
, brings a warmth and sophistication to even the most downbeat of the album's tracks.
once again proffers up a set of deeply emotive and literate songs that are well served by the album's overall balanced tone. Barring the
Pixies-esque
"Lead, SD," every song here, like the twangy, ruminate folk-rocker "The Gold," the atmospheric, piano-laden "The Alien," and the swirling, poignant, folk-inflected "The Grocery," have simple, direct titles. It's as if
and his band have crafted an album of symbolic sculptures instead of songs. Fittingly, they find him toiling with myriad personal and relationship issues, like confronting fatherhood on "The Maze," and generally trying to figure out his place as an adult in the world. On "The Grocery," he sings "Want to hold a light to paradigm and strip it to its feet/I want to feel the way my father felt, is it easier for me?" Based on the nuanced opacity of these lyrics and the artful moodiness of the music, the answer will likely remain an elusive puzzle for listeners to ponder. Thankfully,
have made an album well worth pondering over. ~ Matt Collar
Shop Similar Products
