Bon Iver’s first EP sees Justin Vernon out of his cabin in the woods and accompanied by a band but making similarly soulful and masterfully written tunes (the title track in particular), all be it with a more polished sound and less charm, something we’ll probably all have to get used to unless he decides to take another extended camping trip in the near future.

Kan Iver: On Blood Bank‘s closing track, “Woods”, Vernon utilizes a vocoder to augment his voice. One can’t help but think of Kanye West’s auto-tuned 808 vocals, but Vernon uses his trick inventively, turning his vocals into an instrument on a track that’s technically a capella.

Grade: 7.5 / 10

Jagjaguwar
January 20, 2009

Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago

February 19, 2008
Jagjaguwar
Rating: 4.3 / 5

The Music Rag One Sentence Review: Justin Vernon went to go live alone in a cabin in Wisconsin for three months after life threw him a couple of curveballs, and this album of astoundingly beautiful and personal songs was what came out of it.

Best moments: “Flume” and “Re: Stacks” are quite pretty, but “Skinny Love” and more electric “For Emma” are the album’s more pop-friendly highlights.