Bon Iver is a musical project by American-born Justin Vernon. Since his debut in 2008, he has blown away indie and folk lovers with his dulcet falsetto tones and incredible lyricism. Releasing 7 albums since his debut, every instalment has been as good as the last, and Sable, Fable is no different.
Singles like ‘Skinny Love’ and ‘Holocene’ bought Vernon the recognition he deserved and blew his career to new heights. Since then, he has been an icon in the Indie Folk scene. As someone who has been accompanied by the soothing tones of Bon Iver on every road trip and rainy walk since ‘For Emma’, ‘Forever Ago’, Sable, Fable feels like returning to a childhood home. However, subtleties have changed, and some things feel different. Your name is still carved in the tree in the garden, but it’s not as prominent.
Sable, Fable draws threads from each chapter of Vernon’s evolution. The glitchy digitalised timbre of ’22, A Million’ is still there, but it is softened now, made more organic. Because of this, I prefer this album to the more experimental ’22, A Million’. Like his previous album ‘i,i,’ Sable, Fable uses layers of horns, chorus, and acoustic guitars to place the listener in a familiar place. Yes, it is experimental, but not in a showy way. It gathers all the emotional textures of past records and refines them into something subtler. It’s not just an album – It’s a reflection.
We were teased last year with the album’s first songs in the form of the four-song SABLE EP. These songs lean on Vernon’s early folk-heavy influences. The album’s first song, ‘Things Behind Things Behind Things’, lets us peek behind the curtain into Vernon’s brain as he opens with the line, ‘I would like the feeling gone’.
After the opening song turns to silence, Justin continues with the acoustic finger-style folk songs and soothes our ears with ‘SPEYSIDE’ and ‘Awards Season’. I tested these songs on the Orange Essentials Box. The EQ controls allowed me to tone down the harshness of the falsetto, and I found the unit had no problem recreating the warmth of Vernon’s guitar tones.
After the soft introduction of the first few tracks, the album has a more electronically produced nature. In ‘Short Story’, Kacy Hill’s line emphasises the whole album’s tone: ‘Time heals and then repeats’. I played the following few songs on our Cambridge Edge A and Harbeth M30.2 to get the most out of them.
‘Everything Is Peaceful Love’ then introduces a beat to the album accompanied by a flanger synth that bounces through the arrangement. The album’s message feels a lot happier in the following few songs. You can clearly see the distinction in lyricism between ‘Walk Home’ and Vernon’s earlier, more poetic material. Vernon’s introspective ‘Day One’ is the most popular song on the album, and for a good reason. Featuring Baltimore musicians Dijon and Flock of Dimes. Like the rest of the album, the piece has a wonderfully complicated arrangement that draws you in and leaves you wanting nothing more.
There is no single anthem here, no ‘Skinny Love’ or ‘Holocene’. But that’s the point. Sable, Fable isn’t trying to be iconic. It’s content being sincere. If you want to hear how this album sounds on your favourite speakers, drop into your local Richer Sounds store to book in a demo!
Author: Ed C, Chelsea Store
