On their fifth album, Seattle indie rock group Band of Horses take their folky sound further into flannel territory on Why Are You OK.
On the surface it’s an album of contrasts – the intro song is seven minutes long, a bold move that pushes this laid-back band further into melodic reverie.
From there the band goes for mellow conformity which makes for a sweet, ballad-heavy record that leans on Ben Bridwell’s high lonesome sound.
Why Are You OK doesn’t catch fire in the usual sense. The plus side of this is that it makes a consistent listen from start to finish.
Rockers like Casual Party share the same frequency as crystalline ballad tracks like Lying Under Oak and day-dreaming-out-loud songs like Whatever, Wherever.
The Band of Horses excel in a hazy version of Americana that indulges itself in loping tempos and arcing vocal passages drenched in harmony and reverb helped along by producers Rick Rubin and Jason Lytle.
Bridwell, Rubin and bandmates Tyler Ramsey, Bill Reynolds, Regan Monroe and Creighton Barrett have packaged a Sunday morning atmosphere onto an album that would slide into a Friday night playlist.
– Dean Gordon-Smith is a Vernon-based musician who reviews new releases for The Morning Star every Friday.
