Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros : 40 Day Dream

Thursday, January 28, 2010

In Defense Of Joyous Music Making...

Pitchfork finally got around to reviewing the debut album by Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros last week (the album came out July 7th, 2009). They gave it an insultingly low rating of 4.1 (out of 10). Well, that's frustrating. There's no disputing that Pitchfork has become the bible for independent music and more often than not their writing is crisp, well informed and insightful. But why, oh why crap all over an album that came out 7 months ago that was largely adored by fans and critics alike? This is why I hate ratings and why we don't use them. One man's 3 is another man's 9. And in a case like this, it feels like little more than a late hit.

The review kicks off with an inexplicably long-winded comparison to the marketing launch of Coke's ill-fated brand Fruitopia back in the mid 90's. I worked at Coke at the time, in marketing, and I can attest that the product was not fake crap any more than it's Kaleidoscope marketing campaign was designed to dupe people into thinking that the product was actually made by hippies growing giant fruit. (It did however employ some fantastic music by both Kate Bush and The Cocteau Twins!)

So to make the argument that Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros are to fake 60's hippie music what Fruitopia was to fake hippie juice marketing seems absurd on both counts. Bands are brands these days, whether we like it or not- they have to be- both to stand out in the crowd and to try and carve out a living. Does Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros carry more schtick than most? Yes. Have said so myself. But that schtick has struck a huge chord with fans who love the music and the persona it embodies...which makes this observation all the more baffling:

"it's humanity that's missing in Sharpe's mild but mannered and certainly unmemorable music, which feels focus-grouped, stone-washed, and artificial."

Couldn't disagree more. And BTW it's not Sharpe's music- he's a fictional character -as are his Magnetic Zeros- and perhaps therein lies the rub. The music is front man Alex Ebert's and it's great; it soars. It's about joy and love and redemption and community-expressed in the form of a fictional  leader and his band of followers. It's expressed in the music they make, in their sheer numbers, in their live shows, in their mode of transportation (an old school bus) and in the short films they have produced. Does it all convey the feeling of a 60's love fest? Absolutely. And on purpose. And it works. Would it work if the music sucked? No, I don't think it would.

Perhaps as we move into a new decade, it's time we re-think the whole notion of music ratings. (Boy, that's fodder for another day!)

Until then, we throw down some joyous, over the top Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros. Ironically, here's what another Pitchfork writer had to say about this individual track when she reviewed it on July 1, 2009:

"Ultimately, the song unfolds and evolves beautifully, letting the listener bask in layers of ebullient analog sound, handclaps, and an infectious chorus. These techniques might smack of hollow revivalism, but the overall effect is utterly sincere."

On this, we agree!

by Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros from Up From Below

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