Bon Iver — 22, A Million ANALYSIS & REVIEW

Published 10/04/2016

Right away, I knew that melody would make or break this album. I could tell that frontman Justin Vernon was not going to let his melodies slip into the background or become obsolete. In fact, even with the heavy timbres present throughout the album, the melodic line never fails to come to the forefront. That alone is a great sign for listeners; if you’re listening well enough, the melodies will hook you in and make you feel apart of what’s going on in each song.

Were the lines intriguing enough? For the most part, yes, they were. This was Bon Iver’s true test in this album, and I believe they did quite well. The melodies could have just as easily been shaped in order to conform to Vernon’s vocal range or to the general affect of the timbres. Conforming melodic shape based on other musical elements never allows the individual line to bring out its full potential of musical quality. Vernon still struggled with this a little, and the melodies in “10 d E A T h B R E a s T ⚄ ⚄” and “____45_____” weren’t as beneficial to the song as they could have been, even though they were still fully present.

Most every other song, though, had a successful hook that gave the song meaning and direction. Right away, “22 (OVER S∞∞N)” provides listeners with a unique and intriguing hook that sets the tone for the album. There were times at which the melody dropped out for quite a long time, or it didn’t enter the song until it was very late. These spots in the music were void of any direction or sense, which made me appreciate the melody even more. Indeed, the song “666 ʇ” could have turned into mush if it weren’t for the beautiful melodic line in Vernon’s voice to come in and save the day.

For the most part, the melodies had great independence while still blending well with the textures as a whole, which I would say is the biggest aspect that gives Bon Iver a likeable identity. The individual lines could have had more grit or elements of risk as a whole. They got through the first all-important hoop of being present and having recognizable qualities, which is really all this album needed. Going forward, I expect Bon Iver to take more risks and give their melodies a more interesting and individualized shape. In any case, 22, A Million still shows that musicians don’t need to choose between creating a beautiful background and creating a single important line; you can have both. This should be much appreciated by listeners and should make 22, A Million stand out amongst other albums of its kind.

While melody had the most important triumph and timbre the most obvious importance, it was the harmonic creativity of this album that pleased me more than anything else. Throughout the album, each harmonic progression was fully present while giving the melodies a great platform to build off of. With the exception of the song “33 “GOD””, in which the harmony seemed to go off in its own secluded world, the harmonic language was simple enough to work well with what’s around it while still providing some musical weight of its own.

My favorite song on the whole album was “29 #Strafford APTS”, which had a superb use of the subdominant as well as a few borrowed chords to give the melody great space and inject energy into the song. In turn, the melody flourished and the song became wonderful to listen to. “00000 Million” also had strong supportive harmony and was a great way to end the album overall. It may just be me, but I sensed that Bon Iver didn’t necessarily give as much thought and importance to some songs throughout this album as they did to others. This came out especially when analyzing the harmony. The progressions were either stalled or simply cut off short in the songs “22 (OVER S∞∞N)”, “715 — CRΣΣKS”, “21 M◊◊N WATER”, and “____45_____”. In a way, they felt like fillers that were simply used to lead in to the songs that had more girth and prominence in the harmony.

While other listeners may feel this way as well, I believe that the harmonies of the “filler” sounding songs still have the creativity they need to give the music quality. In other words, I’m not falling for what Bon Iver seems to give off. From the one-note drones to the nuanced rhythms of the chord progressions, this album does harmony very well. The harmonies as a whole could have come out of the texture and been more active, which may have given the music a more obvious push into the realm of greatness. Still, it was Bon Iver’s best accomplishment and made 22, A Million more impressive than it easily could have been.

What will probably be a surprise to many, especially those who have been Bon Iver fans since their beginning, is that the timbre of this album was actually its weakest link. If only the timbre accomplished what it was supposed to. Indeed, Bon Iver sets this album up to be a work of sonic brilliance through experimental background effects, warm saxophone passages, soothing electronic flow, and all topped off with Vernon’s signature high vocals. Bon Iver is advertised as a band that uses incredible techniques in both acoustic and electric sounds to give off unique feelings of beauty.

In many ways, I feel like this album fell short of what was trying to be accomplished through sound. I do appreciate and enjoy Vernon’s voice to a degree, but only when used as a delicate ornament. By the song “33 “GOD””, his high vocal register was already getting old. I’m glad that his higher register wasn’t utilized exclusively in this album, but there could have been more beneficial variety. The saxophone was a terrific addition to the timbre and effectively saved this album from being an electronic whitewash. The saxophone always had a subtle calmness to it that didn’t distract from the rest of the music but enhanced the emotion of the moment. The piano was also used a nice surprising effect that brought a sense of simple humanness to the texture.

The most disappointing aspect of this album was the ineffective and uninspiring usage of the many vocal and instrumental effects that distorted the actual sound. Distortion is perfectly okay when used appropriately, but it was given too much power and importance on 22, A Million that it actually hindered the overall musicality. The most upsetting feature of the timbre was the absurd chipmunk vocals in “33 “GOD”” and “666 ʇ” that resulted from digitally changing the pitch of the voice. I found no reason why they felt the need to do that, and it heavily detracted from the direction of the music. The heavy vocal effects on “715 — CRΣΣKS” actually ruined the song; there was a great melodic line with wonderfully intertwined harmony that simply could not thrive due to the failed timbral experiment.

Most timbres were not bad enough to ruin the song, but they did not live up to what they were supposed to do. They overpowered the song too many times and used too many distracting effects that didn’t work collectively to create the atmosphere that Bon Iver wanted. With the amount of effort and importance that Bon Iver put on timbre as supposed to their melody and harmony, I would have expected this album to be more sonically pleasing. Bon Iver simply is not at the level of musical ingenuity that other comparable musicians such as Tame Impala, Animal Collective, and Sufjan Stevens have today. These musicians put as much focus on timbre that Bon Iver do, but they are much more successful with getting the heightened mood and feeling from their sonic combinations. If this is whom Bon Iver wants to be associated with, they have quite a bit of work to do. With all that being said, I applaud their risky experimentation and deviations from the norm that allow their music to at least come alive. While it may not be what it seems to be on the surface, the timbre is still refreshing and rather charming.

I hope that none of my Wisconsin bias seeps in here, since both Justin Vernon and I call the state home. I have witnessed the amount of influence he and the rest of Bon Iver have had, starting from those in small Wisconsin towns and swiftly moving to listeners across the world. This album’s musical features and themes were a logical next step for such a creative group. I would argue that this is the best album of the three that Bon Iver have made, and they have certainly ended their hiatus in style. Big fans of Bon Iver can definitely adore this album, as they can enjoy both the signature sound and style of Bon Iver while witnessing a growth in maturity and overall musical experience the band has had.

Those who never considered themselves fans of Bon Iver could easily be turned into one after hearing 22, A Million. Musicians and non-musicians alike can enjoy the string of unique and beautiful music that weaves in and out of the album. It will continue to gain a good amount of attention for a while, possibly becoming the new benchmark for indie musicians interested in electronics and the through-composed form. While I myself could recommend better albums than this one in that regard, I’m sure many will still gravitate towards this one, and there’s nothing terribly wrong with that. You’ll be disappointed in this album if you’re big into hearing wonderful timbres that bring you to a state of total tranquility, which sadly could be how this album is marketed. However, this is still a worthwhile piece of musical art, and I’m sure everyone can find some sort of beauty in it.