JUNIPERS - "RED BOUQUET FAIR" (SUGARBUSH SB024), ultra limited 2nd pressing of last year's stunning album. On sky blue vinyl and limited to 200 copies only.
Reviewed here by Nathan Ford:
I'm now absolutely certain that
Sugarbush Records' Markus Holler has managed to somehow implant a chip
in me that relays to him exactly which albums I want him to release.
His latest batch of releases are absolute perfection. There are four of
them in total, but I'm just going to focus on my favourite of them
today (more on the others soon).
The Junipers, for those who
haven't been paying attention, are one of this decade's most important,
unheralded guitar pop bands. Their previous album "
Paint the Ground"
is one of my favourites of the last few years. I'd previously thought
of it as one of those rare, perfect pop records, but it can't quite
have been as this new album is even better. While "Paint the Ground"
had a lovely pastoral tinge, "Red Bouquet Fair" is much more of a
classic pop album, with songs that reach back to the sixties for
inspiration without sounding tied to that decade or overly reverential.
It's obvious that these guys have fantastic record collections, but in
no way do these songs sound like an attempt to replicate the music
from those collections.
There are strong hooks on every single
one of these songs, and these lads sure do know their way around a
harmony; check out the lush vocal layering on "Summer Queen".
Absolutely stunning. Elsewhere, they use period embellishments
sparingly for maximum effect. Particularly effective is the 12 string
guitar solo on "Like a Merry Go Round", while the sitar led "Her Come
The Winds" is a marvelous psych-pop gem. And don't get me started on
the amazing kaleidoscopic psychedelia of "Burning Pages".
And
while classic harmony and psych-pop are the most obvious touchstones
here, other influences rear their heads; "When the Bird Has Flown" is a
lovely, moody choral harmony piece ala Midlake or the Fleet Foxes,
while "Dig Me Up" brings to mind some of the brit-pop sounds of the mid
nineties which have aged more gracefully than others.
Apart
from the extremely solid songcraft, and those luscious harmonies, the
main secret to "Red Bouquet Fair"s success is in the arrangements and
production. It's all beautifully layered, with imaginative touches that
create a distinctive sound for the band, while preventing any of the
songs sounding samey. Or to put it in a simpler fashion, it's obvious
that these songs are all the work of the same band, but each is a fresh
creation which distinguishes itself from its predecessors.
It's the sort of album which should make you a little bit angry at the
injustices of the world. Paradoxically, I'd also imagine that it's
pretty much impossible to remain angry while listening to "Red Bouquet
Fair". This should by all rights be a major label release with constant
airplay and household name status for the band, and had the Junipers
been around to release this 50, 40 or even 20 years ago, that may well
have been the case, but we don't currently live in a world where what
the Junipers have to offer is in vogue with the masses. For us lucky few
though, it's a comforting, magical experience. Absolutely wonderful.
