Aiming to diversify the genre
There is room for many in Nashville–but as in any packed room, the deepest voices can certainly pull the crowd. Avi Kaplan is one of those voices. Though the singer-songwriter made a Grammy-winning early career with the Pentatonix a capella group, his recent work reflects turns toward self-exploration and faith.
Kaplan’s latest album Floating on a Dream was produced with Shooter Jennings, whose connections, knowledge of the music industry and musical aesthetic seem to have contributed to the album’s overall effectiveness. While the country-music Holler music blog dotes on the album with an 8.5/10 rating, that may seem difficult to justify for some listeners. Despite his basso profundo range and definitive imagination, Kaplan still presents as a musician who takes risks at a calculated level. In the album, he seems to defer toward catchiness and iteration–not necessarily, as Holler would state, “widescreen melodies…poetically introspective, liberating lyrics…and subtle authority.” Rather, the musician returns to somewhat beat-up themes like redemption, lost love, and perseverance repeatedly. While the album itself reflects a bit of over-processing and thematic trendiness, its creative and thoughtful moments help to justify its goals of diversifying the genre.
From the first track called “First Place I Go” listeners are struck by Kaplan’s resounding bass vocals. Like Bill Calahan, Kaplan has a range which is a bit astonishing at first. Eventually though, it becomes a bit more “mellifluous” (Holler). The band keeps the tempo well on this track with the bass cleanly in the pocket of the 3/4 ballad, layered with pedal steel and lead guitar. While the piano occasionally breaks through in the song to the front of the mix, it is more of a decoration on this tune’s sonic tapestry. The bridge shows a bit of the artist’s self-consciousness with lyrics like: “Leave me be / I’m too tired to fight / Won’t you let me go? / I’m trying to get right.” In fact, Kaplan’s songwriting seems at times to reveal pieces of a more complicated self; however, while the instinct for exploration is there the reflections seem disorganized.
The title track called “Floating on a Dream ” appears second on the album. The lyrics are redemptive and soulful, with a crawling minor-key introduction. The pre-chorus is marked by harmonies which Kaplan worked to produce with his own a capella skill. The guitar’s suspenseful tremolo and the piano’s eerie plunking create a genuine atmosphere for the song, while the bass thrums through again. The refrain “Floating on a dream” adds to the overall ghostly effect.
A few tracks later, “I Can’t Lie” features a pushed, picked bassline against quick shaker action a la Foo Fighters. The song takes some unexpected turns: while the drummer seems to kick up the fills and the dancehall clapping in the background of the chorus makes the tune quite danceable, it sounds a bit like a take from the eighties. Aside of course from Kaplan’s deep vocals, which add character to the song rather than wince. In fact, the lyrics are simple and repetitive—which perhaps provides listeners a pleasant contradiction. Lyrics like “I wanna love you right / I wanna hold you tight / Darlin’ I can’t lie” present as a bit trite, but taken with Kaplan’s deliberacy they stand out.
“All is Well” brings back Travis picking rhythms on the guitar, and listeners may see through to Iron & Wine influences, especially when considering that artists work like “Cedar and Smoke” or “Faded From The Winter.” It’s a strong feel, and a good direction for Kaplan: understated and non-iterative. Joy Williams has a unique voice to match Kaplan’s bass and vocal range, and the overall message that “All is well in my soul” is sincere and life-affirming.
“Into The Blue” and “When I’m a Fool” are relatively diverse. “Into the Blue” includes a simple strum introduction with more rhythm section in the pocket, swaggering. The band sways into the chorus “Chasing you…/ oh-ooh-ohh” It is thoughtfully arranged, especially during some of the pedal steel slides and wallows. On the other hand, “When I’m a Fool” takes on a more folk-baroque or hammered picking pattern for rhythm. It has drumming on toms, and the aforementioned dancehall clapping. For what it is worth, with tunes like this Kaplan is able to catch and cover a multitude of musical affectations.
“My Queen” is the last track on the album, and returns to Travis-style picking with cool Fleet Foxes-style minor harmonies (think White Winter Hymnal). The tune is misty, with round and robust sounds to match Kaplan’s vocal harmonies. The artist would do well to explore the musical space even more to find anchor in creativity more often than conventional expectation. It’s a psychedelic raga, and is definitely within his reach.
Avi Kaplan’s Floating on a Dream is a unique album in its diverse arrangements and its intention of exploring the alt-country territory. While it may rank undeservedly high on some lists, it is worth at least a few listens.
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