After a day spent with Wipers in Portland, it's time to head up the road to Seattle, in order to visit with 21st century indie darlings Fleet Foxes. I don't know too much of their music, but I think Helplessness Blues is a decent album.
Bedouin Dress begins as a low-key guitar and piano affair. Robin Pecknold's voice is a touch grating to me on its own because of its loudness, but it sits nicely among the harmonies, which take on a gentle Crosby, Stills and Nash/Beach Boys quality here and there, especially in the the middle a cappella section. A fiddle comes in at 0:46, and the tune puts on the guise of a modern Incredible String Band, though not as quirky. It has that organic, shambling, nomadic aspect to it, the various instruments finding their own places in the mix.
I am also reminded of stuff like Rod Stewart's Every Picture Tells A Story album, Jackson Browne, and the Eagles (Seven Bridges Road, maybe?). A lot of music history flows through Bedouin Dress, maybe that's why it appeals to me. It's certainly good enough on its own without comparisons, but I enjoy recognizing older songs or influences within newer songs.
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