Heartland

I had heard Heartland once and knew it was a "pretty album" so I put it on in the background as my girl and I lounged in bed. About midway through, I started thinking, oh wow… this album is something! It is indeed a pretty album, and almost suitable for lazing around in bed with. (Like Real Estate, which I'm going to review next) but Owen doesn't just let his lovely singing and orchestration just meander along. He likes some catharsis; he lets his songs swell into big, beautiful affairs that just fill you up. Swells of wind instruments, string instruments and some impressive percussion all swirl up around his vocal themes, which sounds maybe as much like a Beach Boy than anything else. What's awesome though, is how he also mixes traditional orchestral instruments with more experimental electronic music sounds. I always heard about but not heard Owen's other musical project: Final Fantasy, which he had to drop for obvious licensing issues, once he started to get big, but I fully intend to go back and listen now. I also found out he wrote some of the arrangements for Arcade Fire, The Pet Shop Boys, and Beirut's The Flying Club Cup, which I also found totally inspiring. (In fact, if you've never seen this Take-Away shows video of one of their songs, it's very worth taking the time to watch.) This album might challenge you a little if you like mostly muzak, and might seem too poncy if you like tougher music. But, for me, I don't even know what a single song is truly about yet and I love it.

He sounds a lot like syd barrett

It's as if christopher cross sings to your rpg video game music and you love it!

this album is genius. the more you listen to it the more you grow on it. i'm not going to give you an in depth look at the album. just buy it.. you will like it at first.. slowly but surely it will grow on you and you will be screaming "IM NEVER GONNA GIVE IT TO YOU" with pallett in your suv or youre element or jetta or whatever you drive.

I love this record! It's really refreshing to hear the fine art of arranging (a la Brian Wilson) coming back into music with Pallet, as well as bands like St. Vincent, Shortwave Society (Voyeur), and My Brightest Diamond...

This is really such a great album, in my opinion anyways. I love the use of the orchestra etc, LOVE. Buy at least one song, completely worth it.

Some very well-structured and highly addictive songs, putting it next to Towers of Asia's debut as one of last year's nicest surprises.

I just got this album and I have already listened to it once and can't wait to go back. It definitely reminds me of Sufjan Stevens, and in saying that, I love this album. This was worth the buy and I look forward to recommending him to any music lover. A great way to start off the year!

38 5 Star Reviews (and one 1 star idiot) reflect how incredible this album is. Just buy it, you won't be sorry at all. Beautifully orchestrated pieces with subtle yet powerful vocals (remember, this guy orchestrates the parts for Arcade Fire. Yeah.) complement the brilliant song writing, with topics such as the overly violent Lewis and the land of Heartland. Oh, please do buy this album, God knows the world needs more music like this.

I have always loved Owen Pallett's music, specifically the two Final Fantasy LPs, so I was thrilled to see his new effort. This album is very dense musically, and it has an almost whimsical sound, which is matched by the fantasy of the lyrics. He took a huge jump forward with this album, working with entire orchestras instead of his usual layered-violin and vocal minimalism, and thankfully he has the talent to pull it off. It reminds me of listening to Bjork's Post after she did Debut. I hope more people come to find his music.