Review: The Magnetic Fields – Realism
This album is somewhat diverse in it’s lyrics and subject matter. At some times humorous and others serious. Some of the humor becomes a little too cute for my personal taste (ex. We Are Having A Hootenanny, The Dolls’ Tea Party, Everything Is One Big Christmas Tree. I think the titles say it all). The recording and production are great. Although, I could have done without the toy piano that seems to find its way onto every Indie album these days. The hammered dulcimer was an excellent choice, however. As well as the autoharp. There are no drums, really. I’m a drummer and it was still able to keep me interested, though. The songs are mostly childish or whimsical, so it’s hard for me to take this album too seriously. Although it does work very well for “Walk A Lonely Road” which is an absolute gem. It also makes many of the songs and the album itself memorable. Overall, I would say the album is good and offers something interesting.
