When my sister was finishing up at Oberlin, in early 2000, we were chatting on the phone one day and she admitted something to me. There was a guy at Oberlin who sang and played the guitar, and she actually liked his music. Emily and I share the same apprehension when it comes to singer songwriters, and I think it's safe to say that she has even less tolerance than I do. (I admitted in an earlier post that I've never been a huge fan of female singer songwriters, but in truth, I don't have much stomach for male singer songwriters either.) So, for Em to be psyched about this guy, he had to be pretty cool.
Indeed, Josh Ritter is downright exceptional. By the time I got around to acquiring any of his albums, I was able to get both his self-titled debut (which I'm pretty sure he put out while still a student at Oberlin) and his follow up "Golden Age of Radio" that came out in 2002. I loved them both. I listened to them pretty consistently for a long time. And happily I found that, though definitely influenced by folk traditions, Josh Ritter is definitely not just a folk singer, and definitely not a guy with a guitar feeling sorry for himself. He's a really talented, fun, creative musician. His compositions go way beyond vocals and guitar to achieve big, full sounds. In fact, when I checked his website tonight, I found that he's about to do two (sold out) shows in Dublin with a 24 piece orchestra.
Over the last bunch of years, Josh Ritter has definitely garnered a lot of media attention. I've heard him interviewed multiple times on NPR. I'm sure producers and hosts love him, 'cause he's a smart, witty, affable guy who comes across super humble. When he started getting a lot of press, people were throwing labels at him like "the next Bob Dylan." That's pretty serious. I don't know why people do that, but it's definitely indicative of how impressed the critics have been, so that's got to be nice. From a very outside perspective, it seems that he's been able to stay grounded and just keep evolving as a musician.
Josh Ritter has released three albums since I picked up those first two. I dutifully bought "Hello Starling" in 2003, and "The Animal Years" in 2006. However, I had gotten to the point where I felt like I loved the first two albums so much that if I needed a Josh Ritter fix, I'd just put one of those on. I never developed much of a relationship with the next two, and I have yet to purchase "The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter," which was released this year. So I was a little worried when I pulled "The Animal Years" out of the drawer today and faced the prospect of writing about it. When I put it on, it was good to be reminded that I do really like his music, even the albums I don't know that well.
"The Animal Years" offers a nice array of songs. One of the things I really appreciate about Josh Ritter is that he can pull off super upbeat anthems, and really quiet meditations. You definitely get the gamut on this album. I'd say that overall, this cd is on the more serious side of his work, but if I can get into it, it can't be too much of a downer. I love the way he weaves in Biblical and scientific references. I'm sure that if I really took the time to pay attention to these lyrics, I'd realize that there are some good thoughts being offered. I've heard that this is his most overtly political album.
Poking around on his website today, I loved what I read. In one interview, Josh Ritter explained that after "The Animal Years" came out, he felt like "there was a premium being placed on earnestness that can be pretty stifling." Oh, I love that! So he decided to try an entirely new way of composing his next album - he put down the guitar and plucked things out on the upright piano, an instrument he doesn't even really play. He chose muses that made him happy, like Calamity Jane. That makes me want to listen to "The Historical Conquests" for sure. I mean, I've heard the single on the radio, and liked that (he's versatile enough to get a single on the radio!) but now I want to hear the whole thing.
I have a feeling that when push comes to shove, "The Animal Years" won't end up being my favorite Josh Ritter album of all time. But it's a really solid album, and it's nice to know that I do actually like it, and am happy to have it in my collection. If you want to add it to yours, definitely let me know and it'll be on its way to you. Either way, keep an eye on Josh Ritter. I think he'll be around for a long time, and I trust that he'll always be putting out quality work.
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