A lot of people are going to be trawling the Internet today, searching for Bon Iver, who shamed himself and his bearded brethren by winning “Best New Artist” at the Grammys last night. Whatever you do, do not listen to his sophomore album, “Bon Iver.” Instead, buy “For Emma, Forever Ago,” his first album, and go find somewhere gorgeous to listen to it, preferably lying in a field (see Ali MacGraw, above).
“For Emma, Forever Ago” might be my favorite album of all time. The stuff Justin Vernon (front man of Bon Iver) has made since then shames him more than the Grammy.
And if you’re not into the slow, heartbreak stuff, then check him out on Kanye West’s album, “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy,” on which he appears in ten songs. I wrote about their strange collaboration many months ago on this very blog.
