Don't Fall In Love With Everyone You See
Okkervil River
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| Name | Artist | Time | Price | ||
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1 |
Red | Okkervil River | 3:40 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
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2 |
Kansas City | Okkervil River | 5:46 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
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3 |
Lady Liberty | Okkervil River | 3:41 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
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4 |
My Bad Days | Okkervil River | 6:22 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
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5 |
Westfall | Okkervil River | 5:54 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
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6 |
Happy Hearts | Okkervil River | 4:17 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
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7 |
Dead Dog Song | Okkervil River | 4:00 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
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8 |
Listening to Otis Redding At Home During Christmas | Okkervil River | 6:36 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
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9 |
Okkervil River Song | Okkervil River | 5:54 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
| Total: 9 Songs |
Album Review
Marking the point when audiences started to warm up to Okkervil River's delicate yet explosive sound, Don't Fall in Love With Everyone You See foreshadows a band that would soon be capable of the fantastic follow-up Down the River of Golden Dreams, but here, they still sound a bit green. So what if Okkervil River wasn't quite up to snuff at this juncture? They soon would be, the songs hold merit, and aspirations of grandeur snake out and about, most notably in the horn-driven "Lady Liberty." But amidst all of the goodness, Will Sheff's vocals often detract from the listening. During the nine tracks of Don't Fall in Love With Everyone You See, Sheff sometimes seems too desperate to sing the songs with the naturalness they deserve, exuding false confidence in a manner that suggests his discomfort for writing himself out of his vocal range. Although most songs survive this disadvantage — as in the building opener "Red," where the melody Sheff is aiming at (coupled with a lovely set of lyrics) balances the scale — this is what keeps Don't Fall in Love With Everyone You See from obtaining the high quality Okkervil River later achieved.
Customer Reviews
It takes a few listens...
I love this album, much more so than anything else Okkervil River has put out since. I realize that their sound has become more polished, but it is the roughness of this album that becomes its charm. I miss the days when banjos and horns were used to create a driving melody. It doesn't jump out at you right away, but songs like Wesfall, Dead Dog Song and especially Okkervil River song deserve another listen, and a second and so on...
a good place to start
I'll go ahead and say that I got into Okkervil River when I heard the sample of "Our Life is Not a Movie or Maybe" sometime in the summer of '08. I decided to buy Black Sheep Boy, The Stage Names, and The Stand Ins (when it came out that fall). I was used to their polished sound, so it was a surprise to me when I expanded my album collection with this and Down the River of Golden Dreams. "Westfall" and "Okkervil River Song" aside, you won't find anything as immediately poppy as what's on The Stage Names or The Stand Ins, but what you will find is something just as rewarding, if not moreso.
"Red," the album opener, is a lovely song about a dancer (stripper?) that the singer takes home who tells him about how she's full of fictions and ****ing addictions and how she misses her mother. The way frontman Will Sheff writes... I dare you to find any other artist out their who writes his or her lyrics with such emotional honesty. In fact, "Westfall" is particularly memorable for that very aspect. Detailing a murder, Sheff sings as the killer: "Now with all these cameras, focused on my face/You'd think that they could see it through my skin/Looking for evil, thinking they can trace it, but/Evil don't look like anything." Oh, and the song is probably the catchiest murder ballad written in a good long while.
And while I'll sing the album's praise to no end, there are a few flaws to be found here. "My Bad Days" does drag on a little too long, and Daniel Johnston's vocals on "Happy Hearts" are grating at times, but neither issue does anything to really sink the album. Plus, you always have the option to just skip through those songs.
The last three tracks are my particular favorites, with the momentum of "Dead Dog Song," the heartbreak of "Listening to Otis Redding at Home During Christmas," and the just general happiness and nostalgia of "Okkervil River Song" to end a semi-flawed, but definitely great album. This is a much better place to start with Okkervil River than any of their subsequent albums. It's not their best, no, but it's very interesting to see how the band has matured over the past seven years, and it'll keep you wondering about what they'll do next.
Amazing...
I absolutely love Okkervil River, my friend and I always blast it in her car and I've already learned how to play and sing a few of their songs. I think that Kansas City is one of the best songs I've heard. I'd suggest buying this album to any OR fan or to someone who's looking for new music.
Biography
Formed: 1998 in Austin, TX
Genre: Alternative
Years Active: '00s, '10s
Top Albums and Songs By Okkervil River
| Name | Album | Time | Price | ||
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1 |
Unless It's Kicks | The Stage Names (Bonus Track Version) | 4:38 | $1.29 | View In iTunes |
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2 |
Lost Coastlines | The Stand Ins | 5:31 | $1.29 | View In iTunes |
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3 |
Our Life Is Not a Movie or Maybe | The Stage Names (Bonus Track Version) | 4:24 | $1.29 | View In iTunes |
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4 |
Westfall | Don't Fall In Love With Everyone You See | 5:54 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
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5 |
The President's Dead | The President's Dead / The Room I'm Hiding In - Single | 2:42 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
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6 |
Plus Ones | The Stage Names (Bonus Track Version) | 3:43 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
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7 |
A Hand to Take Hold of the Scene | The Stage Names (Bonus Track Version) | 3:59 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
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8 |
Calling and Not Calling My Ex | The Stand Ins | 4:21 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
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9 |
Red | Don't Fall In Love With Everyone You See | 3:40 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
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10 |
Okkervil River Song | Don't Fall In Love With Everyone You See | 5:54 | $0.99 | View In iTunes |
