Owen Pallett, formally known as Final Fantasy and better known as the only good thing about Arcade Fire released Heartland in the beginning of 2010. This is a stunning departure from his last release He Poos Clouds. While both records feature Palletts beautiful and defined string arrangements, unlike Clouds, Heartland does not scare the god-fearing piss out of me.
Heartland opens with “Midnight Detectives”, a track with confident curiosity that makes for a fun listen and thusly sets the tone for the rest of the album. “Keep the Dog Quiet” and “Mount Alpine” fade into one another, but even in their tenseness, they never become haunting, instead exciting. “Red Sun No. 5” is a welcome break in the action, setting a sense of peace with Pallett’s smooth and charming voice keeping the listener company. My favorite song on the album is easily “Lewis Takes Action,” an awkward pop strain that would make Brian Wilson proud. “The Great Elsewhere” is a new kind of song for Pallett, where he has subtly embraces an electronic sound. Despite what might be expected it works so well. “Oh, Heartland of Yours” is yet another spectacular example of how Pallett can utilize pop song structure to work for his orchestrations. “Lewis Takes Off His Shirt” is likely the most single-worthy song on the album and also a new venture for Pallett: danceability. Around “Flare Gun” “E is for Estranged” the album begins to sadly wear thin, but the builds of “Tryst of the Mephistopheles” provide the last excitement of the album. “What Do You Think Will Happen Now?” ends out the album like a much needed cigarette.
Damn. This guy is good.
Typically artists of Pallett’s caliber make stranger album albums with time, but I’m happy to see him get it out of his system on He Poos Clouds. Heartland is an elegant and majestic album, like riding a unicorn through Disneyland.
No exaggeration.
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