Death Vessel
Nothing is Precious Enough for Us
BY Chris Bilton
August 27, 2008 14:08
DEATH VESSEL PLAY EL MOCAMBO (464 SPADINA AV) AUG 28.
It’s possible to get all the way through Death Vessel’s second album before realizing that the singer is actually a dude. But Joel Thibodeau’s prepubescent-sounding vocals are only the first of many reasons to keep this record on repeat. The melancholy-in-the-sunshine mood to songs like “The Widening” offers an exquisitely sparse counterpoint to labelmates Fleet Foxes. String sections and flute-and-ukulele accents illuminate Thibodeau’s elusive poetics, and there’s a sweeping movement to the whole record that peaks as the quavering swing of “Peninsula” builds to a ripping Neil Young-ish guitar solo. Aside from stealing the title to Arcade Fire’s next record, Nothing Is Precious Enough For Us showcases a musical maturity well beyond the ambiguity of Thibodeau’s years.
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