Warren Hildebrand, of Foxes In Fiction, says he wanted to get back to more traditional song structures, and to be more courageous with his vocals. And it shows. “Alberto” is a fantastic record of Hildebrand re-working old songs with Coma Cinema and experimenting with new ones. “Alberto” is highly original and so pleasing. Sometimes it’s as airily complex as Stereolab, like on the atmospheric track “Borders”. Hildebrand’s vocals don’t need any work. His style is graceful and pretty, and reminds me of listening to Sam Prekop’s solo work. The music is dream escape, where moods fill the the air like perfume and beautiful days go by in slow-motion.
That’s not to say this is some sunny-day reveling. “Fifteen Ativan” is a beautifully tender reflection on a friend’s supposed overdose. “School Night” is a dreamy confection, a song about remembering, that feels light as cloud: “And I can still remember living back in our town / Flowers pills and dollars bills when making that sound.” Hildebrand says this record is dedicated to a real friend named Alberto. I couldn’t think of a better gift. ‘Alberto’ is as alluring and delicate as it gets. It feels like it was made with burning focus, and true emotion.
Hildebrand’s focus for ‘Alberto’ is good advice for other artists in the coming year. In 2010, a number of talented artists used all types of inventive instrumentation, muffled or veiled vocals, heavy distortion, and oddly imaginative found sounds. Often it led to great music. But sometimes all that distortion hides serious flaws. A heavily-reverbed voice may really mean the group’s lead singer just can’t sing. ‘Lo-fi’ may well mean the band doesn’t know how to record or they have shoddy equipment. Can’t understand the lyrics? Maybe the writing isn’t so good. To put it bluntly, you can only do so much to hide the fact that there’s something lacking. Don’t get me wrong, I love bands that try new things. We wouldn’t have Radiohead or Sleigh Bells without a band’s drive to create something fresh. But it also depends on what you’re being inventive with.
‘Alberto’ finds a perfect space. It’s a record comfortable in its own skin. (Which is harder than it sounds.) It’s melodically breathtaking (listen “OCAD Flu” and its wild Sufjan Stevens swells), moody and hued. There are moments of real joy and sadness in every song. His vocals glow with the aura that surrounds the words of an artist who has real friendships. As un-reviewer-like as this may sound — ‘Alberto’ just makes me feel good. It makes me feel good about people and their potential to love openly and give freely. I love this record. Note: Hildebrand has taken the time to write a bit about each song. Read his words at his blog. You can download a free digital copy of the record, or buy it on cassette. — David D. Robbins Jr.
Foxes In Fiction “School Night”
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