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The result is an intimate, poignant album, laced with rich production that enhances, not clouds, the songwriting itself.
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The Avett Brothers have hit upon a winning approach, and this album is another step in their taking it beyond the obvious.
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They've constructed something beautiful.
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While the Avett Brothers have had a productive run going on a decade, I and Love and You's new elegant musical direction and very strong set of new songs indicate that they are band that is indeed just getting revved up.
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For their major-label debut, producer Rick Rubin has turned the group into a lush chamber-folk outfit. I and Love and You is packed with complex, piano-based beauties.
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More than anything, I and Love and You proves how miscast the Brothers were as folkies, because their ambitions are so much larger.
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With Rick Rubin at the helm, employing his trademark austerity but not overdoing the dryness, the group swings for the fences musically, lyrically, vocally, and emotionally. Its batting average is sterling.
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Packed front to back with lyrical treats and lovely sonic touches (thanks to producer Rick Rubin), I and Love and You may be one of the major labels' best pieces of news this fall.
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FilterThis is a minor stumble at a major plate, but no fear. The high here do well in drowning out the lows. [Fall 2009, p.92]
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Recalling Elton John or Ben Folds at his most Southern-sounding, I And Love And You deserves the larger audience it's been designed for, wrapping shamelessly sentimental, effortlessly beautiful songs in a warm, inviting mellow-rock package.
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Mostly it's the tunes that do the slamming. And though their lyrics may be too sincere for sophisticates, they're not sincere enough to suit the Avetts, a disconnect they'll tell you about.
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This is an album of surprising tenderness, of intricate (and, importantly, memorable) melodies and deep emotions, and everyman ruminations on love and life that will surely connect with long-standing fans and newcomers alike.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 39 out of 46
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Mixed: 6 out of 46
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Negative: 1 out of 46
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May 1, 2011
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ShaunDec 4, 2009
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DarnellSOct 26, 2009