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Seriously: this is one of 2007’s finest LPs, no question.
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Parades, both restrained and wildly dramatic, gently touching and warmly enveloping, is not a record that sits comfortably with convenient labels.
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Efterklang have managed to locate the sweet spot where the organic meets the electronic, and have carefully stuffed each track full to bursting point with a gorgeous mix that at times seems to require a new musical format, just to deal with the sheer bandwidth of sonic invention on display here.
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MojoEvery so often an album comes along that's so original it's difficult to accurately liken it to anything else--even Efterklang's last album, "Tripper," is left behind by Parades. [Nov 2007, p.106]
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UncutMore organic than their 2004 debut, Parades is just as richly rewarding. [Nov 2007,p.98]
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The WireParades succeeds in avoiding the most perilous pitfalls of simulated whimsy and fey affected vocals to achieve something gloriously endearing. [Nov 2007, p.53]
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Parades is an album of slow-growing rewards from a band with whom relationships are formed, not instantly identified.
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Parades' recipe--soft verse, big chant, heavenly "aaaaaaaaa", elliptical, Nordic orchestrations, stir--is clever to avoid repetition but extremely taxing.
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It harnesses large spaces, allowing songs like 'Caravan' to blossom into something more orchestral than you'd expect; fitting for a band whose name translates as 'reverberation.'
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The album complements each situation differently, and new elements become apparent with each listen.
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Like the title suggests, this album is grand in many ways, but the sheen also wears off somewhat quickly at the same time.
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The first few tracks work a treat, melding glitchy beats and stomping brass bands in the best tradition of Björk or Sigur Rós. After that, however, things start to feel a bit overwrought.
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Efterklang could create an expansive rock album on par with the work of Arcade Fire. But they’re not interested in anything as patent as that; instead, let’s welcome this modest, complex work for its intricate charm and soft beauty.
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Q MagazineThere's nothing so prosaic as choruses, but there's warmth to spare. [Nov 2007, p.137]
User score distribution:
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Positive: 11 out of 12
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Mixed: 0 out of 12
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Negative: 1 out of 12
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RockyBNov 25, 2007Is it just me, or is the band name 'Efterklang' somewhat similar to 'Ester Drang'?