Antiphon

I have all the other Midlake albums and have enjoyed them very much, but I was curious how they would sound after the departure of one of their core members. I found this to be a very pleasant listen the first few times I played it. And then, ever-so-slowly, it started to grow on me, the songs settling in, and sinking in, so much that I suddenly realized: this is a great album!I like this description of the album in Amazon's main review, calling this "another fascinating departure, but also a logical progression. The sound is simultaneously familiar and changed." That's bascially how I feel. It DOES feel like a natural progression for Midlake. Nothing radically different, and yet there are some subtle changes in tone and texture. Frankly, I've never been sold on the "1970s retro" thing, as far as describing their sound. Yeah, there's a bit of that, but only in some songs, but Midlake has always excelled in absorbing and diffusing various styles of music from different eras, all while creating their own unique musical template. And they've done it again this time.It takes more than a few listens to properly digest these songs, but this new album is indeed a grower. Honestly, I think if it was the debut album by a new band, people would be raving about it and drooling over it. It's that good. But because it's another album by Midlake, and one without a member who contributed greatly to their sound, I think there is going to more of a mixed opinion about it. But if you listen to this with an open mind, and fresh ears, I think you'll be mightily impressed.

All Midlake fans were fairly shocked when word came that principle songwriter and lead vocalist Tim Smith had left the band. I was probably not alone in thinking 'well that was that.' That is, until today with the release of Antiphon! Shocking. Amazing. Stunning. And really really great. This is almost a completely new sound. Folks have compared this to Van Occupanther, but I don't really hear it. Only fragments of a few acoustic guitar chords and an occasional flute line re-call anything that went before. So what is this new sound? Well for starters, Midlake always had a cool background harmonies, but now the group harmonies are front and center, which is an excellent idea which not only sounds good but gives the whole record a cohesive feel (which all Midlake albums have had). And drummer McKenzie Smith has been unleashed! He actually kind of rocks out on this, particularly on the instrumental "Vale" where he's bashing away madly. The lyrics are also different, simple, dense, but gone is the time-capsule quality which Midlake has had since Bamnan. As for the music, imagine if the British prog-band Caravan, circa 1970, took up group harmonies, studied Eight Miles High, then took off the sharp edges of McGuinn's 12-string and then stretched it out into a late night "Low Spark" era Traffic vibe. That and the song "Ages" sounds like a lost track from XTC's Wasp Star. All I can say is, wow! Good job Midlake. And I for one, am looking forward to Tim Smith's new band "Harp." But in the meantime, Midlake sounds like a band revived and ready for what's next which in this case is really cool.

Unfortunately for me, I had never heard of Midlake before this album. I happened to hear a snippet on NPR one day and really liked it so I decided to check it out. I was surprised to learn the principal songwriter left and this album followed his departure. Why didn't the second singer have his own outfit from the beginning? It kind of reminds me of Dave Grohl and Nirvana. Anyway, this is a good album with some really cool sounds. The singer has a bit of a deeper register but is just as strong as the other guy, Tim Smith, although it seems like they backed the singer up out of the mix a wee bit compared with a live version of The Old and the Young I saw on YouTube. I listened to Trials of Van Occupanther to get a bit of an idea of where the group was before Antiphon. The big difference here is that the songs are more "accessible" on Antiphon (in a GOOD way) versus Trials because the lyrics aren't *quite* as hipster-cool-obscure. BUT, there are many interesting word and melody choices, just as there are on Trials. The second big difference is that the production and instrumentation is more ballsy, and therefore more commanding of attention than Trials. This album is far superior to most of what I've heard this year, and it's well crafted. It's shockingly good considering the main guy left. I hope they can keep it up.

This album is my first experience with Midlake. I'm glad I made the purchase! The album is drenched with perfect vocal harmonies, beautiful guitar/flute melodies, and trance inducing drum and bass lines. Antiphon melds rock and folk in a unique way that reminds me of the fleet foxes, Explosions in the Sky, and chamber pop bands like Other Lives all at once. Favorite tracks include Provider and The Old and the Young.The CD packaging itself is really nice too. It's a gatefold cardboard slip case that does a great job of displaying the artwork. Booklet is a fold out poster with lyrics and liner notes on the flip-side. The CD packaging is worth getting the physical copy to add to your collection. This album grows on you. It you're on the fence go ahead and buy it. You'll be glad you did.

I saw Midlake in concert December 2013, only being vaguely familiar with a couple songs off of Van Occupanther, so I didn't really know what to expect. They totally knocked it out of the park! They had a great show, and played a lot of Antiphon. The day after the the concert, I put their album on my spotify playlist and listened to it practically nonstop until I decided I needed it on my ipod. I'm so pleased with this CD, every song is solid on it's own, but it's also very cohesive to listen straight through it. Midlake is definitely in the prog/folk rock vein of the world, and if you're into that thing, or if you're not sure if you are, or if you're just looking for new music, I highly recommend you check it out!

Ya simplemente el álbum es el mejor de la banda, pero la versión es muy bonita de colores. Gracias por ello.

Tenía muchas ganas de tenerlo en vinilo, para los amantes de la música con alma, el folk y la poquito de psicodelia

Il pacco è arrivato puntuale e il CD era avvolto nel suo cellophane originale. Sulla logistica Amazon quindi niente da dire, soddisfatto come al solito.L'opera musicale vera e propria è godibile: si tratta di folk-rock psichedelico, suggestivo e notturno, con echi di rock progressivo anno '60.Alcuni pezzi sono da ascoltare e riascoltare ("The Old And The Young", "Antiphon"), per goderne appieno tutte le sfumature musicali.Bella la confezione e il fogliettino dei testi, contenuto in un risvolto del packaging.

Very good all around album.

Le groupe américain MIDLAKE, découvert pour ma part récemment, avait déjà sorti trois albums avant celui ci, dont "The Courage Of Others" très moyen à mon goût. Avec le nouvel opus dont il est question aujourd'hui "Antiphon", la donne a changé conjointement au le line up. Le précédent chanteur ayant quitté le navire (perso, je le trouvais assez insignifiant), la musique prend une toute autre tournure, et je pense que l'on peut à présent vraiment se pencher sur le cas MIDLAKE. Cette nouvelle orientation musicale amène le groupe sur des sentiers folk rock ouvrant un spectre sonore assez large lorgnant aisément vers les seventies. La voix du nouveau chanteur Eric PULIDO semble très marquée par ces années là et l'ambiance générale du disque sonne néo psychédélique soft. Les dix morceaux présents restent assez nostalgiques et mélancoliques dans leur interprétation. Le format court de ces titres excédant rarement les cinq minutes offre à ce disque toute sa vivacité. Le groupe Texan ne bouleverse en rien le paysage musical mais l'album qui nous est présenté dissimule quelques perles que l'on pourra déguster à la longue. On pensera à bon nombre de groupes de l'époque à l'écoute d'Antiphon", pour ma part, les vocaux et certains refrains me remémorent un certain CAMEL qui fait partie de mes groupes fétiches. C'est certainement les parties de flûte interprétées par Jesse CHANDLER (jouant aussi des claviers) qui me donnent cette impression mais pas seulement... ce PULIDO a du beaucoup écouté les groupes de Canterburry car il retranscrit parfaitement et inconsciemment cet esprit musical à travers son chant plaintif et lancinant. Les riffs de guitares sont tout autant ancrés dans cette sphère musicale, les autres instruments quant à eux reprennent les codes du genre, sans grande invention mais avec beaucoup de chaleur. Toujours est-il que MIDLAKE dans sa nouvelle version, sans livrer une oeuvre inoubliable avec "Antiphon", réalise un album concis et prenant - pouvant s'inscrire dans une forme de renouveau musical d'un style que beaucoup d'entre nous ont tant aimé.