Well I did not see this coming

Blood Bank - Bon Iver

I met you at a blood bank, we were looking at the bags

You remember how you felt the first time you heard Bon Iver. It felt like a warm blanket by a fire on a cold winter day. It felt comfortable, by telling you that you are alone. It was a sound that yearned to be heard. It needed you to accept it, for it was dark, down on it's days and in need of a companion.

Blood Bank reminds you of why you first fell for Bon Iver, but it also introduces you to the new Bon Iver. Road tested, not quite so all alone and unsure, Bon Iver has allowed his wings to spread and although they aren't ready just yet, it's nearly time to take flight and soar.

Parts of this may scare some Bon Iver fans. Keep in mind that it's a EP, freedom and exploration are allowed, encourage and if need be excused. The songs on Blood sound more ready for the live performance. Written with a band and for a band. Theirs an expansion of what Bon Iver is capable of here. Steel guitars, auto-tunes(not a move I dig), backing vocals, a stronger folk sound, this is a promising exercise for a gem of a voice and what promises to be a spectacular band.

Blood Bank is a radio ready single, but by no means has Bon Iver lost touch. It plays more like and Andrew Bird or Spoon track. Perfect pop, just too far off the dial to ever be huge. If Bon Iver keeps this us they'll soon join the ranks of Band of Horses, Fleet Foxes etc. as the future of Indie rock and it's inevitable merging of the mainstream...after all nothing stays sacred in music forever and it seems more obvious than ever that the secret is out. With 2009 barely underway and the quality of output already out, I must say I'm thrilled by the prospects.

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