▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
████████▀ ▄███████████▀ ▄▄▄██████████▀▀▀ ▄▄███████████████████████████
██████▀ ▄██████████▀▀ ▄██████████▀▀▀ ▄▄████████████████████████▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
█████▌ ▄██████████▀ ▄▄█████████▀ ▄▄███████████████████▀▀▀
████▌ ██████████▀ ▄█████████▀ ▄████████████████▀▀▀▀ ▄▄▄▄███████████
████ ██████████▌ █████████▀ ▄██████████████▀▀▀ ▄▄▄███████████████████
███▌ ██████████▌ ▓████████ ▄████████████▀▀ ▄▄█████████████████████████
███▌ ▐█████████▓ ▓████████ ███████████▀▀ ▄▄████████████▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀████
███ ▓█████████▌ ▐████████ ██████████▀ ▄▄█████████▀▀
███ ██████████ ▓███████ █████████▀ ▄███████▀▀ ▄▄▄██████████████▄▄▄▄
███░ ██████████ ███████ █████████ ▄██████▀ ▄▄████████████████████████
███▌ ██████████ ██████▌ ▐███████▀ ▄████▀ ▄█████████████████████████████
███▌ ▐█████████ ██████▌ ▓██████▀ ████▀ ▄████████████████████████████████
████ ▐█████████▌ ▓█████▌ ██████▌ ███▀ ▄██████████████████████████████████
████░ █████████▌ ▐██████ ██████ ███ ▄███████████████▓▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▓█
█████ █████████ ██████ ▐████▌ ▐██ ██████████▓▀▀▀
██████ █████████ ░▓████▌ ▐████▌ ██▌ ████████▀▀ ▄▄▄▄▄█████▄▄▄▄▄
███████ █████████ ░█████ ████ ▐█▌ ██████▀ ▄▄▄█████████████████████▓▓▄
████████ ▀████████ ▀█████ ███▌▐█ ▐████▀ ▄▓▓████████████████████████████
█████████▄ ████████▄ ▀████ ███ █ ███▌ ▄█████████▓▓▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▓▓█████████████
▓▓█████████▄ ▀████████▄ ▀▀██ ███ ███▌ ▄██████▀▀ ▀▀▀▀██████
░███████████▄ ▀▓████████▄▄ ▀▀█ ▀████▓ ▄████▀▀ ▄▄▄███████████▓▓▄▄▄▄ ▀██
▌ ░████████████▄▄ ▀▀██████████▄▄▄▄█▀█▓███▀ ▄▄▄▄███████████████████████▓▄▄▄
█ ▀██████████████▄▄ ▀▀▀▓▓███████▀████████████████████████████████████████▓▄
██▄ ▀▀▓██████████████▄▄▄ ▀▄▄▄█▓███▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▀▀▀▀▓▓██████████████████████
████░ ▀▓██████████████████████ ▄▓███▀█▀█▀██████▄▄▄ ▀▀██████████████████
██████▓▄ ▀▀▀▓███████████▓▀▀ ▄▓███▌█▌████ █▀▀███████▄▄▄ ▀▀▓█████████████
█████████▓▄▄ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▄▄▓███▀█▌█▌█▌███▄ ▀█▄▀▀████████▄▄ ▀░██████████
▀▓███████████▓▄▄▄ ▄ ▀▀▐█ ████ ▓██▓▄ ▀█▄ ▀▀████████▄ ▀▓███████
▀▓████████████████████▀ ▄█████▄ ▐▌▐██ █▌ ▓▀▀▀ ▀█▄ ▀████████▄▄ ▀▓█████
▄ ▀▀▓██████████████▓▓▌ ███▀▀▀▀▀█ ██▀▀ ▄▄▄███▄▄▄ ▀█████████▄ ▀▓███
█▓▄ ▀▀▓███████▓▓▓▒▒ ███ ▐█ ▄▄▄▀██████ █▀█▀ █▄ ▀▓███████▓▄ ▀██
████▓▄▄ ▀▀▀▀▀░░░ ▄ ██▄ ▄▄█▀▀▀ ███▀ ██▌▐████▀ ▄███▓ ▓████████▄ ▓
████████▓▄▄▄ ▄ ████ ▄▄█▀█▄ ▀██▄▄█▄▀▀▀ ▄░ ▐██████ ▓█████████
██████████████▓▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▀███ ▄▄ ▀██▄█▀▄██▄ ▀▀▀ ▄▄▄███▓▌ ▓█████▓ ▓█████████
████████████████████▓▀ ▄▄████▄ ▀▄▀▀▀▄▄▀▀ █▄ ▀ ▐▓██████ ▐███████ ▓█████████
▀▀▓██████████████▓▀▀ ▄ ▀████████▄ █▐▀ ▄▄█████▄ ▀▓████▌ ▓██████▓ ▐██████████
▄ ▀▀▀▓███████▀ ▄▄████▄████▀▀███▄▄███▀▀▄▄█████ ▀▓██▌ ▐███████ ██████████▌
██▓▄▄▄ ▀ ▀▀███████▄▀▀ ▄█▄ ███▀▀▄███▀▀█▄▄▄█▄ ▀█▓ ▐███████▌ ▓██████████
█████████▓▄▄ ████ ▀███▀▀ ▄ ▀██▄▀▀███▀▄▄█████████▄ ▀ ▐███████▌ ▐██████████
████████████ ████▀█ ▀▀ ░▄███▄ ██▄▀██ ██▀█▄███████▀▌▄▄ ▀██████▓ ▐██████████
████████████ ▀███ ▄▄▄██████▓▀ ▀█▀ ▀██▀██████ ▀█▄█████▄ ▀███▌ ▐██████████
█████████████▄ ▓██████▓▀▀ ▄ ▄ ▀█▐███████▄ ▀▀██▀▄▄███▄ ██▌ ███████████
▀▀▀▓▓████████████▓▀▀▀▀ ▄▄▓█████░ ▀ ███▀▄████▀ ▀███████▌ ▓ ███████████
░▄▄▄▓██▀ █████▓▄ ▀▐████▀ ▄███▄▀██████ ░ ▓███████████
▄▀ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▓▓███████▀▀ ███████▀ ▀▓██ ███████ ████▀ ███████████▌
▐█▓▄ ███████████████████▓▀ ▄▄ ████▓█ ▓▄ ▓████████▓ ▀▀ ▄ ▓███████████
▀█▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▄███ ████░ ▄███▄ ▀▓█████▓ ▄▄▄█▓ ▓███████████▌
▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄██▀ █ ▓██▀ ▄█████▓▄ ▀▀▀ ▓████ ▓████████████ ▐
█░█ █▓█▄ ▄▄▄ █▓█ ▄▄ ███▀█ ░█ ░▀ ▄▓████████▓▀ ▄▄▄▓████▓ ▄▓████████████ █
█ █ █░█▀██ █ █▒█ █▒█ ▀▄ █ ░█ ▀▀▀ ██
█ █ █ █ █░█ █░█ █░█ █ ▓█ ░░█ ██████ ▄██▀███████▐████████████████▄▄▄ ▀██
█░█ █░█ █▓█ █▒█ █▒█ █░▄ █░░░█ █ █ █▀ █▀ █ █ █ █ ▀▀▄ ▀█ ▐█
▀█▓█ █▓█ ▀▀▀ █▓█ █▓█ █▓█ █░░░█ █ ░█ ▐▌ ▐▌ █ ░█ █ ░█ ██▄▄▄ ▐█ ░░█
▀█ █▀▀ ▄█ ███ ▀▀▀▀▀ █░░▒█ █ ░░█ █ ░█ █ ░░█ █ ░░█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█▌▐█
█▄ ▄▄███ ▄▄██▀▀▀▀ █░░▒█ █░░░█ █ ░░█ █░░▒█ █ ░░█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█▌
█ ▄▄▄▄▄█▄▓█ ███▄▄▄▄▄▄▄█▌ █░▒▒█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█ █░░░█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█▌
█ ▌ █▓█ █▒█ █▒█ █▓█ █░█ █░▒▒█ █░░▒█ █░░▒█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █▒▒▓█▌
█▄▄▄ █░█ █░█ █░█ █░█ ▀▀ █▒▒▓█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▓▓█▌
████ █ █ █ █▀█ █ █ █▀▀ ▄▄ █▒▒▓█ █░▒▒█ █░▒▒█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▓▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▓▓▓█▌
████ █ █ █░█ █░█ █░█ ███▌ █▒▓▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▓▓▓█ █▒▓▓█ █████▌▄▄
██▀▀ █░█ █▓█ █▒█ █▒█ █▓█ █▓▓▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▒▓█ █▒▓▓█ █▓▓██ █▓▓▓█ █████
▀█▓█ ██ █▓█ █▓█ █░█ █▓▓▓█ █▒▓▓█ █▒▓▓█ █▓▓▓▀ ▄█████ █▓▓▓██████▀▀
███▄ ▀█▄ ███▀▀▀▀▀█▄█ █▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓█▄▄▄██▀ ██▀▀▀▀▀
▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀ ▀▀▀ █████ █▓▓▓█ ███▀▀▀▀▀ ▀ DRIFT INTO THE VOID
▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █████▄▄████▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀
██████▀▀
┌────────┐ ██▀▀
────┤ Info ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘
Artist | Bill Callahan
Title | Apocalypse
Genre | Indie Format | Album
Source | CD Time | 40:23
Label | Drag City Store | 2011
Catalog | DC450CD Rip | 2019
Bitrate | 744 kbps Size | 222.94 MB
Freq | 44.1 kHz Encoder | FLAC 1.3.1
┌────────┐
────┤ Tracks ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘
01. Drover 5:24
02. Baby's Breath 5:30
03. America! 5:33
04. Universal Applicant 5:53
05. Riding For The Feeling 6:05
06. Free's 3:13
07. One Fine Morning 8:45
┌────────┐
────┤ Notes ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘
After releasing a string of critically acclaimed albums as Smog,
singer/songwriter Bill Callahan began making music under his own name in
2007. The switch reflected how much richer and deeper his music had become
over the years, both literally and figuratively: His songwriting, which
used the imagery of the American West in thoughtful yet rugged ways that
spoke to the present as well as the past, had become increasingly
contemplative, while the drawl he used to deliver them had grown lower and
slower over the years.
Those looking for a logical musical follow-up to Callahan's surprisingly
accessible "Sometimes I Wish I Were An Eagle" from 2009 might scratch their
heads at the sound on "Apocalypse". The musical reference point in his
catalog is, perhaps, "A River Ain't Too Much To Love", under the Smog
moniker. It's not that this recording resembles that one musically, so much
as it employs outsider takes on American roots traditions to get its seven
songs across. "Apocalypse" is a song cycle that places the usually
extremely inward-looking Callahan in the unlikely role of observer and
interpreter of various American myths.
Myths both externally held and culturally self-referential, that inform the
interior world of the protagonist. Recorded and mixed in Texas and adorned
by Paul Ryan's iconic painting "Apocalypse" at Mule Ears Peak, Big Bend
National Park in West Texas, the album portrays America in all its
complexity from the vantage point of an empathic yet wryly humorous
narrator. On album-opener "Drover," Callahan plays a minor-key, two-chord
vamp on a nylon-string guitar, offering a fragmented narrative on a cattle
drive. Backed by a full-on rock band led by Matt Kinsey's reverb-laden
electric guitar, and colored by Gordon Butler's fiddle, it begs the
question: do these cattle actually exist or are they metaphorical elements
in the protagonist's psyche?
The chorus is the hint as it introduces a lovely second melody and turns
the song back on the listener as Callahan sings: 'One thing about this
wild, wild country/It takes a strong, strong it breaks a strong, strong
mind'. "Baby's Breath" is more fractured and rockist, with a taut balance
of acoustic and knife-edged electric guitars populating the musical space.
Callahan's protagonist found the right place, the right woman, and lost the
latter. He has questions but no answers. "America" is the set's hinge
piece. A repetitive, electric, pulsing, hypontic distorted blues a la R.L.
Burnside - that examines America's mythical past and its tarnished present.
Callahan name checks songwriting heroes - Kris Kristofferson, Mickey
Newbury, George Jones, and Johnny Cash - by their actual ranks and branches
in the armed forces while admitting he's never served, as if that might be
the problem; then amid the din to make things more complex, he names our
greatest national failures and dirty conquests. The album's most melodic
and utterly beautiful song is the confessional waltz "Riding for the
Feeling," with glistening electric piano and Wurlitzer played by Jonathan
Meiburg.
Closer "One Fine Morning" is a nearly nine-minute, lilting ballad that
turns on a couple of chords, some pastoral yet jarring lyrics, and a gospel
piano atop strummed guitars, which transmute the listener to another place
and time. "Apocalypse" is a deceptively complex gem.
┌────────┐
────┤░░░░░░░░├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
└────────┘