Albums:
‘Transfiguration of Vincent‘ (2003)
‘Transistor Radio‘ (2005)
‘Post-War‘ (2006)
‘Hold Time‘ (2009)
‘A Wasteland Companion‘ (2012)
I kicked off M and this year with an artist of whom I have respect for even though I don’t know much about him. Ward may be best known as the guy in She & Him alongside Zooey Deschanel but, as a solo artist, he may have produced his best work. Teetering at a crossroads between being an alt-folk artist, a neo-country artist, and an indie rock icon he has found a stable balance that has made him unique in a world of bands who are trying to co-opt his sound. At first listen, his sound is familiar but, much like visiting a place you haven’t been in many years, roads that seem to go one way can suddenly go somewhere altogether different.
If there’s anything that Ward does that irks me it’s that, like many of his breed, he can tend to spread himself too thin. This is evidenced by his recycling of chord progressions and hooks. This allows some of the deeper cuts to blend together across albums but it can be a good thing. Think of it as a dream sequence set to music and you really don’t want to wake up. Much of this music is not really radio-ready, with catchy tracks sprinkled in here and there. Honestly, if you want to experience the work of M. Ward it must be done en masse and not piecemeal. Also, take the time to savor it and leave your judgments for a repeat listening.
Track of Distinction: “Epistemology” from ‘Hold Time’ is pretty catchy and is longer than most of his tracks, but it was chosen because it is M. Ward addressing all of his genres all at once. The track is part alt-rock, part folk, and has a hint of a country twang to it that makes it simply delightful and accessible on many levels. This is the perfect track to kick off this letter and this year.
Source:
http://thesethingsihaveheard.wordpress.com/2014/01/08/m-ward/