I have very mixed feelings about the music of the Avett Brothers.

8/26/2009 3:54:35 PM

YOU'RE NOT THE ONLY ONE WITH MIXED EMOTIONS

8/26/2009 3:55:31 PM

Is there anybody willing to get into a serious discussion on this issue?

I know it's chit chat, maybe I should have this thread moved.

8/26/2009 3:57:11 PM

Avett Brothers are awesome.

I'm sorry your emotions suck.

/thread

8/26/2009 3:59:35 PM

FAST SONGS = GOOD

SLOW SONGS =

8/26/2009 4:00:35 PM

I like most of their songs


I do, however, feel my testosterone levels shrink when listening to some of their more slow/sappy songs


what specifically are you mixed about?

8/26/2009 4:04:54 PM

I'll discuss with you. They are one of my favorite bands, although I haven't had them in my rotation for a few months.

You begin and i'll see if i can relate.

8/26/2009 4:07:12 PM

I just saw them in June at HoB Chicago...great venue...my sister is absolutely in love with them...I don't mind em too much, not my style of music, but they do produce some quality tunes, easy to listen to

8/26/2009 4:11:52 PM

damn you shawna

8/26/2009 4:12:16 PM

i have very mixed emotionalism on the avett brothers

swidt?

8/26/2009 4:15:55 PM

I don't really know where to begin...

They have some awesome songs, there's no doubt. But songs like Ballad of Love and Hate make me really sad that I condone some of their music. That song just screams pathetic.

And their banjo playing I think is what pisses me off the most. I wouldn't qualify anything they do on a banjo as "playing," and certainly not deserving of a bluegrass banjo.

8/26/2009 4:49:24 PM

Who says that the banjo has to be bluegrass? And would you really classify them as bluegrass?

8/26/2009 4:52:22 PM

Quote :

"FAST SONGS = GOOD SLOW SONGS = "

8/26/2009 4:54:07 PM

the only brothers i listen to are the doobie brothers

and the allman brothers

and the hanson brothers

not the jonas brothers

well i guess "the hanson brothers" is more like "hanson"

anyway i like the neville brothers too

oh fuck it

8/26/2009 4:56:31 PM

They dont call themselves a bluegrass band and there is no rule that banjos have to be played in the traditional scruggs style that most people are used to

8/26/2009 5:05:14 PM

whats that some kinda rock band or something

8/26/2009 5:11:22 PM

Ballad of Love and Hate is probably one of my most disliked songs by them.

Their banjo playing is not traditional, but nothing about this band is traditional. On paper you would think there is no way this band could work. A banjo, an acoustic guitar, and a stand up bass pumping out energetic foot stomping sounds infused with strong personal lyrics sung by two guys who produce a very eclectic harmony. But somehow it works, wonderfully.





[Edited on August 26, 2009 at 5:15 PM. Reason : l]

8/26/2009 5:14:10 PM

Obviously you people don't understand that the banjo they, "Seth," uses or whatever, is a Deering Sierra, which has a resonator, and is considered a "bluegrass" banjo because of the type of music it was invented for.

We're not arguing whether or not the Avetts are a bluegrass band. They clearly aren't.

And if you are talking about "styles," there is no "style" they play. Do they clawhammer? Do they frail the thing? No. They strum (bang) it, and most of the time, they're way too loud on it; they get in the way of the other instruments, they break strings all over the place...It just seems to me they would perhaps choose a different type of banjo to use for a better effect, because most of the time all I hear is obnoxiousness. You KNOW the levels are constantly messed with when they record something because of how that banjo sounds in regards to how it's being played.

They aren't called a genre of "folk punk" without reason here.

In my opinion, they also need a brighter-sounding guitar than a Martin.

Essentially all I'm saying in respect to the instruments that they use, is that these are typical bluegrass instruments - Martin Guitars, Resonator 5-strings, Upright bass (sans the...cello?) It's nit-picky, I know, but there's no questioning needed for why they get booed at and thrown shit at while performing at Merlefest, for example....

8/26/2009 5:18:46 PM

did the banjo really originate from africa

i really really hope so

8/26/2009 5:56:58 PM

I go to Avett Brothers concerts for the hot young women looking for sappy love. giggity

8/26/2009 6:01:52 PM

~

8/26/2009 6:04:07 PM

^^^^very interesting observations.

So do you think you have mixed emotions because they use these traditionally linked bluegrass instruments but without the care, perhaps the respect, to learn to play them in their traditional practice?


and i completely agree they have no style. This is probably the hardest band i have describing the sound of for other people.

8/26/2009 7:56:22 PM

I, too, have always been hit or miss w/ them. Definitely a band I'll play once a month for 1 or 2 songs, then it's out.

8/26/2009 8:40:18 PM

Quote :

"NO FUCKING STYLE"

8/26/2009 9:06:33 PM

yall quit talkin shit about my favorite band....they are musical fucking geniuses

eh, i've heard a few of there songs that i liked, but for the most part, i can wait till i hear them playing on my friends stereo

[Edited on August 26, 2009 at 9:22 PM. Reason : d]

8/26/2009 9:21:07 PM

lol

I do know quite a few people who swear the Avett Brothers are absolute visionaries.

I also know people who think Little Brother saved hip hop or some shit.

if the Avett Brothers were from Florida or something, there wouldn't be this much hubbub.

8/26/2009 9:27:11 PM

one of my friends is really into them. i tried to listen to emotionalism and couldn't understand what all the fuss is about.

8/26/2009 10:04:43 PM

I, too am mixed on them.

Some of it is awesome, love it. Other songs are way too 'country' for me. I like a lot of folk and bluegrass, but I DESPISE country. They definitely use elements of all three.

8/26/2009 10:21:28 PM

i like them a lot.....


just found out my cousin lives across the street from scott avett

8/27/2009 8:45:16 PM

i think they're great. they don't claim to be bluegrass, so why care if they don't play their instruments in the traditional manner. the play with soul and i like their sound. that's all that matters to me.

and all the hubbub isn't exclusive to NC. they sold out irving plaza in nyc two nights in a row and are playing terminal 5 in october.

8/27/2009 9:21:53 PM

I, too, have mixed emotions about the Avetts. Either I dislike their music or really dislike their music.

8/27/2009 9:25:13 PM

they're playing at the paramount in seattle on saturday, with heartless bastards.


any reason that i should go?

8/27/2009 9:26:17 PM

just picture them as really bad ass thats what helps me

8/27/2009 9:41:31 PM

i went to an Avett Brothers concert once


but only so i could hook up with Jeepin4x4...


and that didn't even happen

8/27/2009 9:43:04 PM

Thoughts on the Letterman appearance:

That was laughable at best.

Let's see, Scott buys an Ome banjo at around $5,000, paints up the head of it, only to get up there and sing louder than any instruments being played (aside from the annoying hum of the cello midway through the song), while he stands stoically with the banjo, plays like 3 notes that sound AWFUL and out of place in a piano-driven, melodic song (which is fucking hilarious in itself that it sounded awful, because Ome banjos are high end professional instruments, etc etc etc.) and generally fails.

Why would you even spend 5 grand on a fucking instrument you don't really know how to play? Real mature.

The banjo has become more of an icon for this band. They've already proven they don't know how to play it time and time again, and this is just pathetic. At least Columbia records is making them ditch it, as evidenced by the band's latest failure of an album.

[Edited on September 30, 2009 at 11:22 AM. Reason : k]

9/30/2009 11:21:27 AM

HAY MRS CRUMPLES

i like avett bros. because theyre from nc i love their songwriting and i LOVE their live performances


now

if you wanna talk about about a band EVERYONE can hate, go see HOLY GHOST TENT REVIVAL. they suck live, and they rip off their entire act from the avett bros.

they eat hard dick

9/30/2009 11:27:27 AM

"....and if you are talking about 'styles,' there is no 'style' they play. Do they clawhammer? Do they frail the thing? No. They strum (bang) it most of the time." You got that from Seeger's "Southern Banjo Styles," page 98, right? Yeah, I read that too. Were you gonna plagiarize the whole thing for us? Do you have any thoughts of your own on this matter? Or do you, is that your thing, you come into a thread, read some obscure passage and then pretend - you pawn it off as your own, as your own idea just to impress some girls, embarrass my friend?

9/30/2009 11:45:13 AM

NEW LOVE SONG >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

I'm AstralAdvent and i approved this message.

9/30/2009 11:46:03 AM

new album is not good

9/30/2009 12:41:36 PM

i used to hate. now i like

good driving music for me

9/30/2009 1:22:59 PM

^^^hahahha what?

9/30/2009 1:28:32 PM

10/4/2009 1:53:39 AM

aha

10/4/2009 1:55:16 AM

I typically dig that kind of music, but I've never been able to hop onto the Avett Brothers bandwagon. Nothing about the music really makes me want to go back to it or think about it again. There just isn't anything remarkable about it to me.

I can see why people would like them, and I certainly don't think they're a dogshit band. I just don't understand the enthusiastic dickriding they've come to enjoy lately.

10/4/2009 3:46:21 AM

Megafaun >>> Bon Iver >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Avett Brothers

10/4/2009 5:58:21 AM

I think they're a great band. The best? absolutely not. Worthy of all the attention, sure. They're imperfect people playing imperfect music in an imperfect way. They write simple but prudent songs on subjects that most of us can relate to in some way or another, and present them with an accessible folky charm. People are always going to like music with catchy melodies and memorable lyrics, and they keep it contemporary while still stroking the soul.

I guess what I like about them is their timeless, unassuming manner. They never came out and acted like they were anything to behold; they've exhibited humility and respect of themselves, their predecessors, and most importantly their audience. And, in all fairness, their musicianship is certainly nothing to be taken lightly.


As an aside, anyone expecting any instrument to be played in a specific way is depriving himself. Not all of their performances, or songs for that matter, are written or executed flawlessly but that's kinda what I like about them. It might as well be me up there.

10/4/2009 6:11:08 AM

Megafaun >>> Bon Iver >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Avett Brothers

10/4/2009 11:08:57 AM

overrated. highly.

10/4/2009 12:34:46 PM

i have mixed emotions about Mr. Scrumples banjo rants.

10/4/2009 12:43:37 PM

i wonder how popular these bands would be if they didn't have fashionable beards

10/4/2009 12:44:28 PM