The Secret Migration

by

Mercury Rev

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I have been seriously listening to Mercury Rev since "Yerself Is Steam", and I enjoy the direction this band has taken. They started to gel with "Deserter's Songs", a highly evocative album of soundscapes, often bleak yet still hopeful. "All Is Dream" brought a more lush sound, characterized by the earlier open spaces in the music becoming filled in somewhat, and "The Secret Migration" continues in this direction. I like the quirkiness of their earlier material, but this band is good even when they aren't as quirky.

"The Secret Migration" doesn't sound as psychedelic to my ears as Mercury Rev's earlier albums. While there are certainly some trippy passages in which a listener can find themselves dreaming, these songs should be accessible to a fairly wide range of tastes. Jonathan Donahue's vocals are delicate, sweet and heartfelt, and the production and arrangements are exquisite. Some of the songs, particularly "My Love", and "Moving On" have a timeless quality.

This is music that should be taken on its own merits and not compared with previous Mercury Rev albums. If one can get past the differences between this effort and earlier efforts by Mercury Rev, the high quality of this musical experience will transport the listener to a place of optimism, magic and light. For me, this album evokes more emotions than most other CDs I own. It is a mature, fully realized work.

I highly recommend this one, whether or not you are a Mercury Rev fan. In times like these, I think we all need good doses of magic, nature and sunshine.

Something every band strives for is uniqueness. Yet only a handful of bands actually succeed. Most times their influences infect their musc in undesirable ways causing more boring music. Mercury Rev do not suffer from this disease and are one of the most unique sounds in music today.

While Secret Migration carries forward the successful elements of their past releases, it leaves behind some of the darkside. Where Deserter's Songs and All is Dream were dark and beautiful at the same time, Secret Migration has slightly faster sound.

Frontman, Jonathan Donahue's vocals are top-notch once again. Ushering dreamy melodies with hauntingly beautiful undertones. It's quite possible that's why this album doesn't work as well as the previous two. Donahue's voice is definitely better suited to the subdued styling versus this new faster sound.

This album isn't bad, but you'll need to be persistent, investing quite a few listens to get the full appreciation.