Review: The Fiery Furnaces – I’m Going Away
The Fiery Furnaces – I’m Going Away (2009) [Thrill Jockey] // Grade: C
CAVEAT: I really dislike the Fiery Furnaces. Sorry. I understand why people love them: the retro-weirdo, quirky-bluesy, irreverent down-home sound collage thing that defines American indie music from 2004 on. It’s just that everything about them is so precious and self-consciously different, I’m instinctively nauseated 10 seconds in. Music made for music writing, you know? An entire band born to be described by adjectives like “rollicking” and “bombastic” (both of which, let’s be serious, I’ve probably used, so no dig intended).
Let’s just say this about I’m Going Away: I hate it the least of anything The Fiery Furnaces have done. It’s as subtle as they’re likely to get, focused almost obsessively on the bare minutiae of sound and structure. The most captivating melodies (see: “Drive To Dallas” and a shockingly honest “Lost At Sea”) develop rather than explode confetti-like into a tangle of disparate influences. It’s a nuanced accessibility that may alienate some die-hards but is ultimately the freshest thing they’ve ever attempted. Restraint: they use it.
Still, a quarter of the album leans on the quirk crutch, especially closing track “Take Me Round Again”, a cultural clusterfuck of popular music from the past 50 years (at least). So The Fiery Furnaces aren’t totally out of the red, but I didn’t automatically cringe. That’s something, right?
