CD Review: 22, A million by Bon Iver

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Five years of myriad side projects, multiple collabs with Kanye, and a tentative break-up have left listeners wondering if Justin Vernon and Bon Iver would ever re-enter their cabin in the woods and return with a follow-up to their highly acclaimed 2011 release Bon Iver, Bon Iver.

Supported by heavy singles “22 (OVER S∞∞N)”, “10 d E A T h b R E a s T ⚄ ⚄”, and “33 “GOD””, their latest album 22, A Million pairs Vernon’s iconic falsetto with dark, cavernous electronics in a brave departure from their influential indie-folk origins which spawned a scattershot of lacklustre imitators.

Tracks like the heartbreaking “29 #Strafford APTS” and anthemic closer “00000 Million” stay true to their more-folky For Emma, Forever Ago roots, but 22, A Million takes the strongest aspects of Bon Iver’s previous successes and amplifies them tenfold.

There’s a hesitance to draw the easy parallel between this album and Kid A, but there’s one thing that can be said for certain: much like Radiohead’s opus, 22, A Million has everything in it’s right place.

Bon Iver
22, A million
Jagjaguwar
Score: A

—Alec Warkentin