Last War: CD
Haley Bonar was first discovered by Lowâs Alan Sparhawk who spotted her at a local open mic club in Duluth, Minnesota and was so impressed he immediately invited her to join them on tour. A week later, nineteen year old Haley Bonar was transformed from college student to ambitious dropout, crammed into a Honda Civic with a guitar and a drummer for company, touring the US opening for Low.
However, thereâs more to this story. In the decade since Haley has released a succession of recordings, each of which have garnered more praise than the last and has seen her collaborate with the likes of Andrew Bird (with whom Haley occasionally plays live) and Justin Vernon (who features on the new album). Thatâs not to mention the company she keeps in a rotating cast of premium band members including Jeremy Hanson (Tapes ân Tapes), Luke Anderson (Rogue Valley), Jeremy Ylvisaker (Andrew Bird, Alpha Consumer) and Mike Lewis (Bon Iver, Alpha Consumer). Now, with her new album âLast Warâ Haley looks set to find a wider audience.
Much of the joy of Bonarâs songwriting is in the tension between her sparkling melodic sensibility and her deeply ambivalent lyrics.
Album opener âKill The Funâ positively crackles with traces of The Bangles and The Cure at their most pop, as Bonar chronicles her travels with a lover, taking some moments to reveal the nature of the relationship: âYouâll be here till morning / You will get back on the plane / Go back to work / where you never knew my name.â
On âNo Sensitive Manâ (which features the most Clem Burke drums outside of a Blondie record), she claims âI donât want no sensitive man / I don't want to talkâ, while on the captivating âHeavenâs Made For Twoâ Bonarâs daydreaming vocal drifts ethereally as the instrumentation builds from stripped-back beginnings into a countrymeets- shoegaze wall of sound crescendo.
On âLast Warâ the complexities hit as hard as the hooks, a smart, careful balance achieved through equal doses of mystery and charm.
Tracklisting
1. Kill The Fun
2. No Sensitive Man
3. Last War
4. Heavenâs Made For Two
5. From A Cage
6. Woke Up In My Future
7. Bad Reputation
8. Canât Believe Our Luck
9. Eat For Free
Haley Bonar was first discovered by Lowâs Alan Sparhawk who spotted her at a local open mic club in Duluth, Minnesota and was so impressed he immediately invited her to join them on tour. A week later, nineteen year old Haley Bonar was transformed from college student to ambitious dropout, crammed into a Honda Civic with a guitar and a drummer for company, touring the US opening for Low.
However, thereâs more to this story. In the decade since Haley has released a succession of recordings, each of which have garnered more praise than the last and has seen her collaborate with the likes of Andrew Bird (with whom Haley occasionally plays live) and Justin Vernon (who features on the new album). Thatâs not to mention the company she keeps in a rotating cast of premium band members including Jeremy Hanson (Tapes ân Tapes), Luke Anderson (Rogue Valley), Jeremy Ylvisaker (Andrew Bird, Alpha Consumer) and Mike Lewis (Bon Iver, Alpha Consumer). Now, with her new album âLast Warâ Haley looks set to find a wider audience.
Much of the joy of Bonarâs songwriting is in the tension between her sparkling melodic sensibility and her deeply ambivalent lyrics.
Album opener âKill The Funâ positively crackles with traces of The Bangles and The Cure at their most pop, as Bonar chronicles her travels with a lover, taking some moments to reveal the nature of the relationship: âYouâll be here till morning / You will get back on the plane / Go back to work / where you never knew my name.â
On âNo Sensitive Manâ (which features the most Clem Burke drums outside of a Blondie record), she claims âI donât want no sensitive man / I don't want to talkâ, while on the captivating âHeavenâs Made For Twoâ Bonarâs daydreaming vocal drifts ethereally as the instrumentation builds from stripped-back beginnings into a countrymeets- shoegaze wall of sound crescendo.
On âLast Warâ the complexities hit as hard as the hooks, a smart, careful balance achieved through equal doses of mystery and charm.
Tracklisting
1. Kill The Fun
2. No Sensitive Man
3. Last War
4. Heavenâs Made For Two
5. From A Cage
6. Woke Up In My Future
7. Bad Reputation
8. Canât Believe Our Luck
9. Eat For Free
Description
Haley Bonar was first discovered by Lowâs Alan Sparhawk who spotted her at a local open mic club in Duluth, Minnesota and was so impressed he immediately invited her to join them on tour. A week later, nineteen year old Haley Bonar was transformed from college student to ambitious dropout, crammed into a Honda Civic with a guitar and a drummer for company, touring the US opening for Low.
However, thereâs more to this story. In the decade since Haley has released a succession of recordings, each of which have garnered more praise than the last and has seen her collaborate with the likes of Andrew Bird (with whom Haley occasionally plays live) and Justin Vernon (who features on the new album). Thatâs not to mention the company she keeps in a rotating cast of premium band members including Jeremy Hanson (Tapes ân Tapes), Luke Anderson (Rogue Valley), Jeremy Ylvisaker (Andrew Bird, Alpha Consumer) and Mike Lewis (Bon Iver, Alpha Consumer). Now, with her new album âLast Warâ Haley looks set to find a wider audience.
Much of the joy of Bonarâs songwriting is in the tension between her sparkling melodic sensibility and her deeply ambivalent lyrics.
Album opener âKill The Funâ positively crackles with traces of The Bangles and The Cure at their most pop, as Bonar chronicles her travels with a lover, taking some moments to reveal the nature of the relationship: âYouâll be here till morning / You will get back on the plane / Go back to work / where you never knew my name.â
On âNo Sensitive Manâ (which features the most Clem Burke drums outside of a Blondie record), she claims âI donât want no sensitive man / I don't want to talkâ, while on the captivating âHeavenâs Made For Twoâ Bonarâs daydreaming vocal drifts ethereally as the instrumentation builds from stripped-back beginnings into a countrymeets- shoegaze wall of sound crescendo.
On âLast Warâ the complexities hit as hard as the hooks, a smart, careful balance achieved through equal doses of mystery and charm.
Tracklisting
1. Kill The Fun
2. No Sensitive Man
3. Last War
4. Heavenâs Made For Two
5. From A Cage
6. Woke Up In My Future
7. Bad Reputation
8. Canât Believe Our Luck
9. Eat For Free
