The Avett Brothers – I and Love and You

The Avett Brothers are generally viewed as a trio including the actual brothers Seth and Scott Avett who are the lead vocals, banjoist, and guitarist of the group with stand-up bassist Bob Crawford. However, these three gentlemen do not limit themselves to strictly strings and vocals. Each has the talent to play percussions, drums, organ, electric guitar/bass, mandolin, piano and harmonica respectively to quickly list a few; clearly each member is a multi-talented musician. Also included in the band is the cellist (AKA a person who plays the cello) John Kwon that is included on certain tracks on their sixth studio album I and Love and You released in September of 2009.

I and Love and You, to me at least, holds a different musical vibe than previous studio albums. The overall tone is a lot more upbeat, clean and together with more of a rock undertone than the folk music I would generally tie to the Avett Brothers. That being said, I do not feel that I and Love and You is so far unlike from previous albums to be a complete 180 from what one is used to hearing from the Avett Brothers.

Scott and Seth still bring the same impactful vocals but include a much more mainstream and together instrumentals that may throw off their loyal followers and may make those followers pine for the older folky sounds of the Avett Brothers. Luckily, there are tracks, “Laundry Room” for instance, that still display the folky sounds that one can always find in previous albums. What I find most fascinating about this album is the Avett Brothers ability to go back and forth with their well-known folky sound and their newfound rock sound. Listen to “The Perfect Space” for a delightful musical roller coaster of Scott’s shouts that drift into a dreamy melody of piano that can easily lull one into a relaxed state of euphoria.

All this being said I would recommend for an avid Avett Brothers fan to give I and Love and You a chance. I think it may surprise even the most critical of fans with how much they can enjoy the catchy lyrics and brilliant musical hooks of the Avett Brothers. Hey, you may even find yourself singing along to songs like “Slight Figure of Speech” or “Heart like a Kick-Drum” which I personally feel like differ the most from other songs on previous albums.