Music does not get any more beautiful, organic, or raw as this. At least for now it doesn’t. Justin Vernon, or most commonly known as, Bon Iver, is the lyrical mindset behind this album and concept. Recorded in a cabin somewhere isolated in northern Wisconsin (following his previous project’s break-up, DeYarmond Edison), solitude and complete isolation took over as it helped him to plan his struggles, issues, pain, hurt, and emotions, into 9 tracks.

The album’s attempt to convey his feelings in a little under 4 minutes, 9 times in a row, really paints a portrait for the listener and puts them in the front seat of wherever they wish to go. You can really hear Vernon’s struggle and emotions in these tracks; something that is hard and at times intangible to many artists these days. There are many pieces of music I hear throughout spans of time, or even at random instances, but I am sure the potential that For Emma, Forever Ago sheds has extracted what beautiful music is no matter what definitive moment in time as well as it’s separation from the rest, just as Vernon had done when creating the album.

The following 9 tracks are all written and composed by Justin Vernon:

1. Flume
2. Lump Sum
3. Skinny Love
4. The Wolves (Act I and II)
5. Blindsided
6. Creature Fear
7. Team
8. For Emma
9. re: Stacks

I hate doing this, that is, picking out the ‘best’ tracks, so to speak. The one’s in bold are the numbers that personally connect with me, but in actuality, every single song on this album is just beyond perfect. And that’s to say the least. Tracks #1-8 seem to tell the story of Vernon’s agony and emotions of love, whereas the last track, re: Stacks, can be seen as a resolution to the previous tunes. Skinny Love was the first single released, followed by, For Emma, and re: Stacks. Please have a listen; I watched a live venue of Bon Iver and he was so grateful for the feedback he’s received for the album and his fans.

The verdict? 5/5

* Oh yeah, it’s pronounced Bon Iver (Iv – Yare), not Bon Eye-Ver. It’s a bastardised version of “Good Winter” in French.