The Avett Brothers' Emotionalism was one of the most well-rounded records of 2007, from the counterintuitively joyful "Die Die Die" to the smarmy but brilliantly executed "The Weight Of Lies." There were missed beats and just-off harmonies, part of the honest appeal the Avett's have had for years: just a few North Carolina boys rambling around the country, imperfections and all. (See especially the sad bastard tune, "Salina," as moving and intelligent as it is cheesy).But now that they're label mates with Tom Petty and The Black Crowes, their gritty edge has been polished clean off. Indeed, the first six—six!—tracks on I and Love and You are about as rowdy as your gramma's Thursday quilting group. At least in the days before they were being sold in Starbucks, their hokey-pokey sentiments had enough roughness around them to make the over-sincerity all the more endearing, but this...!
Which brings me to "Kick Drum Heart," probably one of Scott's songs, inserted onto the album in homage—or, more likely, as a eulogy—to their former let-loose style. The piano-plinking intro attempts to sound swarthy and ne'er-ye-mind, but comes off like a bizarrely cheerful Japanese commercial for watermelon backpacks. When the brothers start singing, they copy the piano's melody and style plink-for-plink, sounding less badass and more, just, ass. The chorus could have been a clever image, but the clunky lyrics describing it and the obvious accompanying musical choices just make it stupid ("my heart like a kickdrum!" ...wait for it... and GO: "thump thump thump thump thump thump thump thump").
But then, there is the bridge, which is the least objectionable part of the song—the fiddle tentatively following the voice sounds like classic Avett, and everyone breathes a sigh of relief. But only for a second. The snare rolls four short snaps and we're back to the poppy grind. Nothing else really happens for the rest of the song, except for the partially redeeming line, "It's not the chase that I love / It's me following you." And, of course, the palm-to-the-forehead absurd heartbeats the (yup!) kickdrum beats out as the track closes.
It's a miserable effort by the Avett's to revive a dead record. Fortunately for them, though, many of us who miss their old style also have parents, who will eat this shit up. So here's to them.
