“Lumineer” is one of those great words in the English language that is not, in fact, a real world.
You won’t find it in the dictionary, and Microsoft Word highlights it with a nice red squiggle. Yet practically everyone in the country – at least everyone who occasionally listens to the radio – has heard it.
It’s probably safe to say that most Gannon University students received some kind of music for Christmas, whether it was the actual CDs or, more likely, iTunes, Amazon and other assorted gift cards. So, naturally, all these companies released their versions of the top songs, albums and artists of 2012.
Topping the artist and album favorites was none other than The Lumineers – America’s favorite folk group.
The Lumineers have swept the nation with their infamous “Ho Hey,” but there is much more to this band than that one song. And it’s a great song, so clearly this band means business.
Their self-titled debut album was released on April 2, and as one review on iTunes puts it, it takes some getting used to.
This is a folk-rock group – there’s no excessive auto-tuning, and you won’t find a single synthesizer. It’s plain old good, original American music.
The band’s first single, “Ho Hey,” hit as high as No. 1 on some U.S. charts, averaging at about No. 3 nationwide. The song easily wins the hearts of its listeners through its heartfelt lyrics and easy listening.
There’s something about it that has listeners everywhere reaching for the repeat button.
If you like that song, buy the album. It is just as easy to fall in love with the rest of the songs. It may take a few listens to get used to the non-rhyming lyrics and general folk sound, but each time will make you justwant to listen again.
All of the songs are fantastic, which is why it’s so hard to pick just a couple to talk about here. But besides “Ho Hey,” another great love song is “Stubborn Love.” These songs were composed in a similar style, in that they both have meaningful lyrics – like “the opposite of love’s indifference.”
“Stubborn Love” also features a similar instrumentation to that of “Ho Hey.” And all of The Lumineers’ songs use minimal instrumentation to further the point. Less is definitely more with this band.
But ultimately, probably the best song on the album is “Classy Girls.” Not only is the point of the song of a higher standard than what most kids are listening to these days – “Classy girls don’t kiss in bars” – but the musical style is quite unique.
While most songs use instruments to make music – a wild concept – The Lumineers add a unique component to “Classy Girls.”
Voices, like you would hear in a bar setting, clutter the background of the piece, making it sound like the vocalist is narrating what’s happening to him throughout the course of the night.
It’s unique in the best possible way. In fact, the entire album is.
Just one of many factors that has led to The Lumineers being nominated for two Grammy Awards in 2013: Best new artist and Best Americana album.
If you haven’t heard the album yet, take a listen. Just remember it gets better every time.
