Of Monsters and Men
My Head is an Animal


3.5
great

Review

by mrbloke USER (6 Reviews)
May 29th, 2012 | 17 replies


Release Date: 2011 | Tracklist

Review Summary: 2012's front runner for "Most Overrated Album" still has something going for it but some big problems going against it.

The following review is more so a glorified sound-off rather than a professionally composed review; that being said the need for someone to come clean and set the record straight about Of Monsters And Men’s debut album My Head Is an Animal has grown stronger day after day. I’ve decided to take the plunge and elaborate upon what makes this album underwhelming. But let me say a few things first. This is an album that, even though it has not as been given as much critical acclaim or widespread attention as one may think, it’s still brought up in discussions as if it was a tribute album to In the Aeroplane Over the Sea that managed to be superior to its source material. You can tune into your indie/alt rock station and they’ll play “Little Talks”; after the song is finished they’ll tell you that OMAM are a breathtaking breakthrough group that deserves to be recognized for their valiant efforts. Flip open Rolling Stone magazine and you can witness David Fricke committing the heinous crime of calling them “your new Arcade Fire” even though they only have slight, slight similarities. I’m probably being a bit too cynical. My Head Is an Animal is a decent album at most; it’s just not the fantastic breakout album I was told about by my peers.

Cutting straight to the negatives, this album is very lyrically clichéd, both in terms of folk and pop. The first track ends up being the biggest offender telling a story of a war between birds and bees. It also talks about some creature who had a son who mowed lawns. I think the song is trying to be playful but it ends up making no sense. “Your Bones” also draws some offense just by mentioning the act of holding on to one’s heart. The album also loves to throw in a lot of “La La Las” and “Heys” from time to time in an attempt to give the album more of a catchy vibe, but ends up feeling lazy and under-developed. The album’s lead single “Little Talks” has this call and response going on with the band’s two lead vocalists in which they discuss a voice in one’s head and how the house is telling one to be at ease. This moment of verbal cheese is even more hindered by the lack of rhyming which feels a tad unorthodox. At least when Lil B doesn’t rhyme it’s funny.

Despite these gripes there is some speculation of further material thanks to this album: the instrumentation is well arranged and mixes aspects of folk and pop cohesively and both vocalists deliver the goods for the majority of the time. This is just not the earth-shattering upstart that I was foretold it was by many, therefore making it a personal disappointment. The first few listens were actually stellar being it wasn’t like another big folk-pop that, unlike My Head Is an Animal, preached profusely about love and other random things that no one cares about. It opted for legitimate folk tales that were charming at first glance but later on passable. In the end, when the time comes, I will give this band another chance just from all of the possibilities that can be achieved by this group with some more time in the studio.



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user ratings (674)
3.7
great
other reviews of this album
Sowing STAFF (4)
Full of life and full of love....

Shiola36 (3)
Kids today love that emotionally charged folk...



Comments:Add a Comment 
ThroneOfAgony
May 29th 2012


3485 Comments


Pretty nice review. This really isn't my thing I don't think, but I'll check it out nevertheless

J0ckstrapsFTW
May 29th 2012


3797 Comments


Overrated? I very much disagree

Archelaos
May 29th 2012


241 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

"Little Talks" is one of my favourite songs of the year.

PuddlesPuddles
May 29th 2012


4798 Comments

Album Rating: 2.5

I find this cliched in all ways, not even lyrically. This album's a little too late to class for me.

Tyrael
May 29th 2012


21108 Comments


'most overrated'

average rating: 3.9

gives it a 3.5

Archelaos
May 29th 2012


241 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

If not lyrically then how do you find it cliche? Lyrically I can see someone finding this trite (although i don't think the ideas expressed by them are), but the only song that really strikes me overly familiar/commonplace is "Little Talks," because of the overuse of 'Hey!' and its overall structure.

StrangerofSorts
Emeritus
May 29th 2012


2904 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

This was released in 2011, but w/e



I just like saying that because I had this album before it was cool... 3.5 seems about right: it's a fun album but in the end it fails to become much more than "cute".

Archelaos
May 29th 2012


241 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

Do you live in Iceland? If not, then it's a 2012 release for you. It doesn't matter how you first heard it, it was physically (key word) released in both Europe and North America in 2012.

StrangerofSorts
Emeritus
May 29th 2012


2904 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Yeh I heard something about that. The idea of a staggered international release in the internet age confuses me. I see the 2012 release as a re-release tbh.



(You do know I wasn't being entirely serious, right? I really dgaf as to when it came out. I'm not that far gone yet.)

camaraderie
May 29th 2012


988 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

What's with that release date? I remember listening to this in like November, this definitely came out in 2011.

Archelaos
May 29th 2012


241 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

...Refer to the posts above you.



StrangerofSorts: I get where you're coming from, but it's not a re-release. And I was addressing your first point, not this: "I just like saying that because I had this album before it was cool."

StrangerofSorts
Emeritus
May 29th 2012


2904 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Just checking ;)

mrbloke
May 29th 2012


200 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

In regards to Ty, a 3 felt too harsh. Even though I put it down as a 3.5, it's more of a high 6/low 7. It's not bad, it's just that my classmates and local djs won't shut up about it.

Archelaos
May 29th 2012


241 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

Just wanted to chime in about the actual review and say that your opening paragraph seems oddly contrasted against your 3.5 rating... Actually, most of your review does.



Flip open Rolling Stone magazine and you can witness David Fricke committing the heinous crime of calling them “your new Arcade Fire” even though they only have slight, slight similarities




And I'm like 90% sure that he wasn't suggesting that this sounds anything like Arcade Fire - just from that quote alone, I haven't actually read the review.

mrbloke
May 29th 2012


200 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

It was a review of a concert they were playing. I'm pretty sure it was before their debut made it to NA. The first paragraph and such does make it sound like a 2 but the next bits give it a more justified 3-3.5. This album is like a hip-hop mix tape that's carried by it's production job.

Sirob
May 29th 2012


2653 Comments

Album Rating: 4.5

"The following review is more so a glorified sound-off rather than a professionally composed review; that being said the need for someone to come clean and set the record straight about Of Monsters And Men’s debut album My Head Is an Animal has grown stronger day after day."



lolwut

goingphishing
August 3rd 2012


4 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0 | Sound Off

This author clearly has no idea what he is talking about...



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