Heartland

Well, It's finally here. I have been waiting almost 4 years for Final Fantasy to release a new album after 2006's He Poos Clouds, one of my all time favourites. And even though the name was changed from Final Fantasy to Owen Pallett, it's still the same artist and he has again managed to produce a stellar product. The album is described as a concept album about an ultra-violent farmer named Lewis in the world of Spectrum, who is coming to terms with his creator, Owen Pallett. I will admit, I was at first slightly disappointed with Heartland, as it is different from Pallett's previous work, but after taking some time to digest it, I now see that it is fantastic and love almost every track. The two opening tracks, "Midnight Directives" and "Keep The Dog Quiet", as well as the previously released "Lewis Takes Action" are immediately grabbing. Other tracks become better with more listens, such as "Oh Heartland, Up Yours!" and "Lewis Takes His Shirt Off". Finally, the closing track is a hauntingly beautiful song called "What Do You Think Will Happen Now?" All in all, Pallett is successful in creating his fantasy world, with settings, plot and characters in his songs/lyrics that translate into a strange and unique, but highly enjoyable album.

-&Him