Tour Dates:
Apr 08 – Queen Elizabeth Theatre / Toronto
Apr 10 - Lincoln Hall / Chicago
Apr 11 – Varsity Theater / Minneapolis
Apr 12 – Turner Hall / Milwaukee
Apr 13 – Wexner Center / Columbus, Oh.
Apr 14 – Andy Warhol Museum / Pittsburgh
Apr 15 – Black Cat / Washington DC
Apr 18 - Coachella Festival / Indio, Ca.
Apr 20 - Institute of Contemporary Art / Boston
Apr 22 – Webster Hall / New York City
Apr 25 – First Unitarian Church / Philadelphia
Apr 27 – The Earl / Atlanta
Apr 29 – Granada Theater / Dallas
Apr 30 – The Mohawk / Austin
May 05 – The Independent / San Francisco
May 08 – The Crocodile / Seattle
May 09 – The Vogue Theatre / Vancouver
May 10 – Alix Goolden Hall / Victoria, BC
May 11 – Aladdin Theater / Portland, Or.
Owen Pallett’s Heartland is one of those albums that sounds good through speakers, great on headphones and (I’m guessing) mind-blowing live.
It’s also one of those albums that ages extremely well, so after a week cozied up with Mr. Pallett’s first work under that name, most of my original complaints are moot.
Pallett — formerly working under the name Final Fantasy because, yeah, he’s that video game-loving boy genius — started out as a classically trained violinist in Canada. He wrote film scores and operas before finishing college, and this wild level of training and the multi-instrumental result warrants an obvious comparison to Beirut or Andrew Bird. It also makes Heartland so musically lush. The intricacy of each song means every track is exciting in its own right, but the album also blends each seamlessly together – enhancing the work’s orchestral quality, but also making it just the tiniest bit boring. No one song stands out in its entirety, but the intro on “Flare Gun” or the piano melody on “Tryst with Mephistopheles” might be stuck in your head for hours.
Heartland – despite its cavorting multi-layered instrumentation – remains mellow throughout. Pallett’s earnest voice is sometimes frustratingly monotone when set against the range of his violin, but the variety and beauty of the music makes up for sometimes forgettable lyrics. The words seem to be included to reassure listeners who are uncomfortable with the idea of an ‘instrumental’ album. Though Pallett hasn’t crafted something terribly catchy here, Heartland doesn’t need to be – it’s just beautiful.
Track Listing:
1. Midnight Directives
2. Keep the Dog Quiet
3. Mount Alpentine
4. Red Sun No. 5
5. Lewis Takes Action
6. The Great Elsewhere
7. Oh Heartland, Up Yours!
8. Lewis Takes Off His Shirt
9. Flare Gun
10. E is for Estranged
11. Tryst with Mephistopheles
12. What Do You Think Will Happen Now?
Due to copyright issues, violinist Owen Pallett is using his own name henceforth for his solo work. His albums previously released under the name Final Fantasy will be reissued and his upcoming album Heartland will be released January 12 as an Owen Pallett project.
Pallett has issued the following statement on the name change:
Friends,
I began playing solo violin shows in 2004. Although it was essentially a solo project, I named the band Final Fantasy, as the experience–and the tone of the material–was reminiscent of the hours and hours I had spent as an adolescent playing those epic JRPGs.
But the laws of trademark infringement exist for good reason, and so I am voluntarily retiring my band name. In the new year, my record Heartland is coming out, and it is my first to be released in many territories, including Japan. With this in mind, I feel it is in my own best interests to definitively distinguish my music from Square/Enix’s games.
So, I am no longer playing shows as Final Fantasy. Subsequent releases, including Heartland, will be issued under my own name, Owen Pallett. Prior releases will sometime soon be re-packaged and re-issued.
I thank Square/Enix their kindness and support, and I thank you all for your understanding.
To celebrate the January 12 release of Heartland, Final Fantasy will be playing several shows, including dates in San Francisco, Chicago, and New York City. The third Final Fantasy full-length and the first for Domino Records, Heartland is the product of nine months of work in four countries. It is a fully orchestral record, designed to exist simultaneously as an album, a 45-minute piece of orchestral music and a set of songs for looped violin and voice. Owen Pallett explains Heartland:
“The songs themselves form a narrative concerning a farmer named Lewis and the fictional world of Spectrum. The songs are one-sided dialogues with Lewis, a young, ultra-violent farmer, speaking to his creator. The album was compositionally modeled upon the principles of electronic music. The principles of analog synthesis informing symphonic writing, like an inversion of a Tomita record. These songs, too, were designed to be as dense with polyphony as the Final Fantasy live shows can become. While writing it, I kept an image in my head of putting so many notes on the page that the paper turned black. This record encapsulates a whole year of work for me, and was difficult to see through, but I’m immensely proud of the results. I hope you enjoy it.”
For a free MP3 of “Lewis Takes Action” from Heartland, visit here.
Tour Dates:
Jan. 14 – Bottom of the Hill / San Francisco
Jan. 16 – Schubas / Chicago
Jan. 18 – Bowery Ballroom / New York
The very talented violin-wielding Owen Pallett has yet another EP that he is releasing before his third full-length as Final Fantasy drops. Following sharp on the heels of Spectrum, is Plays to Please a theatrical EP that plays more like the the soundtrack to a musical than an indie rock album.
The jazzy “Horsetail Feathers” starts the EP off with a jazzy mix of flute, piano and saxophone. The tremolo of the violin creates just the right amount of tension to keep listener’s hooked. “Ultimatum” follows with huge percussion and syncopated accents. The only thing more weighty than the sounds of the tuba are Pallett’s presentation of the lyrics: “Ddddamn, you prostrate in fear,” he stutters after he says that you can only “win the race with a six string bass.”
The solemn “Moodring Band” is next and then “I Saved a Junky Once.” These are fine tracks, but in comparison to the others it is a low point in the album. Things get picked up again as well as plucked up on “Nun or a Bawd,” a jazzy number sprinkled with pizzicato. “Crush-Love-Crush” rounds out the EP. It’s lush with cello, piano and flute. If the instrument combination doesn’t have you in love with this song, then I’m sure Pallett’s amazingly passionate vocals will. “Crush, love, crush, crush, love,” Pallett sings faster and faster until he runs out of breath and his voice breaks.
If Final Fantasy isn’t a part of your music collection, Plays to Please is a very good place to start. Plus, with support from fellow violinist Andrew Bird, you’d be silly to skip this one over.
Tracklisting:
01. Horsetail Feathers
02. Ultimatum
03. Moodring Band
04. I Saved a Junky Once
05. Nun or a Bawd
06. Crush-Love-Crush
Owen Pallett, or the man behind Final Fantasyis whetting fans appetites with two EPs before his third album is released in the spring. The first of these EPs, Spectrum, 14th Century is a departure from Pallett’s usual violin-rich, looped tunes as he travels deep into his dark musings accompanied by Beirut‘s horns.
The violin isn’t as prevalent on this album as his previous efforts, but it is still apparent on songs like “The Ballad of No-Face.” Instead, this album uses horns, piano and timpani. But these heavier sounds are more fitting for the heavy lyrics. However, with his Sufjan-like voice. Pallett does tread a fine line for balancing the heavy instruments with his airy voice.
Pallett lyrics deal with the struggles that arise from his fears and temptations. While these are common themes for most album lyrics, the view Pallett takes is unique. While most would write of a desire for more success and the worry of picking up a pretty girl, Pallett finds a beauty in faults and failures.
In “Blue Imelda” he asks, “Woman, can I take you as a friend?” as he ponders if it is really possible for a man and woman to just be friends when hormones rage about as loud as the timpani in the song. “Oh, Spectrum” asks, “Is anything more beautiful than failure?” Although “The Butcher” instrumentally is a little over the top in its oompah pah sound, lyrically it is the strongest on the album as Pallett fills it with apocalyptic religious allusions. The loops at the end and the touch of violin also brings this song back to the Final Fantasy familiar to fans.
Final Fantasy’s Spectrum, 14th Century is released by Blocks Recording Club on Sept. 30.
Tracklisting:
01. Oh, Spectrum
02. Blue Imelda
03. The Butcher
04. Cockatrice
05. The Ballad of No-Face
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Concert Calendar
Nov 23, 2011
HaHa Tonka @ Recordbar, Kansas City MO
Nov 25, 2011
Thee Oh Sees @ The Granada, Lawrence KS
Owen Pallett is pleased to announce a North American tour in support of Heartland, his third full-length and first for Domino Records.
