I See A Darkness

excellent. chillingly gorgeous. love sombre country, really wish this was on streaming, lowk might cop digital for this its that good

Then bleach your asshole

This seems to have been unpopular with a lot of 1001 listeners finding it too miserable, dull, one-note, and generally downbeat. I can’t say that they’re wrong and I don’t think it would be an album to reach for often, but I think for the right mood and time, this does its thing really well. Superior miserabilist music, certainly good enough to make me want to explore the back-catalogue.

I've listened to a couple of Bonnie Prince Billy albums before, but not really gotten into him. Maybe I didn't listen closely enough. These are melodies that whisper, instead of shout, and delicate, personal lyrics that deserve attention. Really enjoyed it, and I might revisit some of his other work.

Really weird in places Not what was i was expecting but it really grew on me as I listened.

I like this

Difficult to listen to (not available on spotify) but a decent listen when I tracked it down on Amazon music. I'd never heard of it before but I enjoyed the the mix of folk/country/indie.

Intense, beautifully melancholic and very confessional type of music. It is very moving. Brilliant and painful.

Bonnie “Prince” Billy’s I See a Darkness falls into a very specific niche that I can only describe as gothic folk, or maybe just deeply melancholic folk for people who enjoy staring into the middle distance. I had absolutely no idea what I was getting into when I hit play, but this was unexpectedly enjoyable. It fit my somber mood perfectly while I sat in the office working this morning. I can see it now. It’s early 1999. I haven’t yet decided to move across the country, and the girl I’ve been pining after for the past two years has just told me she only wants to be friends. I’ve finished a closing shift at work, most of my buddies aren’t working that night, and I decide to have a few beers because I’m just not ready to go home yet. I’m sitting alone in a darkened bar, nursing my third Guinness, when Bonnie “Prince” Billy takes the stage. It’s just him, a stool, a microphone, and his guitar. He starts playing, and something in me gives way. Suddenly I’m trying to wipe away tears faster than they can fall, hoping nobody notices as they land in my pint of Irish stout. Eventually, the set ends. I sit there until most of the crowd has cleared out, order another pint, and start thinking that maybe—just maybe—a change of scenery might do me some good. That’s what this album feels like to me. Not necessarily sadness, but that particular kind of late-night melancholy where sadness, loneliness, nostalgia, and the faint possibility of starting over all seem to occupy the same bar stool.

If James Taylor had an emo son, this is what he'd produce. A very somber, emotional, and depressing album. It just creeps along from beginning to end and drags you down into its abyss. It was an OK listen, but not something I would want to listen to on purpose. If you're in a good mood today, you might want to delay a listen until that feeling has tapered off.

Across Bonnie "Prince" Billy, Palace and under his own name, Will Oldham's are consistently 4 star.

Latte music

This one really grabbed me. The mood was slightly undercut by adverts for Ocado on YouTube

It is alright I guess. Didn't excite me too much.

The album itself, I don't love. I listened to half yesterday, then today when it was time to start again I said to myself "I don't know if I can with this any more". But I searched to find more about Bonny Prince Billy, and found some other really beautiful songs by him. And then the second half of this I found more pleasing to listen to - it's like something unlocked for me. It's still not something I would put on often, but I'll for sure seek out some more of his music.

This album was really pretty incredible it’s a shame it has a sub 3 average I really like the sound of his voice and the instrumentation throughout They make for a sound that’s really similar to other 90s singer/songwriters such as Jeff Buckley or neutral milk hotel This album starts with a sort of pop sound but as it progresses it gets darker and has some really nice stuff such as with black I can’t believe this album has such a low score and I don’t really get all the 1 star reviews I can’t wait to keep listening to this album 4/5 Favorites: a minor place, black, death to everyone, madeleine mary

Moody album. At first listen it felt bit boring but after few spins on the background this one grew on me. Not quite sure about the 4/5, but 3/5 would be bit harsh

#502 / 1089 Heard before? ❌ Revisit? ❌ Couldn't hear the appalachian or celtic -style folk nyances, it's all bollocks to me. I know the name Bonnie "Prince" Billy, mostly from a mate who loves folk and all this shite I can't stand and our taste in music basically the opposite. Didn't know this was a pseudonum however. Yeah, I'm getting allergic to this country/folk stuff, enough so that I have physical reactions as all my hair stands up and I get shivers when the music starts. This wasn't as bad, but had to call it quits after few tracks. At the most 2/5

Amazing

I hear a darkness. Rather bleak, though there is some subtle beauty present.

Nimestä voi päätellä että pimeää ja osin surullistakin musiikkia on tarjolla. Oli oikein hyvä levy tähän hetkeen

Sigh. No.

So.... boring... zzz....

I thought based on the cover art that this would horrible but I liked it. I don't know anything about this group? or is it a single person? I don't know but it could have been worse.

4.2 I didn't think I would initially like this one. Didn't want to hear a sad-sack drone on for an hour. But there was something unique going on, even if the themes were a bit dark. The recording sounded really great; try to listen on a good system or headphones. I will have to check other releases from the artist

Difficult album to find! Had to listen with ads on YouTube. Good for him. I see he doesn’t have it on Spotify out of protest. Anyway, the album itself was okay. I thought the first and last tracks were my favorites with the rest bleeding together to me. Maybe I’ll need to revisit this one. Lots of artists I love and admire love this guy.

I haven't listened to this album in a really long time, and I don't think it's as good as I remember it being. I like several other Will Oldham albums significantly more than this, but the psychic power of early Pitchfork compels me to rate it at least 4/5.

Decent sadboi music

Never judge an album by its cover. I'm glad that I was able to track this down on Youtube. It's not a party album, but it is a meaningful one. It is dark and melancholic and quite beautiful

3.5/5

Title track and ‘Black’ are two of my very favourites, the rest of the album does not quite reach those heights for me but an easy 3.5

Will Oldham's most celebrated record has a devoted cult following for whom the off-pitch vocals and the sparse darkness are features rather than limitations — evidence of authenticity, emotional rawness, music made without commercial concern. That argument is real and worth acknowledging. It doesn't help when the out-of-tune vocals and the timing issues in the background harmonies are genuinely bothersome rather than charmingly rough — and that's a musically informed response, not a failure of listening. The deliberate imprecision that makes this record feel lived-in for its fans is the same quality that keeps it at arm's length for everyone else. A two honestly delivered, the record left unfinished for good reason.

Quite an unnerving album that makes you feel like something unsettling is about to happen Definitely a slower one for when you're in a bad mood, I didn't enjoy it and there were some weird lyrics

God damn, this is good. I feel like the best alt-country/Americana in styles like this is invariably crushingly dark and depressing, and boy howdy, does this album deliver in spades. Nothing but aching reminders of the darkness, pain, and ultimately death that await every human on the planet. Easily a 9/10.

Having to hunt down this sad album was not worth it. Sometimes these things are just not for everybody.

I liked the rawness of the vocals and the fact that a lot of his backing vocals weren't exactly trying to match the primary vocal. I like the production. I didn't really care for the songs.

This had me going back and forth. I was prepared to write this off as some pretentious, overly erudite singer-songwriter music. Usually I bounce right off of the gothic Americana-style acoustic stuff. There were certainly some tracks that confirmed my prejudice (I found A Minor Place to be a bit grating, for example, which sounds a bit too much like the granddaddy of the righteously maligned Stomp Clap Hey music). The first half of the album also was a lot stronger than the latter half, which is a bummer. But there were also some genuinely devastating numbers on this project. Who am I kidding? The title track moved me to tears. There is so much going on in these thirty-seven minutes, many big swings and big misses but also some incredible, raw, emotionally honest music. For those of us who are still on the war profiteering platform, Bonnie Prince Billy is one of the brave souls that does not distribute his music there; the other streamers do have this one though. It can also

Strange and boring

Couldn’t find on Spotify so I gave up

Całkiem fajne. Nawet niespodziewanie bym powiedział. 4

I loved the beautiful darkness of this album. One of the things I really enjoyed was how it was dark but still soft. That gave it a more haunting quality. And I am just going to admit it “Death to Everyone” is practically my anthem.

Decent album. Very sad and dark which I like. Songs were too similar and the voices and harmonies were not to my preference. The indie emo vibe is wierd abd makes them different just not my cup of tea

Never heard of him before. Perfectly pleasant. Soft indie ballads, quite dark in places and definitely not music to play on a Friday night.

Pretty bleak and uninspiring, but something about this made me want to keep listening. Perhaps in the hope it would get more uplifting or perhaps the haunting nature kept me intrigued. Either way, I didn't get bored so it gets a more positive score from me.

Could not access

Really liked this.

Very deep and heartfelt, recording itself a bit scrappy. Think I might need to listen to Radiohead now to cheer myself up!

Very sparse, but lyrically very beautiful

Not streamable

I'm super annoyed that this isn't available on Spotify. I was thrown by the album cover and thought it was going to be something heavier - but I was pleasantly surprised. Apparently this album is completely my jam. I loved it, and because it's not readily available to me I likely won't hear it again. A shame, really.

*1999. Folky alt rock. *Not on Spotify, unfortunately. *I really like this. It's sad, haunting, nostalgic, and sometimes quite beautiful, and then there are also some more folky songs in there. *It borders on pretentious sometimes, but stays on the right side for me. *You do have to be in the mood for this - I listened to it at 9pm in the dark. This is not a daytime album. *I'll definitely be checking out more Will Oldham. RATING - 7.5/10

Finally, a great new discovery, it's been a good while! While it's a slightly front-loaded album, I See a Darkness maintains a gripping atmosphere throughout. Everything sounds so fragile, like it's just about to fall apart. Brilliant instrumentation and a poignant vocal performance, all capped off with some wonderfully intimate lyricism. Definitely an artist I will explore further, I'm glad I listened to this one. Favourite track: A Minor Place

I generally a fan of indie-folk and singer-songwriter, but this album just generally left me wanting. Not bad by any means and there are some beautiful lyrics on here, but I do feel there are much stronger examples of the genre.

2.5

It was pretty in a way

I’d listen to this again if I was in the right melancholic mood.

Very intimate sound. Quite heavy and slow as a whole album though.

I’d want to give this some more time; it’s got quite an endearing ramshackle nature to it, plus lyrically I know there’s more to explore. Good potential.

Number: 257 Familiarity: Aware (2) Rating: 4 Before: ======= I'm very familiar with some of Will Oldham's music under the name Palace Music but not this album as it is not available on my streaming platform. Therefore I am listening on YouTube which his not ideal. Anyways, his Palace Music album has a couple of songs I like a lot and put them on my 1995 playlist. In fact I have New Partner ranked number 8 out of 72 tracks from 1995. After : ======= Overall rating is 4. I wouldn't mind listening to this again but probably won't unless it becomes available on my streaming platform.

2.0

Boring

This album is wayyyy out of my comfort zone, as I haven't tapped into much indie-folk or gothic style music. I was actually pleasantly surprised, though. The vocals were full of raw emotion and the instrumentation was solid. 3/5

Minimalist songwriting with lyrics that reach deep down. I enjoyed it, especially the titular track. It is music for quiet solitary reflection and dimly-lit rooms. This album has weight. It is almost too heavy at times. Although I loved it, I don't think I can handle listening to it again. It is a one and done experience for me though I am richer for it.

A light touch. Searching for a through line for these albums not available on Spotify. Maybe that's why this reminded me of Ys.

Some songs hit with me some not.. overall I think it is an average album for me 3/5

Like Death To Everyone and Madeleine-Mary the most but some of it too downbeat even for me and I'm a miserable ****

Down with something COVID adjacent currently and this didn't really improve my health - nor mood...

Took me while to get round to finishing this on YouTube. I like it, despite it being dark, solemn and maudlin in the main. A bit of REM, a bit of Mercury Rev? Maybe one for the mythical Cafe Kelvinos when I don’t want any imaginary customers?

It's a lofi and downbeat album. It's not a life re-affirming album by any measure, but it's an authentic piece of work.

I don’t know what it says about my mental state that I really enjoyed this.

I would describe this album as "alternative folk", basically folk/singer-songwriter music using electric instruments with a heavier sound. For a womp-womp album (h/t Moch), I enjoyed this one quite a bit. Lots of emotion on display, and the music itself is very good. Give it a listen if you're in a bit of a dour mood. It's not perfect, but I'll give it a low 4/5 as I wouldn't hate listening to it again.

Sneaky good

Don't get it... but it is impressive to be able sing harmonies with yourself that are neither harmonic, nor melodic, nor in time with the music or your other self. Could feel myself slowly give up the will to live as the album progressed

I was in quite a good mood whilst listening to this, which maybe isn't the correct way of listening to it. It's undoubtedly a very emotional album, but one that doesn't resonate with me.

Not a favourite of mine.

This album sounds like Boulder, Colorado.

I don't think it's a bad album but you have to be in a depressive mood to enjoy it.

Too one noted. Some interesting tunes but did not pique my interest enough to get a 3

I had to listen to this on YouTube and then it wasn’t even good

Really pretty and sad, worth a listen for sure

Love this record: dark, spooky, fragile songs haunted by loss, grief, searching. It's its own little world, not big or varied, but rich and deep.

Melancholy, sardonic alt folk rock. “A Minor Place” and a few others are especially resonant.

First time listening to this album. It's also the first time I had to listen to a record on youtube. This is a really somber folk rock album, filtered through a bit of a low fi and at times a little amateurish sound. Overall, it's pretty good. It's a record that I could see grow on me as time goes on, but its solid the first time around. I like the moments of the record that get a little louder and more apocalyptic, but it's all pretty good.

Vaca catch up

It was fine!

I have mixed feelings about this. It's sometimes very sad and effective, but I often feel like it's put on, a display to the listener. That is a major turn off in folk music to me, where I am typically ok with the trade off of originality for sincerity. I don't think he thinks of himself as a "bad man", and it does sound winy, and I'm annoyed by the pity party. But at times there is beauty, there is sincerity, and there is a kernel of an idea and in the end I am moved by it, even if that's by anger or by trickery.

Loved it

Spotify didn't have this, so I tried on YouTube. There was an ad after every track. The contrast between the chipper ads and the dark songs hurt my head, so I didn't make it all the way to the end. I'd probably like it otherwise.

Too dull.

Not bad, but pretty much every song sounds the same, sad melancholic guitar music, really quite boring, probably 2 stars, 2.5 on RYM

cool

Depressing

Never heard of this performer. Not really much stands out. Very listenable for the most part. Lyrically lacking some depth and maturity.

This is an album I've listened to many times and always feel that I should like it more than I do. The lyrics are great, his voice suits the lyrics but the music is lacking. There is a faster, electric version of the title track that I like much more than the version on the album so it's definitely that music that I find lacking

Ik hou altijd wel van onbekende muzikale dingen met een donker randje en daar valt dit zeker onder. Ik vind het wat lastig te omschrijven wat ik precies hoor. Folk, country en depressioncore zoals ze dat tegenwoordig zeggen. Ik ben hier eigenlijk altijd wel voor te porren. Bij een eerste luisterbeurt bevalt het me al goed, ik vind het interessant, ik wil er meer van weten. Experimenteel op een goede manier. Ik denk dat dit album ook nog naar me toe kan groeien als ik het vaker luister, waarbij het dan wel weer nadelig is dat het niet op Spotify staat. Kortom: Ik vind dit een hele interessante toevoeging aan de lijst. Ik ga de perfecte score wel op zak houden, want ik vind niet alles raak.

Not streaming. Moving along.

Blocked by spotify. Couldn't listen

Beautiful, just incredible

I found this very single-paced, one-note and particularly maudlin and today I just wasnt' in the mood for it. Individually the songs were all fine but together it made the album feel quite oppressive and longer than it actually is. If I wanted to wallow in my own self pity I might put this on but even then, it doesn't really offer much hope!

I knew I See A Darkness as a Johny Cash song, which I always thought was one of his best. I also knew it as a Rosalía song, which is oh so different but still beautiful. Hearing the original, and the whole album made me appreciate this song even more. It is a dark album, the title says it, but it's absolutely brilliant. It's something I'd play to anyone who tells me they don't want to listen to Radiohead because it's too depressing. It also shows me once again that melancholy can be very liberating if you hear the right thing at the right time. This album deals with grief, sadness, and existential dread in a way that makes the burden feel shared, and somehow lifted me up. Maybe I'm weird, I don't know. Anyways, one more amazing surprise from an artist I haven't heard before.