PRESS
Devendra Banhart, Rejoicing in the Hands
Tracks Magazine | by Joe Gross
Totally hypnotic
Banhart made an underground splash in 2002 with the nakedly surreal DIY collection Oh Me Oh My…, his spare, untutored warbling both raw and deeply sophisticated. On Rejoicing, he ditches the Tiny Tim-isms and expands his sound. Moving from country to Celtic and back again, he turns Elvis song titles into glossolalia on “Poughkeepsie,†gets boozy on “This Beard Is For Siobhan†and discovers strings on “A Sight To Behold.†Folkart fetishists may be bummed, but Banhart’s music is still totally hypnotic and, indeed, more powerful for the studio polishing.