PRESS
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Rejoicing In The Hands (Of The Golden Empress)
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fakediy.comDevendra already stands in a league of his ownHe's the man you wish you could go travelling with, the man you wish would write songs especially for you, the man who makes you wish you could grow a beard. Devendra Banhart is one of those 'singer-songwriter' chaps, on a one-man crusade armed with just his guitar and sweet enchanting voice. And on this, his third album, Banhart has hit the perfect formula that won the 60s over. It's the sound of a maturing man playing songs from his childhood memories. There's an innocent factor present in each track, and it's that sense of wonder in Devendra's voice that brings the whole album together. From the languid rolling of 'Poughkeepsie' to the effervescent 'Todo Los Dolores' (which isn't as depressing as the title suggests), each of Banhart's songs create a magical sense of wellbeing that's lost in so much of music's other offerings. 'This Beard is for Siobhan' is a Woodstock anthem in the waiting which will have you chanting "a real good time" for hours on end. You can make comparisons to Marc Bolan, Syd Barrett and Nick Drake, but Devendra already stands in a league of his own. Banhart's......
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DEVENDRA BANHART, Rejoicing in the Hands
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Quad City Times | by Sean MoellerDeeply rich folkLow lights and the ease a long day brings would only enhance the sound of Devendra Banhart’s moving “Rejoicing in the Hands,†as salt crystals bunched at the cusp of a margarita glass better serve the taste of the tequila. His deeply rich folk — richer than the kind of dark chocolate that could make you gag — coddles to the simplistic elegance of a man and an acoustic guitar that without being seen, is sure to have seen better days. Banhart, homeless up until his first album on Young God Records was released two years ago, uses nature as allegory, expertly wiggling his voice from thought to thought as if a stubborn chunk of crouton refused to be swallowed. Breezes and flames hover like drunken vision and then jag between headphones like the flashing shoes of a toddler running after a sky full of taunting July fireflies. He beautifies what it takes to be different, not borrowing from old standards, but creating new melodies and ways to operate that should be timesharing with the past, but aren’t. Banhart’s found an island all his own. It’s home to what have to be......
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Devendra Banhart, 'Rejoicing in the Hand
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IC Walesby Christopher Rees, The Western MailEvery once in a while a voice emerges that is so unique that you can't help but become spellbound by its charms. San Franciscan hobo Devendra Banhart has one such voice. His dexterous acoustic finger-picking ain't half bad either. From the very first note of opening track This Is The Way, he transports the listener back to the psychedelic folk atmosphere of the 1960s when singer-songwriters like Marc Bolan, Donovan, Bert Jansch and Tim Buckley ruled. His songs seem to float around on a summery breeze that intoxicates the senses and gently seduces the ears. His delivery is delicately magical and intimately effective as you hang on every word of his quivering voice. Both lighthearted and full of deep substance songs like This Beard is for Stobhan and Will is my Friend move effortlessly from carefree whimsy to breathtaking beauty while See Saw and album closer Autumn Child are simply heartbreaking. With these 16-songs representing just half of the 32-tracks recorded (another album Nino Rojo will be released in September) this album marks the discovery of a real talent and the beginning of what will surely become a fascinating musical journey. 4 out of......
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Devendra Banhart, Rejoicing in the hands
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MusicOMH.com (UK) | by Steve HandsAn ever-more familiar and welcome sight over the next few yearsIt says much for the enduring ubiquity of the guitar in Western music that the outré folk of the last ten years sounds more obtusely contemporary in 2004 than it has done since its protest-era heyday, and its Smithsonian-curated history. Modern influential proponents of lo-tech plucking such as Will Oldham have reinvigorated the genre by returning to the primacy of earthiness, superstition and foreboding implicit in folk's initial evolution, while applying found-sound production techniques to traditional instrumentation. It is out of this milieu that an artist such as Devendra Banhart arrives with us fully formed. Rather than rely on the comfort of tape-hiss, co-producer and ex-Swan Michael Gira chose to give Banhart the full benefit of a modern studio for these sessions all recorded in a 10-day stint. The prolific Banhart provided 57 songs for consideration, and a second album, Nino Rojo arrives later this year. Gira also gathered together a small group of backing musicians who perform so sympathetically with Banhart that it comes as some surprise that the results are not simply the singer's own overdubs. At times, Banhart's staccato voice resembles a......
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Devendra Banhart, Rejoicing in the hands
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MusicOMH.com (UK) | by Steve HandsAn ever-more familiar and welcome sight over the next few yearsIt says much for the enduring ubiquity of the guitar in Western music that the outré folk of the last ten years sounds more obtusely contemporary in 2004 than it has done since its protest-era heyday, and its Smithsonian-curated history. Modern influential proponents of lo-tech plucking such as Will Oldham have reinvigorated the genre by returning to the primacy of earthiness, superstition and foreboding implicit in folk's initial evolution, while applying found-sound production techniques to traditional instrumentation. It is out of this milieu that an artist such as Devendra Banhart arrives with us fully formed. Rather than rely on the comfort of tape-hiss, co-producer and ex-Swan Michael Gira chose to give Banhart the full benefit of a modern studio for these sessions all recorded in a 10-day stint. The prolific Banhart provided 57 songs for consideration, and a second album, Nino Rojo arrives later this year. Gira also gathered together a small group of backing musicians who perform so sympathetically with Banhart that it comes as some surprise that the results are not simply the singer's own overdubs. At times, Banhart's staccato voice resembles a......