uncompromising

Review Score:

A

April 11th / 2025 –

Bon Iver’s SABLE, fABLE feels like the missing link. It’s as if this project is the bridge between his early folk-acoustic work and his electronic pivot. Except this comes six years after i,i and almost two decades after For Emma, Forever Ago.

That’s a long time. Justin Vernon was no stranger to the music scene when he created Bon Iver, a project born out of a very particular point in his life. The evolution of Vernon as an artist was never going to follow a typical trajectory. But it doesn’t really matter, because we’re here. And with SABLE, fABLE, Vernon has created his best work since For Emma, Forever Ago.

With a captivating menagerie of instrumentation and influences, Vernon’s fifth album went in directions I would not have predicted. You anticipate some falsetto crooning from Vernon. You don’t anticipate soul, funk and blues. Admirably, each instance of unique instrumentation is used sparingly and tastefully (something you don’t always see in cases like this).

He also knows when to let these songs breathe. This is best exemplified by both of the conclusory tracks: “AWARDS SEASON” and “Au Revoir”, which each end with a very intentional silence that has the listener quietly left listening to their own heartbeat. Vernon’s vocals are as dynamic as ever, with the lowest growly bass being somehow just as soothing as his classic falsetto. Every tone and instrument and ambient drone is perfectly balanced. The melodies are surprisingly catchy, something I don’t always associate with a Bon Iver project.

One thing about Bon Iver is that when he makes an album, he makes the most of it. I’ve often wondered if the album format as we know it would disappear. If music history hadn’t been based on the release of actual, physical records, would artists put out music the way we’re accustomed to? It’s possible it would look very different. Many artists just use the album format out of habit; It’s the default. But Justin Vernon is the master of balancing an album into a coherent work. Sequencing, an often overlooked aspect of the creative process, is something Bon Iver has never struggled with, regardless of how you feel about his discography.

“AWARDS SEASON” is a very unique addition to Vernon’s discography. It reaches its peak midway through the song, and what a peak it is. The horns come in over the organ, which sounds as great and wide as the ocean. The vocals are untreated, and you can almost hear the room he’s in. A A lot of musicians, in podcasts and interviews, will warn of “demo-itis” (a term I think I first heard used by the artist Iron and Wine). It’s the idea of capturing that moment of discovery, when you finally find what the art you’re making is. In an interview (I think on the podcast Song Exploder, shout out Hrishikesh Hirway), a member of The Flaming Lips said that you can only really perform a song a handful of times. Anything beyond that is mimicry for an audience. After a while, you lose the original quality. I mention this because “AWARDS SEASON”, and other tracks on this album, strike me as true, genuine performance. Even though I know that Vernon spent countless hours perfecting these songs, you always get the sense that the emotion that first sparked each song’s conception is still very present. You can picture Vernon alone at the microphone, and it always feels whole and real.

This is the perfect culmination of Bon Iver’s disparate sounds across the whole of his career. SABLE, fABLE is a gorgeous project from start to finish, and one that hits hard and stays with you after it’s all said and done.

Review Score:

A

Gubb wrote this review. You can’t get mad at Gubb.

Gubb’s Notes: I did myself a real favor by avoiding the singles, of which there were many. I am not a fan of the current trend of releasing so many singles ahead of a project’s release. An artist like Bon Iver could easily get away with a surprise drop. Or at least 1-2 singles max.

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