The Album Leaf Boasts A True Chorus On Latest Albums

A Chorus of Storytellers offers a sophisticated take on ambient sounds.

The Album Leaf
A Chorus of Storytellers
Sub Pop
Release Date: Feb 2, 2010

Consistent musicians are highly underrated. Far too often, artists that put out one mind-blowing album in an otherwise unimpressive career get more attention than artists who continually produce great music. Sure, “great” isn’t the same as “mind-blowing,” but I’d say that a consistent career should be more lauded than one that resembles a supernova. 

I find myself thinking of The Album Leaf in these terms. I’ll go a few months without listening to them; then an album of theirs comes up on shuffle, and all of the sudden it’s all I want to listen to. They’ve got the ambient market cornered as far as I’m concerned. But for people waiting for The Album Leaf’s brain child (Jimmy LaVelle) to push the boundaries of his contented electronic sound, A Chorus of Storytellers does just that.  

It’s the first album to feature a full live band, and while the songs still feature LaVelle’s signature calm tones, they’ve got a more layered sound, which makes the album intriguing, instead of just pleasantly listenable. The opening track provides an apt preview of what’s to come, because listeners are treated to many of the instruments that the album utilizes in addition to the electronic foundation. His lyrics are hypnotic, and they fit surprisingly well with this more fleshed-out sound.  

That being said, the best tracks on A Chorus of Storytellers are lyric-less and all the better for that—the two standouts are “Stand Still” and “Summer Fog.” In both cases, the band does such an incredible job of building to a climax that it’s almost unbearable. I wish there was a less cliché description than cinematic—and I’m sure there is—but I’m saying it anyway: they’re downright cinematic. If you want a small preview, find your way to approximately 2:20-the end on “Summer Fog.” The violin, piano, and horn parts are almost appallingly simple, but when played in tandem, the song becomes otherworldly.  

The only misstep in this new sound can be heard on “Perro.” I can’t get behind the found audio files that have what sounds like a conversation between a mother and her child going on in the background. Perhaps it was mixed in to make the track more interesting, but it sounds cheesy and vaguely creepy instead.  

Save for that track though, A Chorus of Storytellers is stunning. I’m not sure I want to hear this outfit sans a full band ever again. While I’ll still frequent LaVelle’s simpler albums, the fuller sound on this is too engrossing to only listen to every couple of months.