Vetiver

Songwriter Andy Cabic heads up San Francisco neo-folk band Vetiver, and it's a heady endeavor indeed that he undertakes. Over the course of three previous album, tunes veered from the abstract and surreally atmospheric to warmer and more comfortable sounds. On Tight Knit, the band's first release for the venerable Sub Pop label, Cabic & Co. expand on past sounds while remaining firmly, deeply, inextricably rooted in '60s folk and '70s songwriter-plus-band trends.

In fact, Vetiver's been downright bucolic, and a fine addition for Sub Pop, a label that has ever more shifted from the heavy grunge of the '90s to the reverberatingly blissful folk rock of, well, now and then. Heck, Vetiver may be the best example of this new brand of backwards-glancing rockers (see also: Iron & Wine, Fleet Foxes, Devendra Banhart), in that Cabic's emphasis on songwriting is in no way distracted or bent by style. You could plug in these guitars and lay some synth melodies over tunes like the jangly "More of This" or the lithely funky "Another Reason to Go," and they'd be just as strong. Tight Knit, in fact, is less woodsy than past Vetiver albums, but the gauzy harmonies remain versatile and inviting.

—Chris Hassiotis
03.24.09

Andy Cabic's Vetiver have never been as far out as some of their indie folk compatriots like Devendra Banhart, and they've never been as outside as some of their influences (as detailed on 2008's album of covers Thing of the Past) might lead you to believe. Instead, their gentle, almost classic rock smooth sound is something you could play for just about anyone and not have a single eyebrow raised in any degree of alarm. That being said, Tight Knit is the group's slickest, tightest record so far. From the opening ballad "Rolling Sea" onward, Cabic and crew make music that can only be called easy listening. Not the kind you hear in a dentist's office, but the kind of music that makes no demands on you as a listener and just wraps you in cottony coziness. The lush beds of acoustic guitars, the gently swooping electric guitars, the rich vocal harmonies, and restrained percussion serve the tender and vulnerable lead vocals of Cabic perfectly; the simple melodies and drifting chord changes are unchallenging in the best sense of the word. Apart from the peppy, perfect for a soda pop commercial "Everyday" and the almost rocking in a lazy bar band way "More of This," the record is perfectly constructed for lazy days and hazy nights. It takes skill to create a record filled with so little energy and drive, and again, that's not a criticism though it probably sounds like it should be. Cabic is creating a mood here, an ode to tenderness and quiet that never wavers from its aims. Indeed if you're looking for a record to wake you or shake you, Tight Knit might drive you into a fury. If you want a record to lull you and tuck you in with a kiss on the forehead, then you're in luck. It might not be the best album Vetiver have made, but it's the most consistent and beguiling. ~ Tim Sendra, All Music Guide