Big Star

This album is so good, I'd put it in the stack of best singer-songwriters of the last few years. There are not any songs on it that are not in the excellent catagory.And the musicians on it are truly exceptional. Dave King, and Chris Morrisey, for example! The arrangements are simply awesome.

I bought this album on a whim, after hearing "Queen of Everything" come up on a Pandora playlist. I wasn't overly impressed with it. The lyrics are not always strong, and some of the songs just seem to be missing something. On the positive side, there is some great production going on here, beautiful vocal arrangements and airy ambiant spaces. There is some good stuff, just not as much as I'd hoped for. If you like folky, intelligent singer-songwriter stuff, this may work well for you.

Maybe I need to listen more but I was expecting songs are catchy and pretty sounding as 'Am I Allowed'. I'll keep giving it a listen but I have to say I was a little let down.

This past summer, I caught a free performance by Haley Bonar at Peavey Plaza in downtown Minneapolis. I was curious about her music after reading an article about her in City Pages. I normally listen to music on the opposite end of the spectrum of what Haley Bonar does but I really dug what I heard. I recently got a copy of her latest cd BIG STAR. This is the first I have heard her on cd. I really enjoyed BIG STAR. There certainly is a obvious country influence in her 31 minute opus mixed in with a dash of pop, folk, and rock music. The only "flaw" I found with the cd is that it is only half hour long. Most of the songs on the cd clocks under 3 minutes. Despite the time length of the album, BIG STAR is a joy to listen to. Haley reminds me a little bit of singer/songwriter Jewel with her delicate vocals. All of her songs have a good solid pop hook that will get stuck in your head in a good way. The production on BIG STAR is excellent. I feel like I am right there in the studio watching Haley perform. Overall BIG STAR is a great cd by a very talented artist. For those in the Twin Cities, try to catch Haley live. Her music sounds wonderful live.

I've been playing this album now for three years, and, to paraphrase Beetlejuice "It just gets better every time I listen to it." It really does benefit from repeated listens. This album has depth, vulnerability, intelligence, hooks, first rate musiciahship and top shelf production values. It is one of the best sounding LP's in my collection. The closing song "Tiger Boy", puts her right there in the room with you, at least the vinyl version, when played back on a good turntable. She is one of the most talented singer-songwriters working today. Right up there with Neko Case, Suzanne Vega, Aimee Mann, Laura Veirs, Cat Power, Lisa Hannigan... Her subsequent albums "Golder" and "Last War" are also excellent. Highest recommendation.

I was pretty surprised by this album; it's a lot more country and catchy than her earlier albums. Nonetheless, I find myself loving it, and can't get these songs out of my head! Think Cat Power meets Neko Case?

Whoa...Haley Bonar just proves there's something in the water (even when it's ice!)in the Twin Cities when it comes to cool innovative music. This is a great record....she joins so many greats from the City of Water ( Minneapolis-of course)...Romantica, Jayhawks, Golden Smog, Replacements, conver watts, Maeflies. Have a sip!

Impossible Dream should've won the mercury prize but we all know they only give that to stuff that'll disappear without trace. .. Big Star initially disappointed me, i was hoping for more irresistible pop hits , at first i couldn't find a single tune i thought was really memorable. then it started to grow on me (in me? ) i kept replaying and replaying. it's now one of my favourite albums, i just keep coming back to it. a real wonder