The Wave Reviews: Band of Horses' "Infinite Arms"

We knew that Band of Horses had been in the process of recording their third album Infinite Arms since it was announced last May by producer Phil Ek. At first, it looked like the new album was to be titled Night Rainbows, but in March of this year, the band confirmed that the album would be in fact called Infinite Arms.

Needless to say we were excited, along with everyone else all around the world. Soon though, our excitement began to fade as we looked at 2 important pre-release facts:

1) Band of Horses released their first two wildly popular albums Everything All the Time and Cease to Begin on Sub Pop Records. Infinite Arms was to be released on Columbia.

2) How do you top those previous albums? It's not an easy feat. Especially after 3 years.

So that was what had us worried. In a nutshell, Band of Horses was either going to dazzle us with this new album and top their old work, or they weren't. New Band of Horses would be an eargasm, or it would suck exponentionally. There really wasn't any "in between" so to speak. And that is the price that a group pays for making such amazing music: they have to live up to expectations.

Luckily, Band of Horses did not disapoint.

Infinite Arms was released today (May 18), but we had been listening since mid-April to the first track "Factory". It was good. Very good.

Vocalist Ben Bridwell impressed us with his ability to sound the same while still sounding completely different and new, something that will make sense upon hearing the album. While tracks like "Factory" and "Blue Beard" remind us of the slow, somber "Funeral" from 2006, "Laredo" and "NW Apt" closely resemble the upbeat "Islands on the Coast" from Cease to Begin.

Overall, this is a solid album, the likes of which only Band of Horses is capable of. We're sorry for ever doubting them and will not make the mistake again. If you don't want to take our word for it, listen to the entire album, being streamed here.

If you want to hear the new Band of Horses on 88.7 The Wave, you're in luck. "Factory" can be heard in regular rotation, with more new tracks to follow.

(P.S. The album artwork kicks some major ass too...)