It’s been a while since the Avett Brothers have released new music. There was The Third Gleam in 2020, and, like all the Gleams, that was an acoustic record featuring just Scott and Seth Avett and bassist Bob Crawford. The last full band Avetts album was 2019’s Closer Than Together, and that feels like a long time ago. Their new self-titled album, The Avett Brothers, is their first independent record (this time on Thirty Tigers) since the 2000s, after spending a decade on various iterations of Sony and Universal Music. Yet, super producer Rick Rubin is still running the show, as he has for every main album since 2009’s I and Love and You.
Closer Than Together was a record that found the Avett Brothers experimenting, lightly, with synths and electronics. The Avett Brothers backs off on that in favor of a bigger rootsy sound. They have filled out in the past few years, as Crawford and longtime cellist Joe Kwon have been joined by drummer Mike Marsh and violinist Tania Elizabeth. Touring member Bonnie Avett Rini also plays keyboards on a couple of tracks. That allows the group to add some interesting wrinkles to their songs. Overall, though, Scott and Seth Avett are still writing the same sort of uptempo stompers and tender ballads they’ve always done. There is enough strong material here to satisfy longtime fans. Whether there’s enough to catch the ear of more casual listeners is up for debate.
The opener, “Never Apart”, showcases some of the new sonic ideas while ending up a bit mundane. It begins with tightly harmonized, chorale-style vocals. There are no words in this section, just “Ahh”s. Slow violin notes join the vocals and gradually changing piano chords, slowly increasing in volume as the vocals fade away. It’s a very different sound, but after 100 seconds, it gives way to a typical Avetts ballad. The lyrics feature platitudes like, “I don’t have to miss you / We’ll never be apart.” The melody is lovely, while the banjo and violin provide pleasant backing, with Kwon’s cello appearing more prominently later in the song. It feels a little disappointing that such an intriguing prelude gives way to something so much in the band’s wheelhouse.
Several of the ballads fall into the same category. There aren’t any poor songs here, just a few that feel overly familiar. “Forever Now” is easygoing and gentle, with some very nice bass work from Crawford, who gets to do a little more than just root notes. There’s a little synth figure in between the vocals, and the piano and violin show up with effective bits. Overall, though, there isn’t much in the way of musical or lyrical specifics to grab the ears. Closer “We Are Loved” is mostly just Scott (and later Seth on harmonies) and an acoustic guitar, which is solid for its stripped-down performance.
The closest the group gets in The Avett Brothers is “2020 Regret”. This song is an entry in a relatively new musical genre: The Pandemic Forced Me, a Touring Musician, to Spend an Extended Amount of Time at Home With My Family, and I’ve Realized What I’ve Been Missing. While the Avetts aren’t the first songwriters to tackle this topic, the track stands out because it feels like a specific point of view. “I spent all that precious time somewhere else back then / Even when I wasn’t gone, I might as well have been,” seems like a genuine expression of regret. As does the chorus apology, “But the fault’s all mine / ‘Cause there’s never been a time / I regretted time with you.” The Avett Brothers essentially use their players as a piano quartet here. The piano is the primary instrument, but the violin, cello, and bass appear with classical-style ornamentation at critical moments.
“Same Broken Bones” has an interesting start, with Scott singing a cappella. A soft organ joins him, and then Seth takes over as the piano comes in. Pizzicato strings also show up. It’s a three-minute song that feels quick with an inventive arrangement. The seven-minute “Cheap Coffee” does not feel quick. It has slow drums with toms and chiming ride cymbals, a piano with big, open chords, and reverby electric guitar chords that go on forever. It’s meant to feel wide open and epic. Yet the Avett Brothers use it to reminisce about life in a small apartment, first as newlyweds and eventually with a small child. “Didn’t know how / Didn’t know how good it could be,” is the chorus, but giving the mundane “good ol’ days” the lengthy treatment doesn’t quite elevate the story to epic levels.
The three uptempo songs on The Avett Brothers fare a bit better overall. “Love of a Girl” is a rocker, but it’s remarkably efficient. Most verses have sing-shouted lyrics, a driving drumbeat, and quick electric guitar slashes. Bass, vocal harmonies, and a little bit of piano show up in the chorus. The refrain, “Why I struggle so / Well, it’s all / For the love / Of a girl”, isn’t exactly new territory, but the song so simple and fun that it almost doesn’t matter. In this case, the highlighting of mundane domesticity (“I was out running errands from early to half-past four / And I got a good deal on flowers at the grocery store”) in such a rocking track works.
“Country Kid” finds the expanded Avett ensemble going full-on Old Crow Medicine Show. It’s a country-rock rave-up that talks about country life as a kid and teen, with interesting asides that demonstrate the Avetts didn’t live that far from the city. “I was a country kid / Throwing parties in the woods / Dragging my friends out of their neighborhoods / Jealous of their cable TV and their girls next door.” The song makes prominent use of the banjo, and Elizabeth gets to go full-on fiddler with a great solo in the middle. If it has a weakness, it’s the middling chorus where they sing, “I grew up and hit the city / But the skyscrapers never get me / I fly above ’em all the time / Straight through cloud 9 / Flowing fast like the Mississippi.”
“Orion’s Belt” may be the best of the uptempo tracks because it’s an excellent roots-rock song. Intentionally or not, it demonstrates the Avett Brothers’ facility with this subgenre and highlights how few times they’ve tried it since they started using electric guitars over a decade ago. It’s positive and upbeat, with separate hooks from the fiddle and the guitar. The chorus, “Looking for healing / Under the ceiling / But it’s me on Orion’s Belt”, may not be profound, but catchy. Even a nice extended guitar solo fits perfectly with the song’s tone. That feels effortless, while the bulk of the album, even when the songs are strong, feels labored over.
The Avett Brothers ultimately gets the job done. It demonstrates to fans that the band can still live up to expectations after a long break. It also throws in just enough musical curves to engage more critical listeners. However, the differences aren’t enough to make the record feel unique in their catalog. Meanwhile, the more traditional Avett-sounding songs aren’t going to jump to the top of fans’ lists of favorite tracks. It’s a solid but not spectacular, which can happen after a group have settled into a long-term career mode.