Music review

In last October’s Sable EP, Justin Vernon returned briefly to the sorrowful man-in-a-cabin vibes of Bon Iver’s breakthrough album, For Emma, Forever Ago. Now, the Wisconsin musician has wrapped a soul album around that dark-hearted release, at least figuratively: the Sable, Fable cover shows a black square encircled by a salmon-coloured frame. The Sable songs serve as a jumping-off point for what is Bon Iver’s most easy-going record to date. It starts with the pedal steel-enhanced, sweet soul yearnings of Everything Is Peaceful Love, but it’s the more glitchy soul tracks, with just Vernon’s falsetto to the fore — such as Walk Home — that win the day. — Kitty Empire