Bon Iver
Bon Iver

It is autumn. It is boredom, pleasantly intimate.

I'm listening to Daft Punk, but it's not what I want to hear. There's something else among my CDs, there is him...

Although released in the distant month of June 2011, "Bon Iver" is an album suited to the cold, even that of the soul. Perhaps because of him, Justin Vernon, I retain the memory of the betrayed and wounded man who took refuge in the desolation of the mountain and transformed pain into beauty "For Emma, Forever Ago."

It might also be because of that name: Good Winter.

Justin is a reborn man, you can tell from his less shabby look. You can hear it.

He has left the mountain to embark on a new journey that will start from "Perth." "Move the dust through the light to find your name." Oh foolishly lucky woman... how could you!?

From sunny Australia to Minnesota is a short step. Justin is strong, he says "I will never break" and he does it with the immense sweetness and refinement of his falsetto, accompanied by the simple sound of a banjo.

And it is all a crescendo of emotions, of stories, of places that speak of him, like "Towers," named after the dormitory of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, where Justin studied. Or the same Claire addressed in "Wash," his city, confided in like a friend on the notes of a piano.

Then "Holocene," whose title, besides being a clear reference to the current geological era, seems to be the name of a venue in Portland where he spent a bad evening.

Regarding this splendid piece (which is also the second single from the album), it is necessary to watch the video at least once, shot in the enchanting Icelandic landscapes, which fully expresses man's condition as so small compared to the grandeur of nature and yet, being part of that nature, unable to grasp its wonder.

There is then a stop in "Calgary," Canada. There is no need to find a reason for everything, but could it be a nod to the relationship with Canadian musician Kathleen Edwards, experienced right at that time? What we know is that "Calgary" was the first single, accompanied by a beautiful video with ambiguous meaning and equally enigmatic lyrics.

Certainly, the guy from Emma has changed.

He is no longer alone. There is a horde of musicians and instruments embellishing his voice, whose presence can be appreciated, or not. I believe that in this album Mr. Vernon has clearly expressed his new state of mind, without abandoning his unmistakable folk-melancholic base and wanting and knowing how to once again transform into music what has been his personal and artistic journey, this time surely more enlightened and direct.

Critics and the public have been satisfied, so much so that he won 2 awards at the 2012 Grammys: "Best Alternative Music Album" and "Best New Artist."

Great and unexpected popularity for Justin, who deserves it all. I wonder, hopeful, where it will lead him.