Mumford & Sons
Sigh No More

THE REVIEW

Take the Fleet Foxes and move them to England. Mix them together with some good country rock and you have Mumford & Sons.

These guys, fresh off the stunning success of their debut album, "Sigh No More," which has sold several million copies worldwide, are no fools. By mixing various musical genres and always basing their songs on very catchy melodies (sometimes even saccharine and pompous) and irresistible rhythms that make you want to dance, the group, led by the versatile Marcus Mumford, encapsulates the secret of their success in variety (skillfully measured and disguised, to avoid annoying more sensitive tastes). After an epic title track opening reminiscent of the Fleet Foxes, we move from calm tracks like "The Cave" (which could easily be taken from the first album of the Dodos) to more romantic ones like "Winter Winds", up to the famous single "Little Lion Man", which brought them to world recognition. The reference to the Piano-rock of "Dustbowl Dance", reminiscent of Webber, is also interesting. 

"Sigh No More" is therefore a well-structured album, enjoyable and not too long. It's not exactly hailed as a masterpiece, given the numerous fillers scattered throughout the album and the excess reached at some points (there are indeed several pompous, epic, and completely out-of-place endings), but this debut represents a good promise for the future.

Rating: 4-