Slow swaying instrumentation lend to deliberate and pronounced vocals from Alex Ebert on his first solo album Alexander. You may recognize his voice from Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, as the hippie-looking lead singer. On Alexander, Ebert is all over the place; one moment he channels the deep drawl of Johnny Cash, the next a higher pitched Bob Dylan. Some tracks have a beachy feel while others have the semblance of a folk ballad, and then there are heavily psychedelic moments.
Despite the album having a schizophrenic-type variety, there are elements which are present throughout Alexander: strumming acoustic guitars, vocal overlays, and simple drums supplemented by snaps and claps. I think Ebert shines on tracks where he keeps the instrumentation simple and lets his lyrics ring with just the right amount of reverb. Truth is an instant favorite off the album, because all other stylistic pinnings are subdued for the sake of storytelling and the flowing vocals.
Enjoy these tracks and check out the whole album.
