Chris Thile - Deceiver

Creative and catchy tunes

I'm not a prior Chris Thile fan, so I think many people were initially surprised by this release given his strong bluegrass roots, but this album is pure gold. Its a beautiful album with great vocals and excellent production value. I know Chris has said he wouldn't do this "pop" type album again, but I surely hope he changes his mind. He has excellent sense for this genre of music, and could full into the pop/alternative segment with more like this.

For those looking for something fresh and articulate in emotive lyrics and vocals buy this album! June 11, 2008

Good ... but not Nickel Creek Good

I sure miss the sound of Nickel Creek - this is close - but the harmonys are lacking. One of those CDs you play a couple of times, then it disappears into the glovebox and you don't really miss it. You find it a year later and say "Oh Yeah - I forgot about that one" - but don't really bother to play it again. April 9, 2008

Not his best work - but not devoid of good material either.

I remember putting this CD in my CD player for the first time and hearing drums, a piano, and an electric guitar on the first track and wondering if there was another person with out there making music who had the same name as the author of "Not All Who Wander are Lost". It is definitely different from what you're used to.

A lot of this CD bores me, and Thile's attempt at rock comes across less inspired than other genres in which he excels. Maybe if I didn't have such high expectations going in, I might have liked it better, but Thile set a high bar in his previous albums.

That said, there are some gems on this album. Track 6, I'm Nowhere You're Near, is fantastic- the song continues to evolve and intrigue with every measure.

Track 1, Wrong Idea, is a great rock track that tells the story of how Chris met his wife. Track 3 is mostly jazzy, kind of funky, and has some really great moments as well.

Overall, give it a try, a lot of people really love this album, and you're bound to like at least a few of the tracks. January 2, 2008

incredible - breaks genre and form wide open

I played this album for a friend on a long drive recently. She was only familiar with Nickel Creek and hadn't heard any of Chris Thile's solo work, and her first reaction was complete shock - it was like nothing she expected, and she mentioned at the halfway mark it would take time to "get used to it."

Speaking as someone who's owned this album for several years and practically worn it out, getting used to this album is one thing that's probably never going to happen. Deceiver remakes itself every time I play it with a new note, a new lyric, a new chord change, a new reason to love it that I never noticed before. This is bristling, inventive music that demands your attention and gives you reasons to engage with it, so much that it's impossible to fully digest after one or even 20 listens. Thile mentioned in an interview that Deceiver was the experimental project he had "needed to get out of his system," and while the results may reflect that sort of uneven, unstoppered energy - traditional bluegrass instrumentals mixed around recklessly with full-out rock, jazz, and pop - the songs burst with an intense passion and ambition that might lack immediate clarity, but are always utterly convincing as the work of a musical genius born to do what he does. The dizzying one-two punch of The Wrong Idea/On Ice, the furious drive of Empire Falls, the quiet conviction of This Is All Real: Thile's range is astonishing, and this album showcases the extent of his talents in both lyrical and musical composition like no other. Forget about genre - if you love intelligent, challenging music, period, give this album a try. At the very least, it's an opportunity to listen to one of the best musicians in the world try something new. At best, these songs will run through you like an electric current, which is what it still feels like to me. November 19, 2007

Not a bluegrass album.

I love seeing people complain about Thile's album's as if they're all supposed to be bluegrass. This is one of the top 5 albums I own of any genre. You can easily see where Nickel Creek's newer material comes from through this album and Sean Watkins' 24 Miles album. I'd probably have to rate this higher than any of the Nickel Creek album's just for his departure from the norm. I strongly recommend this album. July 12, 2007

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