Bonnie 'Prince' Billy

'The Letting Go'

Alt-country enigma is less smitten with weirdness this time.

Spin Rating7 of 10

Will Oldham's career path of slight left turns and deliberate strangeness seems to be leading -- through Palace, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, and every other damn name -- toward the ultimate act of rebellion: utter normalcy. Oldham hasn't arrived there yet, but the songs on The Letting Go that flirt with familiar forms -- from straight-up blues to achy, winsome country ballads -- feel completely devoid of his pretentious tendencies, proving that well-worn ingredients often yield novel and beautiful results.

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Bonnie 'Prince' Billy - "Cursed Sleep" QUICKTIME

By Josh Modell

1 Van Halen 'A Different Kind of Truth'
2 Lana Del Rey 'Born to Die'
3 Cloud Nothings 'Attack on Memory'
4 Himanshu 'Nehru Jackets'
5 Kathleen Edwards 'Voyageur'
6 Leonard Cohen 'Old Ideas'
7 Imperial Teen 'Feel the Sound'
8 The Mark Lanegan Band 'Blues Funeral'
9 Of Montreal 'Paralytic Stalks'
10 Skrillex 'Bangarang'

1 Cloud Nothings 'Attack on Memory'
2 Cloud Nothings 'Attack on Memory'
3 Kathleen Edwards 'Voyageur'
4 The Mark Lanegan Band 'Blues Funeral'
5 The Mark Lanegan Band 'Blues Funeral'
6 Leonard Cohen 'Old Ideas'
7 Escort 'Escort'
8 Escort 'Escort'
9 Escort 'Escort'
10 Himanshu 'Nehru Jackets'

Bonnie 'Prince' Billy

'The Letting Go'

The Mark Lanegan Band 'Blues Funeral'

Of Montreal 'Paralytic Stalks'

Van Halen 'A Different Kind of Truth'

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