Shop unique and handmade items directly from creative people around the world Popular items for iron on patchDown the River of Golden DreamsJagjaguwarGo ahead and call me "Dutch Door" for this one, 'cause I can swing both ways. I'm telling you, it's not an easy race to run, this either/or business. A safe and sturdy middle ground is hard to find theseyou try to ride a fence too long and you wind up with your arm in a sling-- or worse. say either straight-shoot 'er or put down your guns. And so I take Okkervil River, for example: They seem to be pretty into their thing, be it alt-country or indie-folk or barnyard-to-dive bar-pop or what-the-fuck-have-you, and they seem pretty sincere about it-- which is the crux of the issue; then again, you never can be too sure. Every few minutes or so during Down the River of Golden Dreams I have to sit back, scratch my chin, and wonder... 'Cause, damn, I sure Sure, I'd like to think that maybe this is just an honest little batch of songs-- after all, these

sentimental, acoustic tracks do feel like old friends. Perhaps these sketchy moments where the band drifts into well-trodden paths and postured frameworks that don't necessarily reflect the band's ingenuity are mere aberrations or stochastic eventualities. What makes me wonder is the occasional sidestep; buoyantly affected pop-mongering of Bens Folds and Kweller on "Blanket and Crib", or frontman Will Sheff's frequent throaty outbursts during which he dons a Conor Oberst-style charcoal hoodie with a Ludens-stuffedI mean, when he's reserved there are these undeniably Tweedy-inflected vocals ofAnd sure, maybe the stuff isn't so much a stealthy combination of its influences (though all done admirably), as it is an expansive, heartfelt, and genuine display of songsmithing that runs from pure balladry to starkly sketched, deeply personal and densely moody revelations. 'Cause no posturing indiephile I know opens a song ("The War Criminal Rises and Speaks") over meekly struck

piano chords, earnestly and without any trace of excess-pageantry, with "The heart wants to feel/ The heart wants to hold/ The heart takes past Subway, past Stop-N-Shop, past Biel's/ And calls it 'coming home.'" 'Cause it's just not cool. But it is effective, and consistent with the tone of the rest of the album. Most of the songs wade in this pool of lost love and desperation, thrashing or floating about with a seeming disregard for stylistic retention, but in a manner so sufficiently suffocating it sometimes feels calculatedly linear, even though the results come in a variety of shapes and sizes: there are moments big and small, frisky and repined, shifty and direct. Okkervil River perfectly deploys healthy doses of Hammond organ, Rhodes piano, Mellotrons, and Wurlitzer over the course of the album. Sometimes, as on "It Ends with a Fall", these instruments serve to counteract the jaunty musings of the track to retain its dredged moodiness.

On most of the album, though, acoustic guitars and slight percussion wilt beneath keys and sprinkled pedal steel flavorings. Island Lovers" and "Yellow" largely forgo involved arrangements, but creep and crawl through Sheff's heartbroken narratives with spacious good taste. In all, the album may feel a bit like sleepwalkingdirtbag hoodie through a Decemberists set (and may also be packaged as such), but when you surrender yourself to thecowgirl tuff hoodie sincerity and listless candor of it all, it's easy to side with originality and purebred good taste.lacoste live zip thru hoodie Songs this poignant and easy to digest will always have relevance, but then again, they had to have knowncostco champion hoodies

Is this is the year you finally read Infinite Jest? You have our full encouragement — it’ll be quite the adventure. Get yourself in the mood with these 10 pieces of David Foster Wallace and Infinite Jest-themed swag. Start with these simple but cool T-shirts. DFW himself probably would’ve gone in for the baseball jersey. Really get into the DFW head space with his signature white paisely bandanna.fracking hoodies For the ladies, an ellipses shoulder bag. umbreon hoodie for sale(Or, if you prefer, for the hopefully-not-hideous men, it’s a “hobo bag.”)hail satan hoodie Speaking of hideous men, what DFW swag collection would be complete without a poster of the only DFW work to be made into a movie — John Krasinski’s Brief Interviews With Hideous Men.

First, watch The Decemberists’ Eschaton-themed video for Calamity Song. Then, check out this awesome Eschaton iPhone case. (Eschaton is the game of world domination played on a tennis court by the kids at the Enfield Tennis Academy in Infinite Jest.) Here are a bunch of Infinite Jest-themed refrigerator magnets. My favorite is the Eschaton strategy board. Become an unofficial member of Enfield Tennis Academy with this sweet hoodie. Lay off the drugs, though. Get your bearings within the Organization of North American Nations with this super cool 24″x36″ map that includes more than 250 locations and footnotes. (Here’s another poster that connects Infinite Jest characters, but currently isn’t for sale.) I’m not going to lie to you, this DFW pillow gives me the howling fantods. And finally, keep your caffeine intake at appropriately DFW-high levels with this Poor Yorick Entertainment (Jim Incandenza’s movie production company) coffee mug. Sign up for our newsletter to have the best of Book Riot delivered straight to your inbox every week.