Track Listing

1. Longer You Wait, The
2. Barely Losing
3. Montgomery Park
4. (Walter's On The Lam)
5. Through
6. (Postcard From California)
7. Two Broken Hearts
8. Hallway
9. (Postcard Written With A Broken Hand)
10. Post To Wire
11. Polaroid
12. Always On The Ride
13. (Postcard Postmarked Phoenix, AZ)
14. Allison Johnson
15. Willamette
16. Valediction

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #186735 in Music
• Released on: 2005-04-26
• Number of discs: 1

Album Description
"Post To Wire" was acknowledged as the #4 Album Of The Year by UK magazine Uncut, beating out The Libertines, U2, Interpol, and The Streets, and was labeled "a dark, mesmerizing masterpiece". Willy Vlautin's writing has been compared to that of legendary writer Raymond Carver, and The Replacements are one of the band's most important influences. Look for them on tour this spring, kicking off at South By Southwest.

Mojo
"[W]ith tunes aplenty, their art is very much in the right place."

Customer Reviews

Very Good
Clever and amusing concept having the "Dear Pete" letters peppering this wonderful set of tracks. Post To Wire stands out as the most likable cut, but many others as well. World weary, forlorn, gritty, and occasionally gloomy, but heartfelt songs.

Possibly Best Americana Album of 04
I know it's early and great things may still be released by many reputable bands, yet this album deserves distinct and strong recognition, as expressed on the title of this review.
Willy Vlautin and the rest of Richmond Fontaine have managed to put together an absolute beauty of a album, gorgeous country ballads and rocking chronicles of forgotten people through the land.
Imagine if Raymond Carver, still young, had decided to form a band and sing about what he was beginning to see, rather than writing exquisite short-stories.
The comparison is particularly poignant in the interludes between songs -referred as "postcards" on tracks 4,6,9&13- but it's not limited to these short tellings. Exquisite examples of Richmond Fontayne's weary wisdon and weathered compassion are "Barely Losing," "Two Broken Hearts," "Hallway," "Polaroid," or "Valediction,"
Vlautin may not be the only person out there who's seen what life can do to some people, people who did not deserve the lack of luck they were dealt, yet Vlautin has the rare gift of crafting words and melodies for what he sees that makes the misery and the loss, sheer poetry.

The real deal...
It's not that Richmond Fontaine does anything unique, but that they do it so well. Willy Vlautin's lyrics capture the sadness and beauty in the lives of normal people without sounding trite, while the music accompanies the words with familiar beats and tunes. The band's biggest departure from traditional alt-country is the constant presence of a pedal-steel guitar. This usually works - giving the music the gravity to accompany Vlautin's stories.

Richmond Fontaine is at their best on the album's first two tracks. "The Longer You Wait" paints a remarkably full picture of an estranged couple in only a few lines, while "Barely Losing" accomplishes the same but in showing simple happiness. As for the rest of the album, "Post to Wire" and "Through" would be radio singles in a better world - catchy tunes with accessible and relatively light lyrics. "Polaroid" and "Two Broken Hearts" are sad but strong songs.

Unlike most reviewers here, I don't give 5 stars out very often. "Post to Wire" misses out on a fifth star because of a few missteps where the band strays too far from their strengths by trying to "rock out" or be too moody and mellow. Maybe this works better live (if the band toured more I could tell you), but the album doesn't flow in a way that keeps you from skipping around. Still, two-thirds of the songs here are gems, and it's the best of the many albums I've bought in 2004 so far.