Customer Reviews
The master! - By: Vinyl Villain, 03 Jun 2008 
There really should be a national compulsory day-off for the whole nation when a Will Oldham record is released! Because they should be savoured, like a fine wine (which incidentally always goes well with an Uncle Will record)- hence the reason I buy them all on vinyl - a listening experience! He is the benchmark for all songwriters of our generation & he astounds with every record. And this one is a real grower, just like The Letting Go which crept up on you stealthily & threw you to the ground mercilessly & has never let go since! Long live the prince!
Good Earthly Music - By: degrant, 02 Jun 2008 
The opening chant of "One two three four" makes you think you have put on the Beatles' "Taxman" on by mistake but within seconds the unmistakeable stamp of Will Oldham, aka Bonnie Prince Billy, the King of alt country appears.
"Lie Down In the Light" is a more country-sounding recording than "The Letting Go" emphasised by the fact that instead of the distinctive, but very English folk sounding vocals of Dawn McCarthy, this time Oldham's female counterpart is Ashley Webber who has a great twang to her, best exemplified on her linesin "You Want the Picture"in which she asks plaintively "O you want that picture don't you daahlin'"
The sound is less spacious & epic than on "The Letting Go" but, equally, a much richer-sounding recording than a number of Prince Billy releases (with prominent percussion, fiddle to the fore & organ & pedal steel providing colour). One of the tracks features an almost central European-sounding clarinet while "Keep Eye On Other's Gain has an Eastern feel reminiscent of Beck or Iron & Wine's latest album.
Despite the interest of the instrumentation, the first thing which struck me was how some of Oldham's lyrics call to mind Philip Larkin'sin tone with the sudden shift from description to observational conclusion. Witness the matter of fact chorus of "You Want The Picture": "And everything comes down to this/That everything there ever was or will be/is all there is", the music echoing this with its shift between sprightly verses & apocalyptic chorus with crashing chords.
"Lie Down In the Light" is no classic but "merely" a very strong album overall, less ambitious but more consistent than "The Letting Go" & although sometimes relatively low key, thankfully shorn of fillers. Furthermore, it boasts a few songs which rank very highlyin Oldham's illustrious catalogue, most noticeably "You remind me" which features spell-binding vocal interplay between Oldham & Webber , "You Want the Picture" the beautiful "Missing One" & "The Puzzle" leaving one with,in the words of Oldham himself, "good earthly music singing into my head."
Another Classic - By: Jeffrey Carruth, 23 May 2008 It took a few listens to really get into this album, it's a mixture of country & folk with Will Oldham superb but twisted vocals. The stand out track for me is "You remind me", excellent stuff.
Do as the title says! - By: Bonnie Prince Jamie, 22 May 2008 I have listened to this, Billy's latest LP offering a few times now, & believe me it's a grower. A collection of truly warm & uplifting songs, &in the style of 2006's The Letting Go, it sees him stray further & further away from his dark, eerie early 90s Palace output.
"So everyone", or at least a low quality demo version of it, was leaked weeks before the album was released, & to be honest didn't sound like it even had potential. After listeneing to it now however,in its fully fledged, polished, studio state, the track isin fact one of the album's standout tracks. Others include 'easy does it', a fantastic opener, 'for every field there is a mole', 'you want that picture' & the superb closing track 'I'll be glad'.
Allin all, it is an album to be listened toin its entirety, & then listened to again & again. Definately a great soundtrack for summer 2008.
