The first time I really listened to the band Mumford & Sons, I went to one of their concerts and afterwards I could not stop listening. They unfortunately have not been one of my top played artists recently, but will always be one of my favorites.
I saw the band on while they were touring for their 2015 release, Wilder Mind. Since then, I have gone to revisit old favorites, and come to love yet another band. Having multiple of their albums on vinyl, I will always love Mumford & Sons.
My Review
Wilder Mind is the third studio album released by Mumford and Sons, and charted number one in seven countries. Mumford & Sons is a British rock band consisting of Marcus Mumford, Ben Lovett, Winston Marshall, and Ted Dwane.
There are many reasons on why I particularly love this album. It seems to be a separation from the usual banjo, folk sound that the band produces. It comes off as a very raw and stripped-down sound, that left many fans wondering where this will take the band, according to Spill Magazine.
The album kicks off with “Tompkins Square Park.” Being one of the five singles released, the track is a highlight of the album. The star of the song is Marcus Mumford’s pain-filled but beautiful voice, which tells the story of one last shot as love. This break-up song is a great way to start the album, and begin to show off their ever-changing sound. Another song that directly show the developing style is a personal favorite, “Broad-Shouldered Beasts.”
“Broad-Shouldered Beasts” was the first song I looked up and listened to straight after my concert years ago. The empathy expressed in the song is almost comforting to listen to, and with every listen comes a new lyric I’m stuck on. When I first heard this song years ago at that concert, I had no idea why I loved this song, and sometimes I still can not express it. It has been explained by multiple sources that this song touches the couple that breaks up in an earlier song in the album “Wilder Mind”. It revisits a time before the breakup, when the singer hopes to save their relationship from the stress and upcoming break.
The fourth song on the album and yet another breakup song is the title track “Wilder Mind.” Although the song has a fairly upbeat and lighthearted sound, the lyrics themselves are quite sad. A breakup song covered by its fast and happy-sounding intro. Mumford sings how he has been “blessed with a wilder mind” but she has tried to “tame” from the beginning. Feeling trapped from this controlling relationship, Mumford sings on how he “thought we believed in an endless love,” Ultimately splitting at the end of the track.
Break-ups and troubled relationships are no stranger to the Wilder Mind album. If I really want to be sad, I’ll listen to the track just following “Broad Shouldered Beasts”, entitled “Cold Arms.” The short 2:49 minute song is about an empty words and an empty love. The title just goes to prove the empty words. This slow melody and strummed guitar fill the song with the mournful tone, echoing Mumford’s voice. The first time Mumford explains his wrong-doing is in the chorus. He says that he knows “what’s on [her] mind” and that he put it there. Mumford then explains that if he took those words back, “[She’d] be nowhere again.” This means that he can take those words back, likely proving that he didn’t really mean his words, and he is afraid to take them back because then she would be left with nothing. Whatever he put in her head is not necessarily explained, but one can only assume he told her he loved her.
Wilder Mind has quite a few heavy and heart-broken songs. I often find myself listening to this album on repeat late at night. It has been my “homework music” for quite some time now. Even with the heavy meaning and lyrics, I often feel light and calm listening to this album. Although many die-hard Mumford and Sons fans dislike the direction the band went this the newest album, it contains some of my favorite songs by the group.
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