FORK IN THE ROAD
| Neil Young
FORK IN THE ROAD
Fork in the Road is the 29th studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released April 7, 2009, on Reprise Records. The album was released on vinyl on July 26, 2009. The album was inspired by Young's Lincoln Continental that had been retooled to run entirely on alternative energy, and Young's background with the Lincvolt project he has been working on alongside mechanic Jonathan Goodwin. The project has been to develop a viable electric energy power system for automobiles. Young's own 1959 Lincoln Continental will serve as their completed prototype. A documentary produced by Larry Johnson followed the electric car in its first long-distance trip to Washington, DC. - WIKIPEDIA
Critic Reviews
Show All-
CoS
May 12, 2009 - It’s a sloppy rant that never quite gets to the point.
-
RollingStone
April 1, 2009 - This is mostly raw, chop-shop rock & roll, so auto metaphors fit right in.
-
The Observer
April 4, 2009 - Only the pretty "Light a Candle" and the title track itself go anywhere. The rest is tossed away, the sound of a massive talent revving on the spot without ever getting out of first gear.
-
BBC
2009 - A stripped back, underproduced road movie of an album.
-
AV/ MUSIC
April 7, 2009 - It’s a testament to Neil Young’s talent—or maybe just his indelible personal style—that even his most far-fetched ideas are often reasonably entertaining.
-
The Los Angeles Times
April 6, 2009 - The outcome is more noteworthy for Young's stinging guitar work, passionate vocals and his powerhouse band's accompaniment than for finely crafted songs that add considerably to Young's estimable body of work.
-
paste
May 7, 2009 - The sloppily played garage rock riffs complement the slapdash nature of the lyrics, and--as you might expect--it’s that loose, under-rehearsed and under-written methodology that is both the album’s strength and its downfall.
-
No Ripcord
The music saves this album from certain disaster--an idea that, at its root is perplexing at best, is executed in an even more clumsy and confusing way.
-
Boston Globe
April 6, 2009 - Road is a similarly one-dimensional variation on the singer's Grumpy Uncle Neil mode. A semi-concept album revolving around eco-cars and the failing economy, it. . . You've already walked away, haven't you?
-
Hot Press
March 27, 2009 - Craggy eco-concept record not the car-crash it could have been.
-
The Guardian
April 2, 2009 - The resulting album is a ragbag of environmentalist/credit-crunch rants and rusty old chuggers.
-
popMATTERS
April 6, 2009 - The rough, grinding quality of the instrumentation fits with the intended immediacy of the project, but the songs themselves sound half-finished and half-considered.
-
NOW
April 8, 2009 - While the concept is inspired and resoundingly current, the jangly blues-bar rock seems an afterthought.
-
Don Ignacio
it's fun listening to. ]
-
Adrian Denning
This album just sucks bad and is one of the worst ever Neil Young albums.
-
The Quietus
April 6, 2009 - Fork in the Road isn't a classic album by any stretch of the imagination, but it's another admirable protest while we wait for the younger voices to start singing.
-
sputnik music
April 9, 2009 - Neil Young in 2009: loving the electric car, hating the economy...
-
ALL MUSIC
This blend of dreamy thoughts of yesteryear, spitting fury over the present, and planning for the future gives Fork in the Road a bit of a kick that propels it through a few songs that aren't much more than a garage groove, but the whole thing benefits from its messiness; the loose ends make it feel alive.
-
The Telegraph
March 30, 2009 - Fork in the Road, which was recorded quickly, just before Christmas, is loosely Young's response to the global economic crisis, with frequent cross-references to climate change and America's ailing car industry.
-
NPR
April 21, 2009 - Young has made a first-rate album for the new economic policy — how it affects him, you, and the citizens he sees on the road.
-
INDEPENDENT
March 27, 2009 - a single-issue album which, Neil being Neil, gets sidetracked occasionally into rants about whatever drifts across his radar.
-
UDK
April 30, 2009 - a concept album about the energy crisis and the need for fuel-efficient cars.
-
102.9 MGK
May 20, 2009 - ON FITR, we have a pissed off coot who is living in the moment and at this moment, he happens to be in love with his car.
-
glide magazine
April 6, 2009 - Just don’t hesitate to give Fork in the Road a dusty spot next to Landing on Water or Everybody’s Rockin’ on your shelf after your one-way ticket expires.
-
Uncut
April 3, 2009 - Rockin’ in the recession: a bracing blast of riffs, humour… and cars.
-
Read Junk
April 16, 2009 - All in all “Fork In The Road” is very enjoyable, and is an album that was made for road trips, and for playing in your rig/car….at close to maximum volume. Rock On.
-
Mark Prindle
The album is about Neil Young's electric car!
-
The Line of Best Fit
perfect indicator for Post- Bush era- dark times with big changes on the horizon, yet with a sense of underlying hope.
-
Vintage Rock
Fork In The Road needs to be absorbed after a few spins. You can’t judge it at face value.
-
30 Days Out
Fork In The Road would probably work best if you are a huge Neil Young fan, or if you listened to it on a road trip. It rocks, but Neil’s grouchy old guy shtick gets a bit old.
-
Boston Globe
April 6, 2009 - Grumpy Neil skids off the 'Road'.
Rate This Album and Leave Your Comments