Constellation Prize

You're cradling the pieces of everything I have, all of my love

Dropping another record the same year as Ghost Dragon was not on my 2013 bingo card, but boy was I not gonna complain.

This record explores themes of maturity, longevity and mortality, as well as love and loss. It's by far one of their most mature releases of all time, both in tone and sound. The instrumentation is rustic but lush at the same time, and the greatest example of that is the song "All of My Love". It's got great acoustic bones, but also has Carter's signature electric guitar leads to embellish the song more. The airy and spacey bridge allows the song to breathe as you contemplate your feelings, before one more solid chorus to send you off. Truly one of their best songs in my opinion.

"Two Aging Truckers" and "Tombstones Vs Ashes" are two songs on this album that tackle the feelings of mortality that come with age, and to me they summarize these existential feelings quite well. The latter song being the album's closer is also fitting.

This whole album to me is just incredible, there's only one really low point for me and that's "Ragtime Carnival", idk I get kind of weary of the vocals on this one. Outside of that though this record is awesome. I remember when I first got this album I kept it in my CD tray in my car for forever. I was playing this on repeat like no one's business. After 13 years this record still holds up. Great for summer drives. Please listen!