Bold to say one of the best debut albums I’ve ever heard? Easily in the top ten. Man, what
an album!
Strange Trails has been one of my favourite albums I’ve listened to this year, and Lord Huron in general is
constantly in my rotation. With their new album Cosmic Selector coming out recently, I wanted to go back and
check out their debut before diving into the new album, as this one has been on my list of albums to check
out for quite a while now. Am I ever glad I did! This is an absolutely fantastic debut, cementing exactly
what Lord Huron is while still providing lots of room to grow.
I know The Night We Met is their most popular song, but I think Ends of the Earth is THE quintessential
Lord
Huron song. It’s got it all: lead singer Ben Schneider’s inspiring and hopeful voice, fantastically
complimentary guitar work and suitable tones and effects, and whimsical lyricism invoking themes of
adventure, with all the baggage of loss, fear, anxiety, and excitement that comes with it. Their music has a
sort of indescribable quality of fantasy to them, bringing to mind lush landscapes and perilous sights. That
might not make a lot of sense, but the cover art for this album does a much better job at describing what
I’m talking about. It’s incredibly beautiful, showcasing a lone traveller venturing out into the unknown.
What will they discover on their journey? Ends of the Earth does a perfect job of setting up this journey,
and the complicated feelings the protagonist has as they set off. It might be basic, but it’s my favourite
song on the album, and one of Lord Huron’s absolute best. However, by no means does this set the album on a
downward trajectory. There are many other fantastic tracks on this quest, and Ends of the Earth is just the
first one!
One thing you’ll notice immediately with this album is the flow. This isn’t just a
collection of songs, it’s
a full experience, and the track listing is essential to this flow. That being said, these songs still stand
excellently on their own, outside of the narrative of the album. Time to Run comes perfectly out of Ends of
the Earth, an appropriate first chapter after the prelude. I definitely need more time with this album to
fully ‘analyze’ the narrative aspects and get a full grasp of every song, but I already love many of these
tracks!
The Ghost on the Shore and I Will Be Back One Day are newer favourites for me, especially the former. A
more
contemplative and quieter song, focusing on the loneliness of the protagonist’s journey. I also have a soft
spot for She Lit a Fire, such a cute track that I listen to a lot.
As I just said, I need more time to sit with most of the rest of the album. Maybe it’s too soon to call it a
favourite, but i definitely loved it. I still think I prefer Strange Trails, but that’s no knock on this
record. That just shows that Lord Huron got even better after this, which is frankly incredibly impressive!
I will definitely be returning to this one often.
Lord Huron is probably one of the artists I got into the most in 2025. I became obsessed
with songs like Love Like Ghosts, She Lit a Fire, and Ends of the Earth, as they became some of my
most-played songs for the whole year. My obsession began early in the year, with this album in particular
being one of the first I listened to in 2025. It stayed at the top of my favourites for the whole year! I've
been getting into Lord Huron even more lately, exploring some of their newer albums like Long Lost and Vide
Noir. While I love those albums, I still need a bit longer to sit with them and give them a full review,
like they deserve. So, I decided to pop my Strange Trails CD in and give this one a full review instead!
Now, a disclaimer before I go further in: I am not a Lord Huron lore-master. Honestly, getting into this
band feels a bit daunting because of the backstory and connective tissue across all of these songs and
albums. So, I'm not going to go into all that, and just take these songs as they are. However, I don't think
that not knwoing every piece of lore has diminished my enjoyment, as these songs are still incredible
without any backstory!
I think I mentioned this in my original review, but funnily enough, I didn't really care for Love Like
Ghosts too much initially. I honestly thought it was lazy, taking too much from Meet Me in the Woods and The
Night We Met. I didn't understand that THAT WAS THE POINT! As the album opener, Love Like Ghosts sets the
stage for everything you're about to hear throughout the journey of Strange Trails. These three songs (Love
Like Ghosts, Meet Me in the Woods, and The Night We Met) all serve as important stops in this journey; the
beginning, the middle, and the end. The common melodies and chorus structures are purposeful, creating a
sense of shared DNA between the songs. It's a stroke of genius that adds so much to the concept of the
album. Now that I've listened to Strange Trails many times, I can fully appreciate this DNA more than ever
before.
Love Like Ghosts' lyrics utilize a fairly simple metaphor, comparing true love to ghosts.
"Yes, I know that love is like ghosts
Oh, few have seen it, but everybody talks
Spirits follow everywhere I go
Oh, they sing all day, and they haunt me in the night"
It's not a mind-blowing comparison, but Ben Schneider uses this idea for all it's worth. The story
follows
the sorrow and pain of an unrequited love, one which haunts the protagonist through the day and the night.
He is cursed to love her continuously, despite her seeing no ghost in him at all. The lyrics paint a vivid
picture of the anguish this causes, and the surrounding music builds to soaring heights as Schneider's
vocals get more and more intense. My only issue with this song is that it sets such an emotional high so
early in the album, and that's not even really an issue! At the moment, it's my favourite Lord Huron song,
encapsulating so many of the band's strengths: Ben Schneider's singular and enrapturing voice, the wistful
and imaginative imagery his lyrics create, and the sweeping music that accompanies it all. If you're going
to listen to one song from this album, make it this one. However, if you're gonna listen to three songs from
this album, finish off the rest of this trilogy.
Meet Me in the Woods and especially The Night We Met may be overplayed, but that's for
good reason! Meet Me
in the Woods is one of the album's most fast-paced tunes, thundering and thumping along with an intensity
only found in the middle of a dangerous journey, perfect for it's place right in the middle of Strange
Trails. The lyrics are vague enough to make you meditate on the mysterious "forces that our eyes can't see,"
and the narrator's hesitation makes you ponder what he found deep in the pines.
On the other hand, The Night We Met is straight to the point and general, which is probably why it's so
insanely popular. However, these are not points against the song! These traits make it one of the best songs
about heartbreak ever written; I think it can get a tear out of anyone. It's almost shocking it hadn't been
written before, these are just such perfect lyrics:
"I had all and then most of you, some and now none of you
Take me back to the night we met"
While being a crowd-pleaser, The Night We Met still pulls in the themes of Love Like Ghosts ("haunted by
the
ghost of you"), Meet Me in the Woods ("the night was full of terror"), and Strange Trails as a whole,
providing a poignant and satisfying conclusion to the album. Y'know, I always thought of Ends of the Earth
as Lord Huron's most defining song, but this one runs a hard bargain for that title. I guess that just goes
to show how strong this band truly is!
I've already yapped so much, and that was only three songs! My re-listens over the past year have made
me
appreciate many more of tracks along the album, so let's go over some of those.
La Belle Fleur Sauvage and Fool For Love might be the 'cutest' songs on Strange Trails. La
Belle Fleur Sauvage (say that ten times fast..) is a song about a beautiful girl the protagonist needs to be
with, which you'll find is a common theme throughout all of Lord Huron's music. "La belle fleur sauvage"
literally translates to "the beautiful wild flower," and with lyrics like "No Earthly sight can match the
beauty she displays," I'd say this is one of the more wholesome love songs on Strange Trails. Still, its
tinged with a drop of despair and intimidation. The narrator acknowledges that "many men have died trekking
up that way," but despite this, he proclaims:
"I'd give it all to love that girl
I'll be the one to pluck that fleur"
This commitment to be with the one you're captivated by is a common thread carried over into the next
track,
Fool For Love, although this theme is played with a bit differently.
Fool For Love tells the tale of a love triangle between the writer, Lily, and Big Jim. Our protagonist
is
leaving his past behind, but before he can do so, he needs to be with Lily. (perhaps she is La Belle Fleur
Sauvage?...) However, there is already a man in her life: Big Jim. The protagonist is cocky and infatuated
enough with Lily to fight Big Jim for her affection, never-mind the odds!.. Despite his pride, the song ends
with him being thoroughly defeated, left to die in the drifting snow. I'm not sure if that was a very good
description, as the song itself tells the story much better than I ever could. In this respect, Fool For
Love is one of the best displays of Ben Schneider's storytelling. He truly places you in the shoes of his
characters, taking you on the roller-coaster ride of their emotions. You feel every moment their hearts jump
for joy or shatter into pieces. Fool For Love is one of the more fun and silly songs on Strange Trails, but
it still illustrates this strength beautifully.
This album is really just too full of fantastic songs. Until The Night Turns, Hurricane, Luisa, and so
many
more! Perhaps in another review I'll go more in-depth on some of these tracks, but the last song I wanted to
highlight here was Frozen Pines, my newest favourite on this album.
Appearing on the back-half of the album, Frozen Pines is a chilling tale of loneliness
through the journey to find something that's illusive and long-lost. Much of Strange Trails is left up to
the interpretation of the listener, and Frozen Pines is no exception. Who or what lies beyond the other side
of the frozen pines is never explicitly stated, and in my opinion, that's for the better. It leaves this up
to the listener, and this air of mystery makes the song more personal for me.
I'm naturally attracted to songs that speak of going forth, moving on, or forging a new path. There's been
many times in my life where I've felt the need to do this, as difficult or treacherous as the journey ahead
may be. To me, "what lies beyond the frozen pines" are the constants through this ever-changing environment.
These are the people, places, or things you can rely on, no matter who or what else fails you. These things
may not always be physically with you through this journey, but they always accompany you in spirit. For me,
this song shares a lot of parallel themes to Ends of the Earth, one of my other favourite Lord Huron songs.
Both have impacted me in this same way, putting to words that desperate need I have for escape, change, and
growth.
For these reasons, I find these lyrics to be some of the most personally impactful in Lord Huron's entire
discography:
"I am ready to follow you
Even though I don't know where
I will wait in the night until
You decide to take me there
'Cause I know I don't wanna stay here forever
It's time to be movin' on
Oh, I don't want to be the only one living
When all of my friends are gone"
These vivid lines make me think of the people or things that I would faithfully follow, despite not knowing
where our end destination may be. I want desperately to run away with them, to escape the world that causes
us so much turmoil. And at the end of it all, all I know is that I don't want to be alone on this journey.
"I'm gonna find a way through
There's another life beyond the line"
I didn't expect to ramble so much about this one, but clearly it has deeply impacted me. I wouldn't be
surprised if it became my favourite Lord Huron song over Love Like Ghosts or Ends of the Earth, it truly is
that fantastic!
I could go on, but I'm about to hit the word limit here. Clearly, I love this album, but I still feel like
there is so much ground I didn't cover! On further re-listens I want to give more attention to songs such as
Cursed and The Yawning Grave, letting each lyric in every song hit me in new and unexpected ways. I can't
wait for what I discover as I go more in-depth into Lord Huron's catalogue, and while I love the other
albums, I feel that Strange Trails will always hold a special place in my heart as the band's magnum opus.
