I first saw Shearwater open for The Mountain Goats in 2004. Darnielle was on tour for The Sunset Tree, and Shearwater was supporting the release of their ep Thieves. I had never heard Shearwater before, and their performance left a lasting impression. Earlier that evening, I had read about the rediscovery of a long-extinct bird, the Cozumel Thrasher, a bit of esoterica that my young undergraduate mind stored away and quickly populated with winged imaginings. To my surprise, lead singer Jonathan Meiburg spent the better part of the evening talking up this finding — apparently, he’s huge into birds. The combination (bird talk and socks being rocked) spurred not only an interest in the band, but in pursuing a bachelor’s in ornithology.
Since then I’ve been a big fan of Shearwater. I still prefer the original Misra release of Palo Santo over its reworked Matador cousin, which I think makes me a pretty big fan. I guess I’m not a big enough fan though, since I missed out on the rarities they had over at Kickstarter. I’ve rectified this by pre-ordering their upcoming release, The Golden Archipelago.
I’ve been listening to The Golden Archipelago for the past month (sorry fellos and fellas, I couldn’t wait until February 23rd); it’s definitely the most produced Shearwater album to date, and probably the most epic. Of course, this doesn’t say much of the music; comparisons have been made to Talk Talk and Pink Floyd, both “influences” seemingly lost on what Shearwater actually produces. Despite meticulous compositions, orchestral arrangements, carefully-planned and thematized albums, their music never sounds belabored or overwrought. I think Meiburg and co. epitomize the struggle/tension I feel in my own studies between earnest and self-deferential art. I’ve always felt that, depending on which you embrace, you’re bound to be ridiculed for the moments when your work slips towards the other side. It’s a fine line, and a line that Meiburg walks whenever he sings; he has a voice that always sounds like it’s about to break, fall silent, or simply disappear. For the majesty of each sweeping piece, it’s a voice that can be (to invoke that fine line again) truly breathtaking, or completely humbling. Strung together with Kim Burke and Thor Harris, it’s remarkable how they seem to be at once thunderous and quiet (with a heavy-hitter like Thor on skins, you damn well better be straddling that divide), expansive and minute, as if pitching the entire symphony from the pit into a leaky basement and still expecting stage cues.
I’ve read that Meiburg planned The Golden Archipelago as the last record in a trilogy beginning with the remastered version of Palo Santo and followed with Rook. In the spirit of that triptych (although breaking from the spirit of the “indivisible” album), here’s a song from each panel:
Shearwater — “Seventy Four, Seventy-Five” (from Palo Santo)
Shearwater — “Leviathan Bound” (from Rook)
Shearwater — “Corridors” (from The Golden Archipelago)
You can still pre-order the album at Matador Records; CD pre-orders come with a 50-page booklet of images, photos, and ephemera Meiburg has collected over the past few years, while the LP comes with a download link to the unabridged “Golden Dossier” in pdf and a few bonus tracks. For a limited time, the band took orders for the complete dossier in a nice, sealed envelope. You and I both missed out on that. However, Meiburg recently posted info on a lecture he’ll be giving on April 24th to the Texas Ornithological Society in Austin, and you’ll bet I’ll be there. The lecture is entitled “The Caracaras: Distribution and Ecology of the ‘False’ Falcons,” and I’m inclined to believe there will be good snacks.
Photo courtesy of Cassandra and Keith at itsundertherotunda.blogspot.com.
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