Big Thief frontwoman Adrianne Lenker offered a beautiful solo version of a Lucinda Williams song during the band's concert on Wednesday at Los Angeles' Hollywood Forever Cemetery.
Songs and
Instrumentals came out simultaneously in October, and guitarist Buck Meek now follows suit with a second LP under his own name.
Recorded in New Orleans during a heatwave,
Two Saviors has a wonderfully loose feel. Meekâs gently enunciated vocals, delivered with all the urgency of Kurt Vile awaking from a nap, are backed by a band that knows how to keep it simple, Mat Davidsonâs pedal steel and organ from Meekâs brother Dylan giving proceedings a timeless country feel.
This lack of immediacy is a double-edged sword, however: too often the songs are so laid-back that they slide out of focus. Even the relatively raucous Ham on White fails to snag the attention. Meekâs gossamer-light vocal style is part of the problem, making it hard to invest too much in his tales of vaguely defined loss. So when, on Pocketknife, he sings, âSaw a murderâ, the words leap out and your ears prick up, only for him to add, with his next breath, âof crows move