Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You by Big Thief

Sometimes I have a complicated relationship with an album or a band. (In case it wasn’t obvious, I think a lot, probably too much, about music.) Big Thief is a prime example of the kind of relationship I’m referring to. Simply put, they make me feel guilty. To be fair, they’ve never heard of the Bacon Review and have no idea who I am, so I can’t really say they make me feel guilty. It’s not their fault. And it’s not the fault of the radio stations who promote the band with repeated in-studio performances. Nor is the fault of my friends who continually bring up the band, hoping for some camaraderie around their excitement (hi Pete). I have no one to blame but myself.

I can appreciate them, and I have for many years. While their debut album Masterpiece didn’t make it on the Top 31 in 2016, their second album Capacity came in at #23 in 2017, and the third and fourth albums Two Hands and U.F.O.F collectively hit #4 in 2019. And here we are with their fifth critically acclaimed, massively promoted (for an indie rock band), Best New Music 9.0 out of 10 Pitchfork ranked album, and I have to force myself to put it on.

Every time I do, I enjoy it. But every time I finish it, I move on to something else, and a week or two go by before I remember it and put it on again. That’s not my habit for albums I love – I don’t have the drive to listen to the band on repeat for a week straight. It’s as if my brain has a blind spot for them. I do very much feel this is a problem unique to me, hence the guilty feeling. But – I know what it is I’m missing out on, and I’m here to tell you about it, to in no small part alleviate that guilt.

Big Thief are from Brooklyn, NY. They’re fronted by the pixie-ish, Joanna Newsom-esque principle song writer and guitarist Adrianne Lenker, and they feature Buck Meek on guitar and backing vocals, Max Oleartchik on bass, and James Krivchenia on drums. Nothing fancy about that lineup, aside from the fact that all five of them are exceedingly skilled at their craft. Lenker writes and sings lyrics that float by your ears on feathers, and the band plays behind her with a fervor that only a close-knit group of bandmates can muster.

Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You is essentially a double-album. At 20 songs, it clocks in at over 80 minutes, and there are a wide variety of musical styles crammed into those minutes. Hit play on the video for “Red Moon,” above. It sounds nice, a typical progression for the band, a bit country, a bit stompy, but very infectious, even when you get to the “That’s my Grandma!” in the middle with the off-key whistling. There’s not really a damn thing wrong with it. The rest of the album is just like that. Not in tone, but in likability.

Pick up this album and give it a whirl. Prove to yourself (and then to me) that this guilty burden is mine and mine alone. I guarantee you’ll like this album. Everybody does. Even me, when I remember to put it on.

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25. And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow by Weyes Blood
26. NOT TiGHT by DOMi & JD BECK
27. Preacher’s Daughter by Ethel Cain
28. Live at KEXP, vol. 10 by Various Artists
29. All You Need Is Time by Daisy the Great
30. Cool It Down by Yeah Yeah Yeahs
31. CAPRISONGS by FKA twigs

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Full Album
All albums in their entirety.

Radio Station
A single song selection pulled from each album.

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