![]() “One of the things that bonds us together as a band is pure magic," says Adrianne. ![]() The album was produced by drummer James Krivchenia who initially pitched the recording concept for DNWMIBIY back in late 2019 with the goal of encapsulating the many different aspects of Adrianne’s songwriting and the band onto a single record. The most resonant of this material was edited down into the 20 tracks that make up DNWMIBIY, a fluid and adventurous listen. In Upstate New York, Topanga Canyon, The Rocky Mountains, and Tucson, Arizona, Big Thief spent 5 months in creation and came out with 45 completed songs. To truly dig into all that the music of Adrianne Lenker, Max Oleartchik, Buck Meek, and James Krivchenia desired in 2020, the band decided to write and record a rambling account of growth as individuals, musicians, and chosen family over 4 distinct recording sessions. Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You is a sprawling double-LP exploring the deepest elements and possibilities of Big Thief. Edinburgh, United Kingdom Usher Hallīig Thief's fifth album, Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You, is out now on 4AD. Lenker is an artist for the current times: androgynous and possibly neuro-diverse to boot, which means focus and flow are sometimes lacking. I don’t think this evening is atypical for them but you have to accept big thief for what they are: a prolific and talented studio outfit who bring a homespun charm to their live touring. An encore delivers 2 more tracks with a rousing version of ‘Spud Infinity’ at the end and it’s all over. Lenker attempts a do over of ‘Not’ but the moment has passed and it is abandoned in favour of an acoustic sing-a-long to ‘Change’ after which they walk off stage. They do warm up though and the tracks progress from acoustic folk to heavier rock, Then as they begin their best known track ‘Not’, another person faints in the audience requiring a delay to extricate them. They worked their way through various strong Big Thief tracks focusing on their latest album release ‘Dragon New Warm Mountain I believe in You.’ So far so good, but the idiosyncrasies of their performances do creep in - long delays between songs for tuning, discussions between band members and then some songs either repeated or abandoned due to some perceived imperfection or misjudgement of tempo. Just as they were about to come one someone fainted in the crowd and delayed the start a little, but finally they arrived. I like experimentation, but this was like wandering into someone’s bedroom where someone’s mates were noodling away at untuned instruments, making stuff up on the spot, much like the ambient drone of the support for their last British tour. Big Thief champion some pretty left- field talent but I felt that L’Rain were really poor - incomprehensible vocals and unconvincing sound-making. The evening did not go without hitches though, some of them customary and some of them new. A great band showcasing the songwriting talents of the incredible Adrianne Lenker and my second time of seeing them. ![]()
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