The Wooden Sky has begun on a new trail. The Canadian band has three albums of solid indie-roots rock under their belts, but with this fourth record they are shifting. The sweet sounds of roots and country are still there, influencing everything from the vocals to the chug of the melody, but there sound is deeper. “Our Hearts Were Young” shows the band growing and reaching for a larger sound.
With atmospheric, War on Drugs like guitars and a swirling atmosphere that feels more influenced by mood music like M83 than the roots of yore – The Wooden Sky is absolutely adding new touchstones to their repertoire, and we couldn’t be more excited to see where it goes. Check out the track above and be sure to grab their fourth album on Chelsea Records / Nevado Music.
A hell of a way to open an album by giving it all you’ve got in the first four minutes and 56 seconds — but for TheWooden Sky “Swimming in Strange Waters”, proves it can set a blistering standard, be true to its heart and stay the course — no matter what.
Bandmates Gardiner, Simon Walker (multi-instrumentalist), Andrew Wyatt (multi-instrumentalist), EdwinHuizinga (violinist) and Andrew Kekewich (drummer) recorded their demos for the album in a farmhouse in rural Quebec three Januarys ago, then took a year-long break to tour. Coming back to the songs in March 2016, they decided not to rework things, instead recording the album takes in Gardiner’s home studio, live off the floor — just as they had the demos. What wasn’t recorded in Gardiner’s studio was done in Montreal’s Hotel2Tango and a Toronto church, all mixed by John Angello (Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr., Kurt Vile).
Swimming in Strange Waters will be released April 7th.
The finished product is a pulsing set of songs, alive with an energy that slows on ballads like “Born to Die” and fills out on the twangy “Matter of Time.” The hope in Gardiner’s voice as he sings “You’re not alone” on the track of the same name softens the lyrical blow of lines like, “Life is long and love is strange/ with any luck our luck could change.” But the strings on the song are enough of a buoy, as you fall in love all over again — with your person, and this band.
Swimming in Strange Waters is powerful and delicate — an album to both listen to and draw from for years to come.
The new Wooden Sky limited edition vinyl for “Swimming In Strange Waters”, which you can get by pre-ordering the album, is ready! This is a limited edition pressing limited to only 250 copies. Don’t miss out!
To try and capture music burning with all the fury, fire and grit that make you fall in love with a live band in the first place. It is alchemy. And it’s achieved in spades by the band known as The Wooden Sky.
In the title track from its fifth full-length record, Swimming In Strange Waters, the Toronto five-piece transports you to frontman Gavin Gardiner’s home studio. Gardiner’s guttural and rousing vocals, the psychedelic swirl of screaming guitars and whirling organ and a rhythm section that feels at once deeply rooted and dangerously unpredictable are all mixed by the deft hand of John Agnello. You can feel it swelling into an almost uncomfortable wave of power — and that’s before you consider the intense and important story behind the song.
“Swimming In Strange Waters,” the band says, “Stems from a history of sexual abuse in the family and the confused emotions that ensue.” Listen, and listen again. Tucked in alongside the wailing guitars and warbling synths, you will find a brave poet is using his voice to make the unknown knowable — or, in his own words, an artist who “feel[s] the weight of responsibility to act and make things better for the people to come.”
That sense of responsibility has always been present for The Wooden Sky, which has previously written about the violence endured by indigenous women and whose upcoming record will include both a rallying cry against the Keystone XL pipeline and a song inspired by refugee families. This is a band that handles delicate subjects with psychedelic swagger and a depth of lyrical intelligence that is never too on-the-nose, but always powerful.
Very much enjoying this new direction The Wooden Sky seems to be heading. The Wooden Sky’s new album is coming April 7th 2017 via Nevado Music,Very excited to hear more.
The Fat Angel Sings 