The Great Awakening in Bloomington, MN

2016's propulsive and politically charged
Jet Plane and Oxbow
was a bit of an outlier in the
Shearwater
discography. Pivoting from the atmosphere-driven, ambient eco-pop of previous releases, the band's muscular take on '80s art rock elicited comparisons to
Talk Talk
,
Japan
, and
Peter Gabriel
while preserving its roots in anthemic 2000s indie rock. In the six years since its release, bandleader
Jonathan Meiburg
has kept busy furthering his biological studies in South America and writing a book about falcons, co-leading the like-minded
Loma
with
Cross Record
's
Emily Cross
and
Dan Duszynski
, and releasing a live adaptation of
David Bowie
's "Berlin trilogy."
The Great Awakening
hews closer to the group's earlier, more minimalist, outings than the sturm and drang of its predecessor. Patient, meditative, ornate, and elemental, the 11-song set grew out of instrumental recordings that
Meiburg
Duszynski
created during the early days of the COVID-19 lockdown. The fractured and emotive "Highgate" sets an elegiac tone ("Here comes your heart attack/Starless and bible black"), but through darkness comes light. The slow-burning "No Reason" parses the pain of rebirth, while the sturdy and cinematic "Xenarthran" and "Empty Orchestra" emit cool beams of philosophy-major conviction. From there,
and company continue to peer inward, seeking hope and enlightenment from the myriad ways the natural world responds to chaos. At first glance, some of these vistas feel barren. However, repeated spins reveal seemingly ambient set pieces that contain multitudes, with
's artful production and
's field recordings providing plenty of engaging moments. In finding and connecting the footholds between the austerity of
The Dissolving Room
and the dramatic sweep of
Rook
have crafted their most resolute, or shall we say Shearwatery, effort to date. ~ James Christopher Monger