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 and
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,
Meiburg 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
Duszynski's artful production and
Meiburg'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,
Shearwater have crafted their most resolute, or shall we say Shearwatery, effort to date. ~ James Christopher Monger