With the recent release of their new album “Double Infinity”, Big Thief finds a sweet spot within their sound that brings together the unbridled energy and introspection that the band has become so loved for.
I listened to the album as a whole for the first time shortly after it was released in my room that I’ve only lived in for three days. The walls are blank, which is not what I’m used to, and hearing Big Thief return to what they’re so good at in a new stage of their musical lives helped me feel a sense of familiarity and ease in a new stage of my own life.
The album
“Double Infinity” is the first release from the band after the departure of bassist Max Oleartchik. The band took the loss with grace and resilience by inviting a group of new musicians to offer their talents to the project. In the opening song, “Incomprehensible”, additional vocalists contribute to the chorus, creating a safety net of sound beneath Adrianne Lenker’s stark singing voice. The lyrics in the verses follow Lenker through bittersweet new beginnings as they lead to the chorus’ plea to be left undefined by the past and potential futures.
In the same song, themes of aging, love and the inadequacy of language are established. In the following song, “Words,” the latter theme is taken further as Lenker sings “Words are tired and tense/ Words don’t make sense.” This moment on the album was especially striking, to hear someone who I see as one of the most articulate modern artists surrender to the weakness of her own words in comparison to the weight of human emotion.
The title track “Double Infinity” immediately reminded me of Lucinda Williams, who Adrianne has cited as one of her songwriting inspirations. The two share a knack for crafting lyrics that elicit an atmosphere to support the emotional message of the song. Over descending melodic lines, lyrics like “Time moves like the waterfalls/ Unrelenting cascading” are mirrored through the musical and vocal choices in the song. Every line is a reminder to participate in the moment and not take the mundane for granted.
Ballads and rock ‘n roll ease
Another highlight on the album is the song “Grandmother” where the power of the previous songs culminates in a rock ballad that features improvised vocals from Laraaji. His voice grounds the song under sprawling guitars and lashes of percussion. With each listen, I could find something new in the composition to hold my attention, until another detail took it in a different direction. The chorus’ refrain “Gonna turn it all into rock and roll” takes on different meanings. From the musical implication, to an invitation to embrace the duality of nature; both the static and the active, the flowing and the firm.
The album ends on a high note with the hushed “How Could I have Known” that sounds like a celebration of solitude and the passing of time. It brings us home to what Big Thief does best, chest-to-the-sky, transcendent reminders of our part in the big picture.
“Double Infinity” hammers home the idea that power doesn’t come from permanence, and that pride should be taken in temporary things. As Big Thief keeps evolving, fans can trust that they will always deliver with integrity and artistic genius, and this album is a testament to that.