In an interview with Guitar magazine, Brooklyn-based indie rock band Big Thief‘s lead guitarist Buck Meek talks about songwriting and gear, the band, life on the road, and his wonderful second solo album, Two Saviors.
In 2020, Meek, along with his bandmates – Adrianne Lenker (guitar, vocals), Max Oleartchik (bass), and James Krivchenia (drums) – wrote, developed, and recorded new tracks for an upcoming, so-far-untitled BT album (which will be No.5).
The new BT album, he reveals, is “pretty much done” and “certainly different”.
“Lockdown was a well-needed respite, I needed a break, and then Big Thief ended up making new music for nearly six months, which was really nice because we’ve been touring so hard we’ve had little chance to record in the last couple of years,” he told Guitar.
A new L.P. has been long anticipated by fans following Big Thief’s 2019 double-header drops – the wildly critically-acclaimed third album, U.F.O.F., and BT’s last release, Two Hands, which also dropped (later) that year.
BT’s 2016 debut, Masterpiece, and the following year’s, Capacity, transformed BT from a relatively unknown indie outfit to one of the top indie rock bands of the past five years.
Meanwhile, Meek’s newest, and second, solo effort has garnered solid reviews across the board from online music sites and countless blogs to social media and print media.
“If the song’s about two lovers driving down the highway and they crash and roll down a hill, my guitar part is going to be the sound crackling through the AM radio from over the Mexican border as they’re bleeding to death upside down on the side of the road.” – Buck Meek, Guitar March 2021
Fans, via Meeks’ Bandcamp page, are also praising the 11-track Two Saviors: “The way Buck crafted this album is beautiful. I love the practice and method the band put into recording these songs,” wrote Bandcamper mountainphases. “There’s tenderness here. Sincerity too. It’s so open and free. It makes me want to go outside and look at some trees and shit.”
Meek told Guitar staff: “Solo, I’m able to hold a more confessional space,” he explains. “That makes me a better player writing parts for Big Thief because it gives me narrative perspective. If the song’s about two lovers driving down the highway and they crash and roll down a hill, my guitar part is going to be the sound crackling through the AM radio from over the Mexican border as they’re bleeding to death upside down on the side of the road.”
If you liked Meek’s solo debut, you’re probably going to love Two Saviors. It’s delicious; fun; instrumentally, lyrically, and vocally rich; and original indie-folk with influences of Americana and country.
A bunch of tracks stand out for us on the album, including the melodic opener, “Pareidolia”; the title track; and songs like “Candle”, “Second Sight”, “Pocketknife”, and “Cannonball Pt. 2.”
In fact, “Cannonball Pt. 2” made our Top 10 Songs playlist for January among other track contenders on the album.
Start streaming the album now with the Bandcamp album embed below: