Shearwater's Rook

I read a review in Blender that referred to Shearwater as a "moodier offshoot of Okkervil River" and I could help wondering how Okkervil River could get any moodier. The album Black Sheep Boy is my new definition of over dramatic. The Stage Names seems tame and resigned in comparison: that is, until the end, when their singer sings the Beach Boys "Sloop John B" like he has a gun in his mouth. How can anybody top that?

Shearwater's new record, Rook, is more dark, symphonic, and even more dramatic than Okkervil River's records. The opening track, "On The Death Of The Waters", has one of the most surprising blasts of noise I've ever heard in a song - don't play this record too loud. The title track follows and actually approaches a pop-rock tune until the violins and trumpets overtake the guitar. Most songs are built around a harpsichord, a piano, or violins; guitars make appearances mostly in the background.

Several tracks are written as epics that only work in the album but not alone: this isn't a record to shuffle on your iPod. Songs like the waltzing "Home Life" and the building "Snow Leopard" are multi layered epics that can only work in this context. The albums lone conventional rock song, "Century Eyes", comes and goes like a two minute burst of adrenaline - you might find yourself wanting another verse to break the silence for a few more minutes. All this happens in an album that is only 38 minutes long, which is amazingly restrained for a brooding indie-folk record.

The instrumentation and dynamics are great, but like Okkervil River, it's singing and lyricism that make me want to keep hearing this album. Shearwater has a haunting Jeff Buckley effect to his voice that makes it obvious why he wanted his own band. His lyrics take time to sort out - allusions to birds give the album a theme, and how he uses that to describe loneliness and fear is up to you to figure out.

Rook is a masterpiece - an even better record than Black Sheep Boy (and that's saying something). While it might be too dramatic for mass consumption, this is a must-hear for anybody who loves Okkervil River, The National, or Sufjan Stevens. It's a standout album in a year already full of them.