With new album Double Infinity on the way, Big Thief appear to be inspired by the original Xbox main menu. Aesthetically, that is. There is not a console on the planet which can evoke the same emotional gut-punch as the Adrianne Lenker-led band. Incomprehensible, the lead single, is rather comprehensible for those who have reached out to experience life. There is no greater thrill than being on the road with a loved one, nothing comes close. No matter the destination, take note of the surroundings, the little details which pass you by on those trips which seem mundane. Riding through the snow-covered Icelandic routes is far more inspiring than the trip to the Big Tesco and back, but nonetheless, we must find the beauty of the everyday. Lenker has done so here, the mismatched socks and undying love in the face of disaster are what features.
Incomprehensible, then, is not a negative. Lenker and the band do not provide a fear of misreading a situation or not understanding the faster beat of the heart. They are keen to go along with the emotive reaction, the empathy and unfailing desire which beats just as hard in times of crisis. We live in a world falling to pieces, and yet there is still room, more in the individual than for the wider purposes of society, for love. Incomprehensible picks apart the hyper specifics of roaming the world with a loved one, of loving yourself, during a time when the world couldn’t care less. Doing this means listening to the subtle indie rock focus Big Thief regains. It is not as though their folk pieces were anything short of amazing, just Lenker and the band are ready to morph back into a soft take on neo-psychedelic rock. Softly spoken, intimate occasions, which we as listeners can greedily latch onto, and project ourselves into the memories of another.
Without question, one of the finest Big Thief songs around. A high bar was set with Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You, but Incomprehensible brings the softer flourish heard on their folk piece and pairs it with the nostalgic reflections, unexpected of the band at this stage. “Remember when” is the lowest form of conversation, but it is the easiest way to reconnect with the past. Be it through love or longing, there is always a reason to return to those memories which shoot around our minds like loose table tennis balls. Catch one of them, relive the experience, and reflect on what it means now. Incomprehensible does, with its gliding instrumental structure, its steady percussion and a beautiful arrangement in the studio which does well to underscore the soft-spoken core.
Tremendous in every way, Incomprehensible makes the unknown feel safe. It gives us that liberation of the past, that access to lovely memories and all their soppy excess. What we lived is not what we experienced at the time, but it is through a mixture of hindsight and growth that we learn as people. Heal and grow with Big Thief, then, there are few better around to do so with. Incomprehensible blurs the folk fundamentals which were heard on their preceding, masterclass album, but also highlights a maturity in emotional longevity. We are what we make of the past, either by learning from it or listening to its desires. “Remember when” proves valuable in a song from Big Thief that gives us license to linger on those dreamy days. We do not wish to return to that moment, but to feel the same as we did then. Incomprehensible is a remarkable start to what could be an all-time great from the Lenker-led group.
