Studio spontaneity and creative relief can be heard in the opening moments of Los Angeles. It’s as much a love letter to the city as it is to Bridlington. Big Thief recorded their upcoming album, Double Infinity, in New York. But they must have fond memories, or at least long for the warmth of California, as they take their frozen bikes to and from a studio they spent fourteen hours a day in. Warm instrumentals and the communal sense act as a relief not just for Big Thief, who are tasked with following up Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You, but for those collaborators brought on board. The creative flow is in working order for Adrianne Lenker, whose works of late put their storytelling abilities and perspective up there with the very best lyricists. Offering that consistently, solo or with Big Thief, is the ongoing test. Listeners will likely be delighted with the tones taken on Los Angeles.
For many, the studio laughter and chatter are performative. For Big Thief, it acts as a genuine account of what becomes another tender classic from the Lenker-led group. Just truly brilliant work. A song which will leave you at a loss for what to say, how to react. Big Thief has managed that with their two Double Infinity singles before Los Angeles. It’s the conviction and honesty of the stream of consciousness Lenker offers their listeners, the folk warmth which backs the flickers of life. Moments in time which have stuck for one reason or another, the point not needed, are pulled into the modern world by maintaining a clear memory of beaches, Grand Canyon trips, and who these events are shared with. Conviction is what matters most here. Mona Lisa name drops and moments in time, which are tied together through lyrics which do not, when read, have any link between them, are somehow charming. It’s the hidden secret to Big Thief at their best.
How it makes you feel is far more important than what it makes you think. Lenker has a warmth to their voice which is backed incredibly well by those folk fundamentals, the drifting acoustic guitar and heavy percussion. These instrumentals are on the cusp of overwhelming Lenker, but it never comes. Part of the thrill of the slow-burning Los Angeles is wondering if such a moment will ever come. It’s a song which hails the intimacy of two people close enough to know their dreams, to go beyond the cliché of finishing one another’s sentences. No, Los Angeles goes much deeper in its description of how love is shown. It’s the little acts and unseen moments which matter most to those intertwined. It’s that feeling, the inseparable bond which transcends physical occurrence, which Big Thief grasps so brilliantly here.
Another heartwarming classic from the band should not be taken for granted. Big Thief has walked these tones before, worked out the intricacies of intimacy and tied it all back together again. What helps is just how beautiful and filled with wonder Los Angeles is. It’s a stark contrast to the place. A city pitched as a place where dreams come true, but, in reality, it does not hold the love and proposed intimacy found on this Big Thief song. Nowhere can, because the feelings and warmth which Lenker and the band have captured here go well beyond what can be described. Lenker, ever the brilliant lyricist, somehow nets it and shares those deeply moving emotions once more.
