It’s not often that you hear one of the most successful folk rock bands decry the concept of words, but that’s exactly what Big Thief — Adrianne Lenker, Buck Meek and James Krivchenia — does in their latest album, “Double Infinity.” Its release on Sept. 5 follows a series of critically acclaimed albums, the last one being “Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You” in 2022. Though “Double Infinity” is the group’s first album since the departure of bassist Max Oleartchik for “interpersonal reasons,” it’s clear that their concepts remain as sprawling and dynamic as ever.
Rather than creating the album independently, Big Thief featured an array of different artists — such as new-age artist Laraaji and vocalist Hannah Cohen — to collaborate on the nine tracks they’d conceptualized. The approach shines through in all aspects of the album: from its flowing instrumentation to conversational delivery, the project feels effortlessly communal.
The first two tracks, “Incomprehensible” and “Words,” immediately establish the album’s unrestrained tone. “Incomprehensible” is a bright spot even within a stellar tracklist — Lenker’s smooth voice glides over rich instrumentals, which strike Big Thief’s characteristic balance between intricacy and overwhelm. Lines like “And as silver as the rainbow scales that shimmer purple blue / How can beauty that is living be anything but true?” are an earnest celebration of simplicity.
Consistent with the same easy tone, “Words” is a dreamlike swirl that exemplifies a core theme in “Double Infinity” — it’s the first of multiple tracks to tackle the limitations of language. Lenker sings, “Words are tired and tense / Words don’t make sense” — and for the band, the ambition to extend their songwriting beyond words feels thoughtful rather than pretentious.
The album plays with this idea as it progresses, sometimes through brief lines like “And love is just a name / It’s a thing we say” in “All Night All Day,” and other times to form the central structure of the song. For example, “Happy With You” is built around repetition — Lenker repeats the lines “Happy with you” and “Why do I need to explain myself?” over brisk and defiant guitar. For any less-developed band, this maneuver might feel like a cop out, but Lenker’s sincere vocals bring the invigorating atmosphere together.
Big Thief explores liberation from societal standards from various angles with tracks that manage to be both casual and immense. “Double Infinity,” the title track, speaks to “the bridge of two infinities / What is forming, what is fading.” Hefty instrumentals ground the song against a twinkling background, proving Big Thief’s capacity for emotional gravity. “All Night All Day,” which opens with perhaps the bluntest line in this album (“All night, all day / I could go down on you”), still manages to be a warm celebration of love without limits. As Lenker explained in an interview with The i Paper, “It’s taking the shame out of lovemaking. There’s so much shame in our bodies, and in sex, in our culture.” Big Thief’s unabashed approach — not just to sex, but all aspects of this album — continues to chip away at these harmful notions.
However, the lyrics occasionally leave something to be desired. Big Thief’s lyrically minimalist approach pays off for the most part, but tracks like “No Fear,” which features one verse repeated eight times, make their latent writing abilities starker. Although the steady drumming and unhurried vocals make it an enjoyable listen, lines like “There is no time, round like a lime, destiny” feel vague in an unsatisfying way.
Still, Big Thief’s discography gives listeners the impression that they aren’t so much singing as they are weaving syllables into their music. As “No Fear” progresses, Lenker’s voice feels like yet another instrument, ticking over the consonants in “no table, no chair, no country” with effortless rhythm. This synergy is also exemplified through the repeating chorus in “Grandmother”: “Gonna turn it all into rock and roll.” It’s catchy, authentic and supplemented beautifully by vocalizations from Laraaji.
Overall, Big Thief has succeeded at turning “it all” into robust music. “Double Infinity” embraces the open-endedness that comes with liberation, and the result is striking — in an increasingly repetitive musical landscape, Big Thief manages to make their own reiterations sound honest, unbounded and new.
RATING: 4/5
