I cannot tell you how many times we’ve spun these tracks in our home. We were introduced to the music of Brooklyn-based songwriter Peter Wagner, who records as Furrows, by KEXP producer Owen Murphy and it was love at first listen. Wagner’s lyricism is vivid and poetic, his songwriting is atmospheric and cerebral. In other words, this is music you can get lost into. It’s music you can obsess over. And, for those reasons, it’s also the perfect record to mark our 100th release in this series.
As you’d expect, people are already beginning to take notice. Furrows have been featured in Under The Radar, The Big Takeover, Stereogum, and dozens of other outlets. His full length, Fisher King, is easily one of my ten favorite albums of 2022. Featuring three tracks from the album and a non-album bonus cut, I think you’re going to love this collection.
The a-side kicks off with the technicolor and shimmering cut “Grey Cities.” It’s a lush vibe of brisk, strummed acoustic guitar riffs and ghostly ambiance to accompany Wagner as he softly croons, “In the ruins, of this living memory we’re crawling up a stairway / to something real / in the open, unseen / Unseen, but always there.” A standout for sure.
It’s followed by the buoyant and dream-like single “Burial.” It’s based on a hypnotic rhythm and shimmering harmonics to accompany Wagner across a dusty, psychedelic landscape. It’s lush and absolutely gorgeous.
The b-side opens with a personal favorite the steady and wind-swept cut “Wasteland.” This one rolls along at an easy pace amid twinkling vibes and slow guitar strums: “Empty inner vision / Threading a broken design / Helpless are the hands that guide you.”
The collection closes out with the non-album single, “Never Here.” More crisp and grounded than the other tracks in the collection, Wagner is still plaintive his gaze still firmly directed towards the sky as he sings, “Now I’ve fallen into space among the stars / I’ll wait here till the end / All you have is all you’ve ever been.”
It’s a lush, vivid collection and we hope you love it as much as we do!
