Review Summary: And they’d say, “oh man, look at her go”
It seems characteristic of Adrianne Lenker’s understated sense of “cool” that, back in 2020, she released one of the finest records of the era under the afterthought title
songs. Since that time, her more famous creative vehicle, Big Thief, has moved inexorably closer and closer to the center of the indie conversation, and her solo career seems poised for a similar trajectory. I guess you could say that Lenker’s musical career all around appears to have a
Bright Future.
Given the wondrous quality level of
songs, the follow-up has big shoes to fill, a statement leavened by the fact the previous album took me literal years to fully understand and digest. Such an acknowledgement makes me quite wary of making sweeping generalizations about
Bright Future, given I’ve been listening to it for a grand total of (checks notes) three days, but I’m helped along in this endeavor by the fact that it’s already evident this newest LP is a different sort of album.
Despite its low-key vibe,
songs ultimately thrives from its consistently lush and immersive feel, offering a coherent (if often abstract) window into Lenker’s thoughts and preoccupations at the time of recording.
Bright Future, on the other hand, is at once more straightforward and more scattershot. The overarching feeling of the newest release is of flaunting confidence, a desire to churn out whatever ideas the singer-songwriter has pending and throw them at the wall, expecting all to come up roses (mixing metaphors is the best). This can occasionally be to the record’s detriment, but more often than not, the album simply feels like a showcase of the depths of Lenker’s talent.
Broadly speaking, the direction of
Bright Future as compared to previous Lenker solo releases is clear, a lean towards country music. Hmmm, it’s as if the huge cowboy hat on the album cover was trying to tell us something. The form this tendency takes is variable, though - stunning highlight “Sadness as a Gift” is a full-throated weeper sonically in tune with the likes of Gillian Welch or Emmylou Harris, while “Vampire Empire” is more akin to an even more deranged version of the bizarro-world hoedowns Big Thief offered up periodically on
Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You (“
that’s my grandma”!). Elsewhere, the country influence is largely limited to a slightly amplified twang quotient atop Lenker’s more typical chill folk tunes.
The tracklisting structure of
Bright Future is certainly notable. The bookends (opener “Real House” and closer “Ruined”) are not only the longest songs on tap, but also some of the most daring and successful pieces. The former is an exceptionally sparse piano ballad, relying near-exclusively upon Lenker’s lyrics and delivery. It’s a risky venture, but one that works incredibly, showcases the remarkable emotional profundity that the singer-songwriter’s unique voice can achieve. The latter is, once again, stripped-back and reliant on piano, but instead features a surprising poppy melody which, once more, works very well. In between, there’s a lot of beauty to be found - the aforementioned “Sadness as a Gift” is absolutely stunning, “Free Treasure” is a true heart-render, and “Donut Seam” has a set of lyrics to hit the feels of the most cynical listener - but there are also a few missteps. “Vampire Empire” will be perhaps a bit “much” for some listeners, a kinda “love it or hate it” track, while it is followed up by “Evol”, which leans into the piano balladry which the opener/closer duo pull off so well, without achieving the same success. In addition, basically the entire second half of the album is a run of hushed folk songs which, while individually extremely beautiful one and all, probably would’ve been slightly more effective if distributed more evenly throughout the runtime, even if it’s doubtful that many Adrianne Lenker fans will complain over-much.
Even more than beginning the album with a very minimal near six minute track, Lenker’s burgeoning faith in her songwriting chops (well-deserved) comes through most clearly in the record’s lyricism. The artist’s overarching themes remain the same - an earthy focus on the natural world, earnest thoughts on romance and heartbreak, and narratives looking back at youth and childhood, but it’s striking how many of
Bright Future’s most memorable moments are built upon very direct lines. There’s “
the seasons go so fast” from “Sadness as a Gift”, the delightful crooning of “
don’t know what I’d do without you” which uplifts “No Machine”, the touching “
time and attention, love without measure” plucked from the transcendent “Free Treasure”, the crushing line “
one more kiss to last the years” ending “Donut Seam”, and need I go on? Perhaps paradoxically, this simplicity sees the songwriter at her peak, leaning on her strengths - the gossamer strands of her distinctive voice, the delicate arrangements she weaves around it, the ways the listener will be moved and feel her words in their very bones - and understanding not every line needs to be complex. Sometimes the simple will suffice, and god damn it, she’s right. Compared to its highly-praised predecessor,
Bright Future might come up just short, brought down by its occasional unevenness in quality and weaker coherence as a full listen, but this latest album contains a multitude of Lenker’s finest material yet, while suggesting her reign at the top of indie-dom might be only just beginning. This is a triumphant work from an ascendant artist, and, oh yeah, also one of the finer folk albums of recent years.
