It’s often difficult to ascribe to a band a jumble of words that accurately encapsulates their general sound. In our search for these words we tend to reach farther and farther away from the core of what we hear in the music itself, in an effort to ensure the inclusion of that one killer track or album that sticks out from the rest. As a result, when finally we reach a distillate of musical flavor or genre that we think accurately captures the band’s essence, the music we strove to describe has long been lost behind the noxious cloud of tags, labels and niches, rendering our read of the band an ineffectual waste of time. However, every once in a while, you stumble across a band that finds exactly those words with which to describe themselves. It’s rarely fancy, and more often than not quite broad, but when it works, it works. Tunng is one of those bands, and so when I came upon their Wikipedia page, earphones screwed in tight, to dig up some anecdotal information for this article—side note, band member Becky Jacobs is Max Tundra’s little sister, whaaaaaaat—I also happened to see, in concordance with the band’s official site, that they are, simply, beautifully and absolutely, an experimental folk band, and a damned good one at that. Now, with the intrinsic experimentalism of the band in mind, allow me to explain why ...And Then We Saw Land (heretofore to be referred to as ATWSL) might be the best album yet from a band for which musicianship comes as naturally as breathing.

Take for instance the first track on the album, “Hustle.” Opening with an echoing club beat backed by spare piano chords, and quickly dissolving into clean, finger picked guitar and a simple shaker, the song only gets better from there. Soon a twangy, relaxed banjo joins the mix, smattering the song with its folksy flavor, and by the minute-twenty mark, the track has evolved into a full-fledged, chorus driven folk jingle. So where does this put Tunng? Undeniably they are a folk band, yet they are also much more than simply that.

All throughout the album there are songs which, while acoustic and organic as can be at their core, demonstrate the idiosyncrasies of everything but folk. There are stand out tracks that simply scream folk-roots like “October,” a dusky, understated, vocally driven song, dominated by the back and forth between vocalists Mike Lindsay and Becky Jacobs, and couched comfortably in woody, musty guitar’s flourishes. Then we have “By Dusk They Were In The City,” which, while not nearly as satisfying as the more acoustic of the songs, showcases the electronic back-bone which has lent Tunng their signature flair, and distinguishes them from the hoards of so-so folksters running will-nilly through the music scene today. The song is simultaneously a showcase of what makes Tunng the delightful experimental folk band they are, while failing as a song itself. However, in that regard it stands alone on ATWSL, for while a few other songs, (“Santiago,” “The Roadside”) are not fully satisfying, they are still songs to be enjoyed, just less frequency than the rest of the album.

There are three songs in particular on ATWSL that exemplify the high quality of the album as a whole. The first and shortest of these, “These Winds” is one of the most beautifully simple song arrangements I have recently had the pleasure of hearing, consisting almost entirely of Becky Jacob’s captivating vocals, with only the humming of the rest of the group to support her. Lyrically spotless, she sings the stories of five different women, Eleanor ‘s “hollow / she lives in a sail,” Caroline’s “a shy girl made only of hair” Josephine’s “beauty she hides with a veil /speaks reassuring but her voice is frail.” The second of these songs is “Don’t Look Down Or Back,” another largely vocal-centric song, but one with a noticeably larger amount of instrumentation, and for good reason. Seated comfortably on the back of a persistent synth wave, Lindsay and Jacob’s voices lead the powerful, robust chorus of the rest of the band in upbeat song as, after a heavy and satisfying breakdown, the song becomes electrified, excited and energetic.

The last of the three songs, and the last song on the album, is “Weekend Away,” which is ultimately the most satisfying song on the album. It has three distinct sections: First, an electronic march, with complex electronic couching supporting the stoic vocals of Lindsay and Jacobs, complete with the strong, nimble percussion to keep it interesting and infectious. The second section, dominated by a gorgeous point/counterpoint between, once again, Lindsay and Jacobs, and complemented by a slowly swelling orchestral bubble on the back of familiar electronic drone and synth washes, this section is easily the most enjoyable and infectious. However, relying heavily on this singular axiom, “It’s only a weekend away / Let it be beautiful when we sing the last song / It’s only a weekend away.” Lyrically it may be the weakest song. The third section, while not as bold as the other two, is nevertheless equally as important, molded singularly from Lindsay’s voice, one guitar, the occasional electronic quirk, and for a while, strange clanking sounds. It provides a laid-back conclusion for an album so filled with peculiarities.

This album is entrancing, simple as that. All that’s left is for you to go have a listen. You won’t regret it. There’s much more to this album than can be said in 1000 words, and I hope you take the time to discover it all.

Track List:
1. Hustle
2. It Breaks
3. Don’t Look Down Or Back
4. The Roadside
5. October
6. Sashimi
7. With Whiskey
8. By Dusk They Were In The City
9. These Winds
10. Santiago
11. Weekend Away