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Big Thief - Masterpiece
Big Thief: 'Masterpiece'
8th December 2023

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Please note that recycled vinyl will be on an entirely random colour, out of our control, and the mock-up does not reflect the final product

Big Thief - Masterpiece

Big Thief will release a new edition of their 2016 debut album Masterpiece.  For the first time on 4AD, the album containing much-loved songs ‘Paul’, ‘Real Love’ and title track ‘Masterpiece’, will be remastered and reissued on Eco-Mix Vinyl (Recycled) pressing from 8th December.

Masterpiece, Big Thief's debut album, is filled with characters and visceral narratives, songs that pivot in the space of a few words.  Adrianne's voice and guitar playing speak of rich emotional territory with grace and insight.  In her words, the record tracks "the masterpiece of existence, which is always folding into itself, people attempting to connect, to both shake themselves awake and to shake off the numbness of certain points in their life.  The interpretations might be impressionistic or surrealistic, but they're grounded in simple things."

Masterpiece was recorded in July 2015 at an old house that they turned into a studio on Lake Champlain with producer Andrew Sarlo and engineer James Krivchenia (who would go on to become a full-time Big Thief member).  The resultant debut Big Thief studio album is filled with characters and visceral narratives, songs that pivot in the space of a few words.  Adrianne Lenker's voice and guitar playing speak of rich emotional territory with grace and insight.  In her words, the record tracks, "the masterpiece of existence, which is always folding into itself, people attempting to connect, to both shake themselves awake and to shake off the numbness of certain points in their life.  The interpretations might be impressionistic or surrealistic, but they're grounded in simple things."  It soars on what Big Thief fan Sharon Van Etten called "...a real journey, with intelligent stories and twist-and-turn melodies."