by Álvaro Molina (@alvaromolinare)
The many elements of nature come to life across the catalogue of Portland-based guitarist and improviser Marisa Anderson. Whether it’s dank and cloudy mists of magical realism in the Pacific Northwest, the fading reminiscences of a Southern Gothic valley, or the dry Americana in endless prairies, her body of work celebrates life in its myriad forms; from the modest to the epic, the small to the imposing, and from the traditional to the inquisitively experimental.
Anderson’s expansive fingerstyle guitar play and overall enthusiasm for the outer realms of folk, blues and gospel gave way to the unlikely, yet seemingly natural collaboration with Australian drummer Jim White. In 2020, the pair released The Quickening (also on Thrill Jockey), a rolling thunder of improvisational pieces that roamed freely on textures, atmospheres, moods and dramatic flair. This taste for hypnotizing instrumentals also fits White, known as one of the founding members of beloved Aussie post-rock outfit Dirty Three, a trio which also dwells in captivating sonic improvisations and has a particular taste for dramatic soundscapes.
After taking some time off from touring, White met Anderson at the coastal town of Point Lonsdale, Victoria, on the southeast shores of Australia. A mostly rural and summer holiday destination, the township is surrounded by rocky coastlines, two-story wooden shacks, the shallow, saline Lake Victoria and multiple species of waterbirds and shorebirds. This laid-back scenery pours into Swallowtail, a new set of improvised compositions where the musical possibilities between White and Anderson merge with the infinite ebb and flow of the Pacific Ocean coast.
Named after a colourful species of butterfly, Swallowtail refocuses the sparse ideas present in 2020’s The Quickening and captures both musicians balancing both a grounded and adventurous approach towards creation. While their previous effort roared with massive and thick waves of sound that at times seeped into noisy territory, this latest release finds them illuminating subtleties and fluttering between intense and spontaneous tracks. Opener “Aerie” showcases White’s waving drums crashing against Anderson’s solid but daring guitar. The 10-minute epic “Peregrine” unfurls with the joyous enthusiasm the duo has for switching the course and cruising through delicate, jazzy passages that, as the tide begins to grow, turn into splashes of melancholic and comforting blues.
At the centre of the six track collection lies “Bitterroot Valley,” a three-part suite that encapsulates the dynamic and the static, droning melodies and enveloping rhythms, and the spiritual and profane elements of nature. Each movement is named after what you can find at the namesake canyon that extends deep into the Montana countryside; “Water” navigates through calm and peak flows, while “Tree” unfolds with majestic and striking energy, Jim White’s drum kit going in circles, pulsating and creating a thunderous, mesmerising landscape. “Wind” closes the suite (and the first side of the album) with Anderson’s guitar passing through variations, forming whirlpools of repetition and ending in soft breezes sustained by White’s free-roaming percussive work.
As it happens with most of nature’s phenomena, Marisa Anderson and Jim White brew sounds from the energy that surrounds them, channelling their improvisational drive into musical forces that surge, blow and elevate. Whether it’s by unleashing intrepid soundscapes or laying back for nuanced and beautiful details, on Swallowtail both musicians pay attention to change and movement as an inevitable source for creation.