If there’s one band in heavy music that has, beyond a shadow of a doubt, proved itself in collaborative affairs over the years, it’s The Body. This time around, they are joining forces with Canadian three-piece experimental doom BIG | BRAVE. Given the two collectives’ history, one would be prone to expect sheer heaviness in the music, even with their tendency for subverting genre expectations. This time around, the latter is said to have won, with the press release stating that they “shift away the gravity of their compositions to woven layers of percussion and unspooling guitars that sprawl through startk frameworks of earthly folk.” The collaboration, entitled «Leaving None But Small Birds» was “composed almost entirely in the studio at Machine With Magnets with engineer/producer Seth Manchester.” The starting idea was clear: “to make an album that evoked the country and folk roots of The Band,” with BIG | BRAVE’s Robin Wattie having “compiled lyrics and melodic lines from across Appalachian, Canadian, and English hymns and folk songs. Select phrases were then reworked and precisely arranged to center the experiences of marginalized characters, victims of hardship, and those yearning for love within each story. The despair and empowerment of these traditional tunes draw remarkable parallels with each group’s focus on championing people often cast aside in history.” A first glimpse into «None But Small Birds» can be made below, through the beautiful «Oh Sinner», the second of seven songs that comprise the record.

«Leaving None But Small Birds» is set for release on October 1 through Thrill Jockey on cd, digital, and vinyl formats, whose pre-orders can be made here.

Below, further recall the full-length pieces released by The Body and BIG | BRAVE earlier this year.

The Body’s «I’ve Seen All I Need To See» was released on January 29 by Thrill Jockey and can be found here on cd, digital, and vinyl formats.

BIG | BRAVE’s «Vital» was released on April 23 by Southern Lord and can be found here on cd, digital, and vinyl formats.