NEW ALBUMS
MEG BAIRD
Furling DRAG CITY 9/10
Best yet from unsung psych-folk stalwart.
By Sam Richards
RACHAELCASSELLS
IT’S 20 years now since Meg Baird co-founded Espers in her home city of Philadelphia. With Baird sharing lead vocals with Greg Weeks, the band became a mainstay of New Weird America, striking a noble balance between psychedelic exploration and deference to the set texts of folk-rock. Espers fizzled out amicably in 2010, by which point Baird had already embarked on a solo career. However, lacking the extrovert quality of peers like Devendra Banhart and Joanna Newsom, Baird has always flown somewhat under the radar.
All-acoustic debut Dear Companion (2007) seemed to suggest she was happiest reinterpreting folk standards; even the two original compositions on that record cleaved closely to the form. But since then, there’s been an ever-sogradual evolution in her songwriting and a broadening of her vision. Furling finally feels like the full blossoming of a long-hinted-at talent.