Greetings dearest cherished readers and music lovers. Let’s welcome Sean R. McLaughlin and the wind-up crows to our blog. The band’s latest song, “Feathers,” released on 17th November, marks their comeback after receiving widespread acclaim from stations including BBC Radio Scotland and Folk Radio UK. This song, which was a transatlantic collaboration between producer Jeremy Backofen and Seán R. McLaughlin of The Felice Brothers, skilfully combined Americana and Scottish folk influences.
The theme of this song is accountability. By continually stating that he has been trying (, “I tried,”) the narrator is attempting to defend bad choices, but in his opinion, this usually signifies quite the opposite. (“Or, at the very least, “I gave up after trying for a while.” )Certain things are frightening, and the band can really identify with this narrator. In addition to the first line, they give a few instances in the song, one of which is the burden of fatherhood(“During the funeral, I slept. “)Here, the father is accused of sleeping in such a dire situation the band tries to convince listeners that he wasn’t asleep but found it too difficult to get up, put on his clothes, and leave. Some days are laborious and that’s okay That, in their opinion, is the main message of this song, and try to convince listeners not to be too hard on him.
Overdubs and mixing were done in the Hudson Valley (Upstate New York) after the song was first recorded live in a home studio in rural Perthshire with mandolinist Stephen Thom and fiddler-cousin Euan McLaughlin.McLaughlin has been working remotely on this song and his debut album, Goodnight, Lad, since lockdown with producers and musicians from around the globe, known as The Wind-Up Crows.
This song reminds listeners that sometimes we can be burdened by responsibilities which was passed to us before we were ready or before we could carry it. Sometimes we might even fail but it’s okay as long as we keep doing it, it will be less hard. This group is very talented and I can’t wait to hear more music from them
Stream “Feathers” on Spotify or SoundCloud
Follow Seán R. McLaughlin & The Wind-Up Crows here and on their socials; Facebook, Instagram, Bandcamp
