''Two Saviors'' is the second

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by American musician and

Big Thief Big Thief is an American indie rock band with folk roots based in Brooklyn, New York. Its members are Adrianne Lenker (guitar, vocals), Buck Meek (guitar, backing vocals), Max Oleartchik (bass), and James Krivchenia (drums). The band's debut ...

guitarist

Buck Meek Buck Meek (born Alexander Buckley Meek, July 10, 1987) is an American musician from Wimberley, Texas, best known as the guitarist and backing vocalist of Big Thief. Early life Meek was raised in Texas and was introduced to the guitar at a you ...

. It was released on January 15, 2021, through Keeled Scales Records.

Background

The album was recorded in July 2019, and was initially going to be released in July 2020, but got pushed back to January 2021 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

Release

The album's opening track "Pareidolia" was released as a single on November 17, 2020. The second single "Candle" was released on January 7, 2021.

Critical reception

''Two Saviors'' was met with "generally favorable" reviews from critics. At

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, which assigns a weighted average rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, this release received an

average In ordinary language, an average is a single number taken as representative of a list of numbers, usually the sum of the numbers divided by how many numbers are in the list (the arithmetic mean). For example, the average of the numbers 2, 3, 4, 7, ...

score of 77 based on 9 reviews. At

AnyDecentMusic? AnyDecentMusic? is a website that collates album reviews from magazines, websites, and newspapers. Primarily focused on popular music – covering rock, pop, electronic, dance, folk, country, roots, hip-hop, R&B, and rap – albums are adjudg ...

, the release was given a 6.9 out of 10 based on 9 reviews. In a review for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

, Marcy Donelson said: "Throughout Two Saviors, Meek's uniquely kindly tenor conveys evocative phrases and settings that likewise stand apart from the crowd. Much of the album consists of similarly affectionate, soft-footed tracks." Carlo Thomas of '' Beats Per Minute'' wrote: "Two Saviors is quiet and understated, yet thoroughly enjoyable despite rarely moving out of second gear. The lyrical approach is the key insight to Two Saviors: Meek uses characters, their stories, and his interactions with them, to process his thoughts on the human condition." Writing for '' DIY'', Louisa Dixon explained: "A feather-light collection of alt-country, packed with pedal steel, lilting melodies and Buck's own evocative Texan burr, Buck's latest outing is a soothing antidote to literally everything else 2020 has thrown our way." At ''

Loud and Quiet ''Loud and Quiet'' is a British bi-monthly music magazine that focuses on new music from underground indie, alternative, electronic and hip hop artists. History and profile The magazine was founded in January 2005 by Stuart Stubbs as a home-print ...

'', Ollie Rankine stated: "Shacked up with his bandmates in an old Louisiana manor house, Meek's songs are, like his stately surrounds, far beyond their years. His gentle wonderings about life, adventure and resilience in heartbreak are carried by the sort of wisdom often found with a much older head."

Track listing

Personnel

Musicians * Alexander Meek – primary artist * Adrianne Lenker – featured artist * Dylan Meek – piano, vocals * Adam Brisbin − guitar, vocals * Matthew Davidson – bass, guitar * Austin Vaughn - drums, percussion Production * Andrew Sarlo – engineer, mixing, producer *

Heba Kadry Heba Kadry is an Egyptian mastering engineer who currently resides in Brooklyn, New York. She is best known for her work with Bjork, Beach House, Slowdive, The Mars Volta, Neon Indian, Wooden Shjips, Lightning Bolt, White Hills, Alex G, Future ...

– mastering * Robbie Jeffers – photography * Miles Johnson – design

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 2021 albums Albums impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic