In a word, Big Thief’s sixth studio album feels like an embrace.
Three years after their last release — the renowned, 2022 Grammy-nominated “Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You” — “Double Infinity” arrives feeling like a hug from an old friend after a long separation. The whole album radiates a happy-go-lucky energy, settling listeners into something akin to an Appalachian home after an exhausting road trip.
The Evolution of Big Thief
What began as raw intimacy from one of folk’s most beloved acts has blossomed into something far more expansive.
Made up of lead singer and guitarist Adrianne Lenker, guitarist Buck Meek, and drummer James Krivchenia, the trio of Big Thief is known to be the heart and soul of the indie folk and rock scene — acclaimed for poetry-level lyricism and gentle rhythms that tug on your heartstrings.
Since their aptly named 2016 LP, “Masterpiece,” Big Thief has evolved into a global, experimental force while still maintaining their warm, inviting core, and haven’t missed since. Their true range emerged fully on that 2022 behemoth — a 20-song modern marvel spanning 80 minutes that amazed longtime devotees and thrust the band into the blinding light of mainstream recognition.
The trio’s success felt organic, arriving with minimal grumbling from the underground folk community that birthed them.
Recorded as a live band over three weeks at New York City’s Power Station with longtime producer Dom Monks, “Double Infinity” represents the band’s answer to a fundamental question: what do you do when you have critical love, an adoring fanbase, and commercial success under your belt?
The trio’s answer: have fun.
What Freedom Sounds Like
“Double Infinity” was born from liberation itself. The core trio assembled with a cast of collaborators, including legendary ambient pioneer Laraaji (Edward Larry Gordon), best known for his 1980 Brian Eno-produced album “Ambient 3: Day of Radiance.” Together, they played for hours at a time and built a beautiful conversational flow throughout the entire tracklist.
It shows.
These nine songs emerge from those sessions, with improvisation and community spirit palpable throughout every groove and whispered lyric.
Without abandoning their folk roots, Big Thief expands their vision for the genre’s future. Their blueprint is crystalline: prioritize feeling over thinking and marry vivid imagery with heart-touching emotions across an expanded sonic terrain.
Through it all, they maintain a welcoming atmosphere that makes “Double Infinity” feel like a piece of Americana beamed from tomorrow — considerably brighter in tone than its sprawling predecessor.
Track-by-Track
“Incomprehensible” opens with warped textures that immediately signal the album’s experimental bent. Lenker’s vocals drift through psychedelic undertones, setting the stage for the journey ahead while staying true to the band’s introspective essence.
The song reconciles itself with aging and the passage of time: “In two days it’s my birthday and I’ll be 33 / That doesn’t really matter next to eternity / But I like a double number, and I like an odd one too / And everything I see from now on will be somethin’ new” — explaining the album’s enigmatic title. Her meditation on generational continuity — “My mother and my grandma, my great-grandmother too / Wrinkle like the river, sweeten like the dew” — makes everything feel manageable, dissolving anxiety and judgment in favor of accepting life as it comes.
“Words” delivers wistful, chugging folk-rock that showcases the delicate balance at play across this release. While Lenker anchors the performance with honest, personal songwriting, the band roams freely from swaying folk-rock to electronic bliss.
The guitar work begins folksy before the chorus crashes through with Big Thief’s signature plucking patterns and strumming, this time brighter and more cheerful.
Acoustic foundations receive tasteful post-production echoes, expertly walking the line between modern production and classic warmth. The chorus rings with beautiful futility: “Words are tired and tense / Words don’t make sense / Words are feathered and light / Words won’t make it right.”
“Los Angeles” finds the band navigating familiar emotional territory with newfound sonic freedom, demonstrating how their musical explorations feel natural rather than forced.
Opening with giggles and laughter from the band beneath warm waves of lyrics, Lenker sings with newfound strength. She possesses the rare ability to speak hyper-specifically about experiences nearly none of us share while making them universally relatable through sheer authenticity.
The song explores connection transcending physical presence: “I can tell what you are thinking even without saying / We dream our dreams together / Even without laying in the same bed / And you sang for me.”
“All Night All Day” brings breezy grooves and soulful vocals that feel like opening curtains to let warm morning light announce the day’s beginning.
Pure admiration soaks Lenker’s voice, emanating springtime renewal: “Swallow poison, swallow sugar / Sometimes they taste the same / But I know your love is neither / And love is just a name.”
“Double Infinity” serves as one of the album’s emotional centerpieces, where reflective songwriting marries soaring experimental arrangements to create a winning formula defining the record’s ambitious scope.
Beginning with soft wind chimes reminiscent of Lenker’s solo project “songs / instrumentals” but featuring richer production and collaboration, everything her lilting voice touches turns to silver and gold.
The song feels mournful in an incredibly gentle way: “Troubled mind, let me rest / My life is full, my heart is blessed / And still you put me to the test / Of losin’ and of gainin.’”
“No Fear” carries an ambient quality emphasizing vulnerable, poetic songwriting, with Lenker’s vocals guiding the band through layers of atmospheric beauty.
The track reads like a mantra backed by gentle bass that ties everything together perfectly. The dynamic yet consistent drumming features some of the album’s best fills, beginning with the band simply having fun before continuing with chant-like lyricism: “There is no fear, mind so clear, mind so free / There is no time, round like a lime, destiny / There is nowhere, no table, no chair, no country / There is no face that isn’t in your face, there to see.”
It may just be my favorite track off the album.
“Grandmother” stands as a lovely ballad featuring Laraaji, the mystic and laughter-meditation practitioner whose decades-long work conveys spiritual messages through modified zither and electronic music.
The collaboration creates touching moments, proving this album could only be achieved with zero ego involved — pure collaboration at its finest. The pseudo-chorus finds Lenker repeating, “Gonna turn it all into rock and roll” with such hope and glimmer that it makes you feel indomitable.
The track evokes driving home on a sunny day, exhausted but proud: “Grandmother / Sleep tight, sleep loose / It’s alright, everything that happened, happened / So what’s the use of holding?”
“Happy With You” presents rocking Americana that reminds us that even through Big Thief’s unpredictable artistic evolution, they maintain a road home.
Beautiful guitar plucking patterns complement stunning chord progressions, though this track feels more like a vehicle for Lenker’s lyrical catharsis than the album’s strongest musical statement.
She relentlessly repeats “I’m happy with you” before rounding out with “Poison shame,” as if trying to convince herself of contentment. The song feels more reminiscent of Lenker’s solo work, coming across slightly clunky in the full-band setting, though it’s beautiful regardless.
“How Could I Have Known” closes the journey with classic Big Thief Americana — complete harmonies, familiar chord progressions, and those gorgeous double-tracked Lenker vocals. It’s an absolutely wonderful album conclusion: “And they say time’s the fourth dimension / They say everything lives and dies / But our love will live forever / Though today we said goodbye.”
What a beautiful sentiment to end an album with.
Making Music with Friends
The album plays like a conversation between old friends, and ironically, that’s precisely how Big Thief achieved such intimacy. With success’s stressors seemingly rolling off their shoulders, they shed external noise in favor of collaboration.
“Double Infinity” emerges as the kind of album that only surfaces when artists trust each other completely, creating space for vulnerability and adventure to coexist in perfect harmony.
Though Lenker’s lyricism may not reach the soaring heights of previous releases, the album’s tone becomes the real revelation. This is Big Thief at their most liberated, painting folk music’s future with broader strokes while never losing sight of what made them essential in the first place.
“Double Infinity” proves that sometimes the best artistic statements come not from pushing boundaries, but from the simple act of letting go.
