For over 10 years now, Jenn Wasner has made alluring, shape-shifting music as part of Wye Oak, her duo with Andy Stack. But along the way, each of them have embarked on other projects, with Wasner taking on alternative monikers like Dungeonesse and Flock Of Dimes. Her last Wye Oak outing, the great The Louder I Call, The Faster It Runs, came out in 2018, and recently Wye Oak’s been releasing standalone singles amidst their pre-pandemic JOIN tour, which incorporated bits of Wasner and Stack’s non-Wye Oak endeavors. And, as it turns out, she’s recently been cooking up some new Flock Of Dimes music too.
Today, Wasner’s announced that Flock Of Dimes has joined the Sub Pop roster. To celebrate, she has a whole new EP of music. It’s called Like So Much Desire, and it features five new songs. A press release described it as being inspired by the “inseparable nature of desire and grief,” and as an “offering of both comfort and personal reflection.” While presumably finished well before quarantine, the album came together remotely: Wasner recorded much of it by herself at home, but incorporated contributions from drummer JT Bates in Minneapolis, and string parts from Paul Wiancko, Michi Wiancko, and Ayane Kozasa in New York.
Regardless of the how and when, Like So Much Desire is the kind of surprise release built for a time of isolation, even in these waning days of lockdown. It’s Wasner’s first Flock Of Dimes release since the 2016 album If You See Me, Say Yes, and it takes on quite a different character. The Flock Of Dimes album allowed Wasner to delve into a synth-heavy, dancier strain of her songwriting. But now, her music here is spare and meditative — all slowburn and airy, mostly Wasner singing over restrained guitar and strings. It’s as customarily pretty as you’d expect from Wasner, and it’s a good collection to sit and sink into. But perhaps most importantly, it’s a signal that there’s more to look forward to from this side of Wasner’s work. Check it out below.
TRACKLIST:
01 “Spring In Winter”
02 “Like So Much Desire”
03 “Again (For The First Time)”
04 “When The Body Does Not”
05 “Thank You Friends And Strangers”
The Like So Much Desire EP is out now via Sub Pop.
