Our Wings May Be Featherless
Nine Mile, 2022
9/10
Listen to Our Wings May Be Featherless
Perhaps better known as half of the indie-folk duo David Wax Museum, here Suz Slezak pens a solo debut, where she sorts through her journey and acceptance of bipolar disorder with an articulate angle that utilizes her fiddle, harp, accordion and piano, as well as Jason Burger’s drums.
Slezak starts the listen with the light harp and soft singing of “This Life Is Kindly”, which unfolds like a lullaby in her poetic and pretty delivery, and “Beautiful Mess” follows with gentle drumming complementing Slezak’s dreamy pipes in the cautious, melodic landscape that embraces a rock’n’roll flavor.
In the middle, “Take Me” offers a bare, emotive display of mature keys amid the expressive singing about a traumatic childbirth, while “Secret Places” is a bit more lush, and full of a warm atmosphere that welcomes a hint of country influences.
“Blaze Of Gold” and “Now It Is Morning” exit the listen, where the former is full of intimacy in a sparse landscape, and the latter displays Slezak’s vivid storytelling and is accompanied by sophisticated piano and Slezak’s daughter even makes an appearance on vocals.
In addition to her mental health battle, Slezak has been dealing with a best friend’s suicide, a difficult child birth, and, of course, the cessation of touring during the pandemic. She used her non-touring time to flesh out this record, and it’s a cathartic and artistic brand of Americana that is nothing short of absorbing.
Travels well with: Jackie Bristow- Outsider; The Lied To’s- The Lesser Of Two Evils