Name: The Avalanche
Brand: Owen

Bonus disc

Bonus disc: No

Catalogue number

BSM278

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Colour

Black

Colour details

Discogs ID

Format multiplier

Download code

Download code: No

Rough Trade Exclusive

Rough Trade Exclusive: No

Extended format

Extended format: No

Format detail

Format Music GB

Limited edition

Release date

2020-06-19

Signed copies

Signed copies: No

Supplier GB

The Orchard

Tax rate GB

Standard:20

UPC / Barcode

5060366787910

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Total Cap

1 / Extended format: No / LP / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No / black

Artist

Owen

Genre GB

Alternative / Modern

Label GB

Big Scary Monsters

Big Scary Monsters is an independent label based in Oxford, UK. Founded in 2001 by Kevin Douch, the label has become a prominent figure in the music industry. As part of the Pink Mist collective, Big Scary Monsters has established itself as a force to be reckoned with.

With a diverse roster of talented *artists* and *performers*, Big Scary Monsters continues to push boundaries and challenge conventions. The label prides itself on supporting emerging talent and providing a platform for artists to express themselves freely.

From punk rock to indie pop, Big Scary Monsters offers a wide range of genres for music enthusiasts. With their commitment to quality and passion for music, it's no wonder that Big Scary Monsters has gained a loyal following over the years.

Mike Kinsella’s work over the years with his various musical endeavors has been nothing short of foundational, from early days with Cap’n Jazz right up until recently with American Football’s unforeseen and excellent second act. Even with his long list of contributions to course-setting bands, Kinsella never reveals more of his internal world than he does with the softly drawn songs of his long running solo project Owen. With new album The Avalanche, he delivers a set of Owen songs that are the most straightforward and unguarded the project has ever been.

Echoes of the lo-fi bedroom balladry that defined early Owen come through on the heart-crushing I Should Have Known, familiar open-tuned acoustic guitars and weary vocals supported by glowing string arrangements. On With The Show is bounding and upbeat, with a jangly instrumental standing in stark contrast to lyrics about crushing failure. KC Dalager from Now, Now contributes guest vocals to several songs, most notably the glacially paced album centerpiece Mom and Dead. Layers of glimmering pedal steel and understated music box piano tones build into one of the album’s hardest gut-punches, stunningly pretty instrumentation gift wrapping lines as indisputably bleak as “Wake up, I had a dream you died.”

The Avalanche takes on a new refinement, with spacious musical landscapes making room for devastating lyrics that return to themes of an unravelling marriage and big endings. On previous albums, sarcasm and wry humor would dull the sting of heavier lyrics. Here there are still traces of Kinsella’s trademark humor, but instead of offering a winking dismissal of negative thoughts, it takes the songs to even darker places. Easily the most intense Owen album, The Avalanche is also the most beautifully crafted. Kinsella goes deeper than ever before, with self-reflection so painfully blunt it’s sometimes difficult to look at head on. It’s a guided walk through one of life’s more difficult chapters, resulting in nine of the best Owen songs ever penned and an album that’s as heartbreaking as it is magnificent.

The Avalanche

Music GB