Band Together
Two of the finest independent bands to burst onto the scene in the past year, Bowerbirds and Bon Iver, embrace a common rustic aesthetic. Their dreamy, folk-inspired reflections seem sprung from a time far from the relentless pace of modern civilization. Both have spent time living in remote, fairly isolated cabinsBowerbirds in the woods of North Carolina and Bon Iver in chilly Northwestern Wisconsinand the measured calmness of their musings is informed by their natural surroundings. Their debut full-length records, released this year on sister labels (Bowerbirds Hymns for a Dark Horse on Dead Oceans and Bon Ivers For Emma, Forever Ago on Jagjaguwar, which both operate under the same roof as Secretly Canadian), reveal an uncommon sophistication of vision. In a perfect pairing, the two groups share bills in the Northeast and Canada, spreading their unspoiled beauty to all who will listen. With so many things in common, though, the bands cant help but invite some comparisonsand, as it turns out, there are plenty of areas where the groups diverge.
Lead Singers
Bower Birds Phil Moores honeyed, lilting delivery makes him a charming troubadour, his voice harmonizing with girlfriend Beth Taculars voice and sometimes Mark Paulsons; the three meld into a gorgeous concordance.
Bon Iver Bon Iver is the project of Justin Vernon, whose high falsetto can rise quickly from a hushed tone to a fever pitch, transporting the listener across vast emotional highs and lows.
Names
Bower Birds Though bowerbirdsnamed such because the males build an arched chamber of twigs to attract matesare found primarily in Australia, the avian name reflects Moores move to a rural part of the Carolinas for a job tracking birds.
Bon Iver A purposely misspelled version of the French phrase for "good winter," Bon Ivers moniker invokes the snowy season in which Vernon started his project.
Albums
Bower Birds Hymns for a Dark Horse sounds every bit a record guided by a beautiful couple whose unbridled romanticism drives them to create joyful noise together.
Bon Iver For Emma, Forever Ago, largely crafted over a three-month period of solitude, channels Vernons intensity and virtuosity into a stunning chronicle of love, pain and loss.
Best Lyrics
Bower Birds When I wake, I wake by the brook/ To an untamed thunder/ And the northern flicker flash about/ as the soup in the sky grows thicker/ But I tip my cap and curtsy/ and I take no offense/ Because there is no hate in your darkest cloud/ no ill intent. from Human Hands
Bon Iver Someday my pain, someday my pain/ will mark you/Harness your blame, harness your blame/ And walk through/With the wild wolves all around you/In the morning, Ill call you from The Wolves (Act I and II)
Live Show
Bower Birds The trio takes on a foot-stomping old-timey quality in a live setting, Moores deft guitar mingling with Taculars inspired accordion and Autoharp and the seemingly effortless talents of violinist and percussionist Paulson.
Bon Iver Vernon bangs on the acoustic guitar and wails with a voice so full of heartache and desolation that its almost impossible not to get swept up in his entrancing world.
July 29, Bowery Ballroom, 6 Delancey St. (betw. Bowery & Chrystie St.), 212-533-2111; 8, $15. (Also July 30, Music Hall of Williamsburg)