Jefferson Pitcher - The Bellows (2025)

Crashing in with the sublime ‘Carriage: Horse‘, Jefferson Pitcher‘s new album leans heavily into Neil Young style guitar playing circa Rust Never Sleeps and the darker moments of R.E.M. and what’s not to like about that? It’s quite thrilling really, though the track that follows it – ‘Emerge‘ is a welcome respite, gently leading you in, but eventually its sheer expanse evokes haunting images of a somewhat bleak America, yet somehow finds beauty in that.

It’s an impressive record, and while Pitcher himself touts The National as a key influence, and you can hear that occasionally, mainly in its deftly bottled intensity, it certainly doesn’t sound that much like them otherwise. This, as great as Berninger and co are, is a good thing, as it means Pitcher maintains his own identity, while at the same time nodding to greats like Bowie and modern contemporaries such as The War On Drugs in equal quantities.

The breakdowns in these songs are always an interesting diversion, feeling like some kind of dreamlike fantasy world that blurs and distorts before hitting you with a killer emotion on, for example, the breathy, breezy ‘The Crane Assembled‘, one of the standout tracks, in all of its eight-minute glory. It’s cinematic in scope as well as both devastating and defiantly bullish, especially if you pay attention to the lyrics.

That said, some of The Bellows is ridiculously pretty, not least the rousing ‘Hold Thee (Liquid Damage)‘, which kind of reminded me of The Triffids, which can never be a bad thing, right?
‘Albatross‘, on the other hand, feels more experimental, the guitars almost prog-rock like, until the gorgeous harmonies kick in, Pitcher asserting that “I am the king, I am the king, I am the king!” – it’s a fascinating piece that would undoubtedly be celebrated if, say, Radiohead put it out. Remarkable stuff.

And this is one thing I will say about Jefferson Pitcher, which is absolutely to his credit – you can’t just listen to the first minute or so of any of his compositions and think you know what they sound like. These songs take on a life of their own, to such an extent that you don’t just listen to them – you actively experience them. What’s more, the more you do so, you notice tiny little subtleties that you perhaps hadn’t quite latched on to the last time, such as a brief piano flourish or an off-kilter guitar motif.

‘Erendira‘ is one of the most uplifting tracks you’ll hear this year, a beautiful album closer that rouses the senses in a similar way to how British Sea Power‘s ‘Please Stand Up‘ did, but multiplied fivefold.

The Bellows is quite simply a tremendous record that is well worth your time and money. It’s out now.