Sacred Bones have announced a limited edition 10th Anniversary pressing of Marissa Nadler‘s July. As noted in Helen Gregory’s album review for Folk Radio, the album was recorded at Seattle’s Avast Studio under the auspices of producer Randall Dunn – perhaps better known for his work with Earth, Sunn O))) and Wolves in the Throne Room – the result is a set which creates a spellbinding audio landscape that will keep you enthralled from start to finish.
The reissue is a super limited, super deluxe anniversary edition of the record on silver vinyl, with exclusive alternate art and a special flexi that contains an unreleased demo version of the album’s iconic opener, “Drive.” It was an iconic opening, making an instant impression on Helen – The lyrical theme of the album seems to be one of soul-searching melancholy and this is clear from the outset: opening track Drive, with its bittersweet multitracked harmonies and church organ, contains one of the most haunting refrains I’ve heard in a long time: “Nothing like the way it feels to drive / Still remember all the words / To every song you ever heard”.
Marissa Nadler shared the following:
July is a very special album to me, for all sorts of reasons, and its ten-year anniversary is this week.
I’d had six albums before this record, and have made lots more since then—but it’s definitely still one of my favorite albums that I have made. The songs viscerally encapsulate a pivotal time in my life and the album revitalized my connection with art and music after a truly dark period.
When I think of the album, I vividly recall laboriously working on those harmonies and lyrics in my old apartment outside of Boston. It snowed a ton that year, and in the morning I would dig my car out and drive to the therapeutic school that I was teaching art. At night, I would just dissect those songs. Music can be the ultimate time machine and when I think of these songs, that time, and who and what the songs are about, the feelings that inspired them come flooding back.
People have been pursuing alchemy for centuries, trying to to turn lead into gold. While no one has ever achieved that feat, art does it every single day—where you take something perceived as a negative and literally give it a new life force. In the case of July, I took a series of calamities and transfigured them into songs that truly seemed to really strongly resonate with people. To my surprise, the songs even seemed to reverse or undo some of the loss in my real life too.
I hope that if you haven’t heard it, this anniversary gives you a chance to revisit July. It was my first album for both Sacred Bones Records and Bella Union Records, two very supportive and excellent record labels that I’ve been proud to call home for the last decade. It was produced by Randall Dunn, who I consider a true master of atmosphere, among other things, and features great musicians including Phil Wandscher, Eyvind Kang, Steve Moore, Jonas Haskins, Jay Kardong, Pat Schowe.
Enjoy the record and thanks so much.
***Limited 10th anniversary deluxe edition. Pressed on silver vinyl, with exclusive alternate art and a special flexi that contains an unreleased demo version of the albums iconic opener “Drive.” Limited to 250 copies.***
You can order the album here: https://www.sacredbonesrecords.com/products/sbr103-marissa-nadler-july
