The Greater Wings
The third album by New York singer-songwriter Julie Byrne is a record formed by grief, but one which also embodies resilience and hope. In the early stages of writing The Greater Wings, Byrne’s partner and co-producer Alex Somers unexpectedly died and the loss on songs such as the title track’s crystalline folk or the bereft “Moonless” is aching, almost fathomless. Yet as it moves from reflections on what was lost to the eventual valedictions of “Lightning Comes Up From The Ground” and closer “Flare,” The Greater Wings overcomes its darkness and stands as testament to love and the human spirit’s capacity for transcendence.