There’s something delightfully uncomplicated about the music of Unwed Sailor. Founding member and bassist Johnathon Ford (Pedro the Lion, Roadside Monument) infuses the instrumental tracks with his distinct, melodic bass lines while drummer Matt Putman and guitarist David Swatzell fill in the blanks with a sound that embraces the basic framework of so many different styles: new wave, post-rock, krautrock, you name it. Floating above it all is a sense of nostalgia that’s bittersweet and somehow never condescending or derivative.
Their latest album, High Remembrance, follows last year’s Cruel Entertainment and continues a prolific streak that began in 2019 after a decade-long hiatus. This album, their 11th, originated with home-recorded drafts, demos, and hooks delivered to the studio by Ford, who brought them to life with the aid of Putman and Swatzell. Anyone with an affinity for the bass guitar-led grooves of New Order will find plenty to love here. The easy, driving swagger of “Don’t Let Go” sounds like basic tracks cooked up in the 1980s by Bernard Sumner and company.
On the other hand, there’s a synthetic bliss to the loping “Cinnamon”, aided by subtle drum machines and chiming acoustic and electric guitars. The chunky syncopation of “Three Jewels” gives way to slashing chords that sound positively anthemic. It wouldn’t be too far off the mark to compare the music of High Remembrance to ambient-leaning film scores—one can easily imagine these bracing melodies and performances accompanying striking cinematography—but the music also stands up spectacularly on its own.
High Remembrance certainly takes cues from krautrock, but it has a warmer feel, more elasticity, and more emotion, with an occasional twang. The balladry of “Gingerman” conveys a sense of longing and loss, with giant, sweeping waves of melody, and the epic title track closes the album like an alternate universe slow jam beamed in from a distant college radio station. The music may feel nostalgic, but it also pulls from deep musical wells. Unwed Sailor mine a sense of adventure from their relatively uncomplicated sound. It’s music in which one can get beautifully, blissfully lost.