Joseph

I’m waiting on my physical copy of Birthing, the new SWANS album. Should be showing up in the mail soon. ‘Til then, I’m listening to it over on Bandcamp—can’t help myself.

Most of the songs came together while they were out touring in 2023 and 2024. They played them live, let them grow, then took them into the studio to shape them up right. A couple of the tracks, “Red Yellow” and “The Merge”—were made from scratch in the studio, no roadwork behind them.

Gira said it all started with him sitting alone with his guitar, just strumming and dreaming up these songs. Then he brought in the band, and together they turned those bones into something big and heavy and beautiful. Birthing, along with Live Rope, is what he’s calling his last big hurrah in this wild, all-consuming sound SWANS is known for. They’ve got one more tour planned for the end of 2025, then that chapter’s closing. I missed their LA show back when the pandemic hit—sure as heck ain’t missing this one.

SWANS’ll still be around after that, just in a simpler, quieter way.