We finished mixing with Randall Dunn and mastering with Jason Ward.  Keith Negley (SubPop, New York Times) finished the album art, and everything's off to United Record Press, waiting in their FOUR MONTH CUEUE!!!!!

We're setting our release date for March, 2015.  Stay tuned...

August 2014- Wind Burial heads in to mix their full length record at Avast Studios in Seattle WA with producer Randall Dunn (Rose Windows, Melissa Nadler, Akron Family, Black Mountain, The Cave Singers, Sun City Girls, Kinski, Sunn O))), Earth, Midday Veil). Stay tuned for fall record release and tour dates. 

This is serious. The music on Seattle quartet Wind Burial’s self-titled debut EP, that is, for which this show is the official release party. The five tracks here recall a more goth-leaning Walkabouts, who are an overlooked component of Seattle music history. Vocalist/guitarist/synthesist Kat Terran sings in a rich, melancholy tone over tempered tempests of night-desert rock. Subtle elements of psychedelia and folk seep into the songwriting, which aims for and mostly attains profundity. Wind Burial are working on their first album, and if this initial batch of tunes is any indication, we have much to look forward to. Fellow locals Golden Gardens have a newish EP, too. Bellflower luxuriates in a silky haze of blissgaze rock à la Slowdive and Cranes, and Aubrey Rachel Violet Bramble’s voice evokes the poetry of her name. With Kylmyys. DAVE SEGAL

I really can’t say enough about Snowdrift. Over the past 6 years the Seattle-based dream-psych outfit has become a local staple--mesmerizing unsuspecting listeners with their sporadic but expertly crafted records, and a live show that borders on metaphysical.

For those of us who fell head-over-heels for their last full-length, 2010’s ‘Starry All Over’, the wait for a follow-up effort has felt like an eternity. Capitalizing on gorgeously crafted ethereal prog/drone progressions, and Kat Terran's weathered yet tender vibrato, the record delivered a powerful sense of intimacy that defies any derogatory use of the words "local music". "Sugar Queen and The Honey Storm" and "Those Nights" in particular dominated my car stereo for weeks after I got my copy back in April, and at one point I even sketched out a "most anticipated local albums" post with Snowdrift in mind. However, early in October it became clear that a new Snowdrift release would never surface.

Instead, the band chose to rebirth the project with a new direction and a new name: Wind Burial. The Facebook post simply said, "Snowdrift has been plowed! We are now WIND BURIAL...". Soon after, the band announced the imminent release of their eponymous 5 track debut, and low and behold it appeared on cdbaby early this month.

Wind Burial (as Snowdrift) at The Josephine on 9/13/13
Recorded at the Church of the Unknown in Anacortes by Nicholas Wilbur (Mt Erie, Lake, Gossamer), the record delivers on the members' promise of a shift toward a heavier, less ethereal sound. Don't worry, everything you want is still here: Kat's voice, the bittersweet guitar work, the weathered bass and heavy drums; even the sense of intimacy that made Snowdrift so lovable all find their way into the EP.

The most obvious differences are in the band's use of more traditional 70's rock progressions, and in Kat's occasional Grace Slick-esque howl. While the whole EP benefits from a general broadening of the dynamic range, these changes are most obvious on the first and fourth tracks, titled "Seven Stars" and "Height of the Hills", which utilize somewhat austere, blues-based riffs as a springboard for heavy psychedelic and acid rock builds. This is in contrast to "Downstream", and "Caribou" (originally released back in February on the "Frost Giants of the World Unite!" mini-ep), which employ much more of the jangly, dreamy sound that Snowdrift were known for.

"Rainforest" is the first official single to be released from the record and it manages to fall right in the middle of the two extremes (listen and download below). Melding the intensity of Jefferson Airplane with the molten haze of Galaxie 500, the dreamy, ambling melody swells for most of the track before culminating in a shimmering, breathtaking mess. On top of being amazing, it's also a great introduction to the EP.

While some bands might have difficulty maintaining continuity with a sonic palate like this, Wind Burial's personality is so strong that each transition seems almost seamless. The result is that 'Wind Burial' is not just a great bunch of tracks, it's a great album, and it probably goes without saying that I think you should get a copy. Oh yeah, and 'Wind Burial' is officially on our short list of 2013 favorites.

Snowdrift is starting a new project, called Wind Burial. Look for updates soon on EP release dates, tour dates, live radio shows, and more!

Seattle's Snowdrift have had their debut album issued on the highly collectible and even coveted Paradigms label in the U.K. Until now, the bands that have released material on the gorgeously packaged Paradigms imprint have usually been heavy, drone-based post-rock outfits and those that delve deeper into a bit more sinister territory, like Wraiths. Snowdrift are a true exception. They are a dreamy, dark trio with cellos, guitars, drums, and keyboards, all hovering around in eerily presented and beautifully structured ballads that come off as haunting, poetic folk songs from another time that have been stored away and hidden, and are being interpreted only now, through the speech and language of rock. There have been territorial comparisons to Low and some even to Mazzy Star, but this music is something other. Kat Terran's vocals are throaty; they have the ethereal beauty of Over the Rhine's Karin Bergquist but are bigger and more present, and they annunciate as well as swell and swoon. Add to this sparse slide guitar, a single shuffling snare, and ambient keyboard effects by Derek Terran that enhance the instruments rather than bury them, as on "Outlaw Engineers," something that -- rather than being high and lonesome in the roots tradition -- is rather out and lonesome, as if from another space, and out of time completely. "September" begins with ambient sounds, a quietly brushed drum, and an ominous yet utterly lovely cello; whispering electric piano sounds float in from the mist before the bandmembers slip in gear and enter fully. Even when they do, there's no hurry, no permanent place for them in the track. The drums simply shift and shimmer as Terran's voice, like some ever-present spirit, comes up from the ether, but it's that voice holding it all together. The instruments and sounds all gravitate toward and away from her in a circling fashion that lends the music weight even as it gains not momentum, but an eerie heaviness that is darkly seductive and full of subtle warnings that things might begin to fall apart -- but never do.
These songs are written and shaped according to a melodic sensibility that is not commonplace; the spontaneity is in the emotion in Terran's voice and in the listener's sheer surprise at the these sounds -- and that surprise never dissipates, no matter how often one slips the disc into the player. One is always left wondering, particularly near the end with the heartbreaking tenderness in "House of Cards," or in the literally ghostly sonic structure of "Aviary," just how songs like this can be written instead of merely crafted and recorded. In fact, they suggest that in a live setting, Snowdrift are heavier, the audience and the music coming together in a manner that creates a maelstrom to feed Terran's voice and give it an utterance that is spine-tingling. The set ends with "Track 11" (actually the last of eight songs), which begins with a vulnerable kind of gloominess that suggests a hurt so wide and deep it encompasses the entire world. But something else is at work here, too, the complex emotions expressed by cello, guitar, and the electric piano that keeps the drummer barely moving, as a heartbeat for Terran: "Not the way, not the strain that the storm arrives/But the way that the storm subsides here/Oh there's so much more...." And there is. This cut takes the cake as it deceptively appears to disintegrate and then builds itself into a fury as Terran wails and begins the incantation "Get me off this train/I'm getting off this train/Get me off this train" as feedback and spiky guitar signatures take over the landscape before it all just disappears altogether. This is a remarkable and powerful debut by a truly underground American band that is creating something new from many old things, and shaping them into a sound that is all its own.

Lots of you are probably pretty obsessed by now with UK label Paradigms and pick up pretty much everything they release. Always interesting, gorgeously packaged, and Snowdrift is no exception.
Veering dramatically from their drone/metal direction, Paradigms have dug up another dark treasure from the Northwest, this time from Seattle. The label mentions Low and Mazzy Star and Amber Asylum and those are pretty good starting points. Imagine a moody shuffling post rock, with moaning cellos, shimmering guitars, sort of laid back and smoky, with occasional squalls of subtly blown out psych, but for the most part sort of drifting and slithering dreamily. The focal point is definitely the vocals, female, dark and throaty, a rich velvety croon, perfectly matched to the warm shimmery musical backdrops. A sort of post rock slowcore pop... one could definitely imagine these guys and gal on the radio, maybe even MTV, the dark moodiness just accessible enough for regular folks, but dreamy and dramatic enough to keep it interesting. The songs are fairly conventional, but they are often wrapped in decidedly unconventional layers, be it a thick swaths of shimmering strings, a fuzzy rumbling drone, some clattery abstract ambience. Cool stuff for sure.

I received a CD by Snowdrift, and the cover came enclosed in a protective plastic sleeve. Looking at it, I thought it was one of those die-cut/embossed cardboard covers, but instead it was an envelope, folded and sealed. I had to, oh damn, damage the cover in order to get to the music. I was alright with that, I had hoped if the group were making the effort to produce something like this, one should make the effort to take a listen. I'm glad I did. This Seattle band play the kind of solemn music that would appeal to fans of The Cowboy Junkies, Wilco, or early 70's/pre-DSOTM Pink Floyd. The first time that moved me was the music itself, and the recording. You can hear the music, and you hear that breathe in the studio. Not sure if this is an analog recording (the liner notes don't state this), but as they play you tend to hear the music and the musicians move. It makes the hair on your arms stand up. Some might say that it sounds a bit like Mazzy Star but the difference is that the lyrics are much more coherent (at least to me they are). Their MySpace page lists them as being psychedelic. It's not psychedelic in the late 60's sense, but it's definitely music for the mind, kind of like Jefferson Airplane hanging out with David Crosby if they were new artists hanging out with Natalie Merchant, Amy Lee, Engine Kid, early Sunny Day Real Estate and some kid with a mean ass Mellotron. What I like is how sometimes the vocals of Kat Terran move into the distance, as they do in "Catalina". The effect moves into what sounds like someone going through a tunnel and losing the radio frequency, only to come out on the other end and find that her voice has disappeared. As the band play, she comes back as if she's speaking right behind you, and it's a chicken skin moment. One could listen to this as a whole and be overwhelmed by how dark and soothing it sounds. One could also take elements from the songs and listen to it in an abstract manner, and it works like that to a degree, but they would be missing out on a lot of the intricacies these guys put into every element of these songs, from the gentle touch of the drums, that slide guitar that seems to stretch as long as forever, and the vocals that compliment the sounds so well. A very remarkable piece of work.

Seattle-based Snowdrift has released the most wonderful new collection of music on this, their second CD. It’s a trippy mix of trance-inducing, gentle songs that could easily lift you by the soul and carry you up, up and away into weightless bliss. According to the band’s website they practice self-hypnosis, and their music well reflects this. This is the stuff dreams are made of, the type of music that begs music lovers to put on the headphones, lay back and enter Snowdrift’s world of shadows, memories and ghostly places.

Made up of four friends who have played and performed for a number of years, they wrote and recorded “Starry All Over” in their basement in Ballard. The album is full of synthesized effects, echoing vocals and whispered lyrics, combined with sparse instrumentation - cello, guitars, drums and keyboards. Kat Terran’s haunting vocals draw you in like Odysseus to the isle of sirens. On some tracks, such as “Sugar Queen and the Honey Storm,” she duets with another band member, the male and female voices intertwining and dancing in a sedating, seductive ballet.

“Secret” begins the album with the sort of trademark eeriness found throughout the collection. The pendulous sway of the tempo on this and all of Snowdrift’s songs works to lull the listener into an altered state of consciousness, where things are a little dark yet lovely. Other tunes, like “Little Roar,” are more reminiscent of Bjork’s style of electronic sound effects that aren’t overdone, but rather compose a futuristic vibe. Other songs can make you feel as if you’re on a gently rocking boat, floating on water, lazy in the fog.

“Sky Scrape Sea” urges listeners to ride the big, blue sky high-risers. Terran’s vocals are so processed it’s hard to understand what she’s saying sometimes, but words like “skies” and “above” come through the trailing echoes. It’s like listening to the sound an impressionistic painting would make, could it do so. “Those Nights” is guitar heavy and ponderous, while “Disaster as a Swan” is made unique by the light crackle of a needle on an old, dusty record, the cracks and pops sounding like raindrops.

This is music for the night, something you could play in the after-hours when it’s just you and your friends home from the clubs, sitting around the living room in the wee hours of the morning, still feeling high and awaiting the coming dawn together. A must for any shoegazer’s CD collection, “Starry All Over” is an exciting offering from a band that definitely deserves watching.

Reviewed by Matt Nagle

It’s not often you hear an album that really blows you away. Seattle based Snowdrift’s second album, Starry All Over, does just that. Snowdrift’s sound is an unusual cross of prog rock/drone with a dream pop, acoustic undercurrent. Beautiful, haunting vocals from lead singer Kat Terran along with a grinding, dark, yet acoustic sound creates an unworldly musical landscape. This is an amazing album, very dark but with a sliver of light, an album for creatures of the dark who dwell in the light.

Tracks: All Tracks Good

SNOWDRIFT is a beautifully crafted slo-core quartet from Seattle, WA. The folks being Kat, Justin, Derek and Alan. Their self titled Paradigms debut is beautifully understated, aglow with melancholic songwriting, the haunting atmospheres of Low, the dream-like fog of Mazzy Star and the intimate chamber resonance of maybe Amber Asylum or Neurot Recordings artists Bee & Flower. A wonderfully personal and introspective voyage into candlelit, nocturnal listening.

In the meantime, I’ve got massive praise for the debut album by the Seattle trio Snowdrift, whose female lead vocals and spacious rural sounds evoke northern European farmsteads and long stretches of flat horizons. The eight long ballads range from a kind of cold Danish psychedelic folk to whacked out provincial torch songs, like in-breds pushing the envelope at a county fare. Get this record from www.paradigm-recordings.com.

There is a ghastly, Edward Scissorhands-type beauty to this album that is medicine to the ears after being bombard with disc after disc of manic indie-pop... Snowdrift realizes that you don't need to run when you look so good walking.

Snowdrift's new music sounds like their name: beautiful, layered, and smart. Can snow be smart? I guess not. But this band is, and the indiepop they kick out live is somber, nimble, and full of haunting iciness.

There are moments of pure genius on Kat Terran's debut album, Lion & Blue. She's got an incredibly powerful and elastic voice that holds back just enough for you to sense the anger and drama lying beneath, always threatening to burst out. It's a voice that complements her music wonderfully.Lion & Blue is an album of medieval violence filtered through contemporary indie folk, subtly using traditional European folk music as a springboard for tackling American singer-songwriter styles. Assisted by guitarist Derek Terran, she carves out violently calm songs which may remind you of Cat Stevens's child-like naivety, Nick Drake's pastoral folk and Mark Hollis's expansive silence. But when it comes down to it, Terran's songs are something completely unique.’ She is an amazing songwriter. Kat Terran proves she has it in her to become one of the most exciting artists folk music has seen in quite some time.’ -Stein Haukland, Ink 19 magazine

Ah now this is an ethereal voice that breaks the cloud cover and shines right through like a razor sharp ray of light. There are so many absolutely gorgeous tracks that I can't even help to do it justice with descriptions so go out and buy this album now and hear for yourself.

J-Sin, smother zine

These songs are so ambitious, so insistent, every track coalesces into something incredible. Terran is obviously possessed of a fervent, powerful musical vision. In terms of production and instrumentation, the CD is excellent, especially for a small-label release. I particularly liked the judicious use of cello and upright bass to flesh out and deepen.