With two new singles, Burs broaches complicated subjects with incredible weightlessness: self-growth in the face of love, a partnership that is no longer viable, and the bittersweet taste of a lesson learned too late contrasted with the personal obligation to tend to your own plants in a shared garden bed.
Hailing from Toronto, Burs delivers an impressive mix of tenderness and warmth throughout their contemporary folk-rock stylings. Forming after a songwriters ensemble in college, singers Lauren Dillen and Ray Goudy joined forces with bassist and fellow multi-instrumentalist Devon Savas in 2019. Months after delivering their debut album, Holding Patterns, the trio stepped into its current form by adding percussionist Adrian McConnell as a full-time member. With the core songwriters Dillen and Goudy, I cannot overstate how partial these songs would feel without the vast array of sonic comforts the full quartet delivers. These tunes sound so damn good. Everything feels perfectly placed and effortlessly mixed to let the vocals stand just slightly out ahead, yet not diminishing the significant soundscape crafted by each member. Furthermore, these songs do not fall neatly into a simple indie-folk box. Like their namesake, Burs incorporate sounds that stretch outside this box, acting like the stiff spines of the seedlings.
Whirring alive with the encompassing warmth of Soil’s whole band entrance, lackadaisical guitar walks the beautiful chorus melody through your mind like an old friend. Soon simmering down and leaving space for Dillen’s incredibly nuanced vocals as she weaves between notes, sometimes fluttering with falsetto. It imagines a future where Trespassers William dipped their spacey shoegaze into contemporary folk. Soil is a masterclass in dynamic songwriting where everything feels right where it is meant to be, from stem to stern, allowing the listener to be drenched in comfort while walking through tough truths. At its core, this is a breakup song diving into the complicated nuance of self-growth and self-acceptance. A failed relationship is a painful experience, but it’s necessary as we change and grow, “Truth is, it’s on me, babe / My joy won’t wait.””
On the B-side, we are introduced to the stilted and uncomfortable Blackflies. Sonically, this song is just as warm and light as the former, but its drunken-waltz rhythm effectively forces the listener out of Soil’s straightforward movement and onto their backfoot as they attempt to follow its tricky downbeats. As Goudy takes the lead vocally, his voice is expertly blended with backups from the rest of the group, and they all effortlessly float between a limping rhythm. Goudy delivers melancholic quatrains on the role of a fly as he slowly internalizes the processes of the scavenger bug, “Someone’s gotta clear those plates / Someone’s gotta take the blame.” Through a beautiful metaphor, the band touches on what follows the fruits of love when they spoil, and lovers turn to flies.
After 3 years of no music, Burs return with some of their strongest material yet as they announce their signing with Birthday Cake Records. I cannot wait to hear what comes next from the great musicians that make up this quartet. In the meantime, they have a show at the Rivoli in Toronto on May 20th, along with two other amazing local bands, Meteor Heist and Penknife. So, if you’re in the GTA, be sure to finish off the long weekend by supporting some really talented local musicians.
You can grab tickets here.
Written by Lando Flakes
