Tyler Daniel Bean/Au Revoir - Live At Dead Air 7" (opaque red)

In the world of music, is there anything more interesting than a split between great friends who exist in different genre realms? If you consider similar splits between artists like Piebald & Cave In or The One AM Radio & Jerome's Dream, you'll find that while a split between Tyler Daniel Bean and Au Revoir may seem surprising on paper, something captivating develops when relating their songs—you realize that we're all, in our own way, working through the same issues. Over a year in the making, a year marred with major injuries and loss, this split was recorded live over two days in 2015 (one in January, the other in September) by Will Killingsworth (Orchid, Ampere, Longings) in Western Mass’s secluded Dead Air Studios. Tyler Daniel Bean's two-part track, "Willow," his first offering since the 2013 EP Everything You Do Scares Me, boasts a seven-piece band featuring members of The New & Very Welcome, Cbrasnke, Noodle, and Nyiko. "Willow," a song about coping with death, delves into our response to loss, our escapist tendencies, and our desire to not exist alone. Ending ambiguously and repetitiously, "Willow” proclaims that while it may not always seem the case, everything will always be alright. Au Revoir's "Repose," their follow up to 2013's Black Hills, showcases the band's new 5-piece line up. It also stands as the first song they've recorded with vocals since 2012's In The Key Of Night—a dynamic they continue to explore on their new LP Veles (due out in March). Weaving melody with discord in a way that can only be compared to bands on Constellation Records, Au Revoir explores the weight of daily life, suggesting that it's getting harder and harder to wake from their dreams. Cap all of this off with artwork by William Schaff (Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Songs:Ohia, Brown Bird) and you have a compelling, beautiful release by two bands that consider writing music an integral part of continuance.