Adrianne Lenker - Hours Were the Birds [LP]

Format: LP
Catalogue No.: 4AD0887LP
Barcode: 0191400088719
Release Date: 11 Dec 2026
Genre: Alternative

Originally on Saddle Creek, now being reissued on 4AD.
Big Thief’s front-woman Adrianne Lenker has established herself as one of the most powerful voices in music. Prior to Big Thief exploding onto the scene in 2016, Adrianne Lenker had been quietly writing songs for years, both on her own and with Buck Meek. Her early solo releases are beautiful pieces of work that provide early glimpses of what was to come.
These releases (Hours Were the Birds, a-sides and besides and abysskiss) have now joined her 4AD home and are being made available on LP and CD.

While her output with Big Thief is what brought her music to the attention of most, their first record is not the beginning of the story.
“I moved to New York and, starting from complete scratch, had nothing to show anybody that was representing what I did, other than stuff I made when I was 13. So, I decided I should record a solo album of my songs.”
In 2013 Lenker returned to her hometown of Minneapolis and entered Terrarium Studios with producer Rob Oesterlin, where she laid down ten songs on acoustic guitar. “It’s basically just like a live solo show,” Lenker describes, “but with an added twist.”
Hours Were the Birds was released in 2014. Drenched in beautiful imagery and intimate stories, it is the work of a woman on a journey, conquering new territory with bravery and honesty.

Tracklisting:
1. Hours Were the Birds
2. Lighthouse
3. Disappear
4. Gone
5. Steamboat
6. To Violet
7. Indiana
8. Butterfly
9. Snow Song
10. A Love of Some Kind