Bon Iver radiate an uncharacteristic optimism and upbeat vibe on “Everything Is Peaceful Love,” the first single from the Justin Vernon-led project’s upcoming album, SABLE, fABLE, due April 11 from Jagjaguwar. The song is accompanied by a video directed by John Wilson of HBO’s How To With John Wilson fame.
“I knew what kind of record I wanted to make the day we made ‘Everything Is Peaceful Love.’ I always knew that would be the feeling I wanted to share first,” says Vernon. “I wanted the video to just be people smiling uncontainably. Luckily, Eric Timothy Carlson suggested getting in touch with John Wilson from How To With John Wilson. Simply the most poignant and hilarious program in all of television. We were extremely fortunate that John liked the idea. He went out, shot a bunch of fun stuff and edited it all to the song. It gives me what I want for this album, all in one video. The idea that happiness and joy are the highest form and the true buoyancy of survival, and even taking yourself less seriously could heal the world.”
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Like the rest of SABLE, fABLE, the song was produced by Vernon and Jim-E Stack. It also features viola, violin and string arrangements by longtime collaborator Rob Moose, pedal steel by Greg Leisz and contributions from Bon Iver touring member Jenn Wasner on the Morphagene synthesizer.
Sonically, SABLE, fABLE is said to move away from the “evasive and dense layers of sound that guarded” Vernon’s voice on Bon Iver’s two prior albums, 2019’s i,i and 2016’s 22, A Million. The “conceptual genesis” for the project can be pinpointed to Feb. 22, 2022, when Stack arrived at Vernon’s Wisconsin studio April Base with Haim’s Danielle Haim. The musicians were snowed in for several days, during which time Vernon and Haim collaborated on the song “If Only I Could Wait” and set the tone for the rest of the album.
SABLE, fABLE can be pre-ordered in a number of formats, as can a variety of merchandise in the album’s salmon-colored visual scheme.
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