There’s more music in the world than ever before; more than we could ever hope to listen to in one lifetime. Most of it will inevitably pass us by. Part of the trade off in always chasing new releases for the blog is that I have less opportunity to look back at everything I missed. For this reason I tend to avoid covering established acts that I’m unfamiliar with as I feel unable to do them justice. Knowing the path a band has taken often feels like necessary context for where they are now. But rules are meant to be broken. I’m a music writer second and a music enjoyer first. There’s no final call for boarding a band’s hype train, you can join the ride at any time. For established fans of indie folk outfit The Crane Wives, I’m sure ‘The Well’ represents a triumphant return as their first new music in 7 years. For me, it’s a peek through the keyhole at a whole new world just waiting to be explored. From its arresting opening lines (“All the words I couldn’t say to you, Fill up the spaces in my chest, Like spare coins poised on the tip of my tongue, I make a wish and hold my breath“) and distinctive harmonies, to the way that its closing guitar solo unwinds, ‘The Well’ has been a stunning discovery to end the year on – don’t let it pass you by.