Released via American Dreams in 2021, Devin Shaffer‘s debut album In My Dreams I’m There existed as a kind of spectral patchwork, her folk songs embedded into an ambient background as though each were a section of cross-stitch upon a vast even-weave canvas. The result, living up to its title, was decidedly oneiric, blending folk, ambient and experimental traditions into something transportive, ethereal, yet always anchored to the textures of the living world.
Now Devin Shaffer is back with Patience, a brand new full-length album on American Dreams. As it’s the first album on which she is joined by a group of supporting musicians—Lucy Liyou on piano, Sarah Galdes (L’Rain, Bartees Strange) on drums, Marilu Donovan (LEYA) on harp and Mari Rubio (More Eaze) on pedal steel—you’d be forgiven for anticipating something even richer and more intricate. But the reality is something different. Because rather than showing off an increasingly ornate, layered sound, Patience pivots towards the opposite. A sound stripped back and intimate, swapping out its textures in favour of increased precision, the instrumentalists coming together in a collective effort towards clarity.
This turn towards lucidity speaks to the themes of Patience too. If In My Dreams I’m There represented an arc of sorts, Shaffer moving from confusion and hesitancy towards a sense of acceptance, then the new record instead interrogates just what it requires to achieve lasting peace. That is, to reject the idea of a neat arc entirely, resist the temptation to believe one achievement or epiphany will solve your life for good. The songs of her debut sound like Shaffer battling against the noise of the world in search of an answer, but in dropping this ambient backdrop, Patience ceases the fight. Submits to the messiness of our interiors and indeed the wider world. “I keep thinking about this idea that once you think you’re on the path, you’ve lost the path,” as Shaffer explains. “There is no certainty, there is no knowing. It’s all about surrender.”
Lead single ‘All My Dreams Are Coming True’ is the ideal introduction to the style. A clear example of the subtle power of the new arrangement. Devin Shaffer’s vocals and guitar sit front and centre, the accompanying instrumentation not so much embellishing the sound as working to hold up its key elements. But also a taste of the nuanced tone of Shaffer’s writing. Her willingness to embrace what might seem contradictory moods simultaneously. “I’ve been pacing back and forth / For so long / I think it’s a sport,” she sings in one decidedly sardonic line, though never does this wryness undermine the song’s emotional sincerity.
Watch the visualizer shot by Kim Upstill, Marilu Donovan and Devin Shaffer below:
Patience will be released via American Dreams on 7th November. Pre-order it now from the Devin Shaffer Bandcamp page.
Photo by Ash Dye