Going into this show I thought I knew what I was in for, after all Big Thief’s been around since I was 8. I’ve been familiar with front-woman Adrianne Lenker’s beautiful songwriting and celebrated solo discography. I knew that guitarist Buck Meek would support their louder sections, and accent their quiet ones. It wasn't surprising to me that drummer James Krivchenia was going to lay the strong, simple, and impressive foundation for every song. But at the end of the night it was more than just the individual talent that surprised me.

The last song they played was an unreleased song called Beautiful World. Adrianne described it as “feeling right” to play, or something close to that. I've decided she was completely correct. It's mix of indie rhythm guitar and topical, vulnerable, and human lyrics made it eerily reminiscent of early Arcade Fire. In the verses she explores chaos, calm, and impermanence. It feels urgent, accepting, angry, hopeless, and hopeful, all at once, and all separately. Big Thief plays off this tension both lyrically and musically to create a song that will sit in people's minds, and maybe be remembered as one of the defining songs of this decade, if it's ever released.

It can be hard to live at all, especially right now, but this song and its lyrics have been an anchor in my day-to-day life. It's beautiful that something so fleeting, so imperfect, something that was made by just a couple of people in a room, can remind me to find the beauty that sits in front of me every day. 

During the last verse and chorus, Adrianne belts out this series of words:

Standing there feeling tripped out

And just wanting to cry

And that disconnected sharpness where everything is dry

I hear the ratchet of the call

Two wheels turning in the dirt

An old man on his bicycle, out of nowhere

Soaking through his shirt

He gets down and he comes over and says

“I’m on a long journey. I’m riding my bike clear across the country. I’m 85. My name is Bob. I’m gonna make the Guinness book.”

I said, “It’s nice to meet you, Bob.”

And then I took his hand and shook

It’s a beautiful world

Why must everything be conquered?

But it, it’s so beautiful

And I’m riding to the center of

This fucked-up world

Why must everything be conquered?

But it, it’s so beautiful

And I’m riding to the center of it

I think in that moment, standing in the back of The Anthem, standing with my friends, standing with my camera, my brain, my mistakes, standing with the weight of the world–taught me one thing: find the beauty that sits and waits, lurks behind a corner, or is sitting right in front of you on a stage. I think that message, those memories, and that moment will stick with me for a long time.

You can find the exact version of Beautiful World I heard here.