The Golden Archipelago

If you’ve visited Shearwater’s website over the last couple of months, you’ll have been greeted by an arresting, scratchily-filmed series of images – of mist over mountains, damaged flags and roiling sea-waters; of travel journals and captains’ logs, bloodied bird carcasses and satellite grabs. It’s all part of the story.

You've got to admire Shearwater. To so many bands the notion of songwriting consists largely of stroking their chins for a couple of hours before scrawling down a few rhyming couplets about the birds they fancy. In stark relief, birdwatcher Jonathan Meiburg likes to prepare. Thoroughly.