Unwed Sailor
Led by Johnathon Ford since forming in 1998, Unwed Sailor makes primarily instrumental, often bass guitar-driven music that, over a decades-spanning run, has drawn on elements of post-rock, shoegaze, dream pop, ambient rock to create a uniquely textural and emotionally rich signature sound. The band evolved throughout the 2000s on albums like 2001 debut full length The Faithful Anchor and 2006's The White Ox. After a period of relative quiet for most of the 2010s, Unwed Sailor kicked back into gear with 2019's Heavy Age, and steadily released new music from there, leaning into classic shoegaze influence on 2024's finely-sculpted Underwater Over There.
Born in Oklahoma, Ford had been a member of Roadside Monument and Pedro the Lion. As a result of his own songs not melding with either, he formed Unwed Sailor in Seattle and has since been based in other cities including Chicago and Washington, D.C. Before moving to Chicago, Ford recruited David Bazan (Pedro the Lion), K.C. Wescott (The Vogue), and Melissa Palladino (Damien Jurado, Jen Wood, Danielson Famile) to record the 1999 EP Firecracker, originally released on Seattle's Made in Mexico and reissued on Philadelphia's Burnt Toast Vinyl. In 2001, Ford was joined by guitarist Nic Tse for The Faithful Anchor, with help from Dan Burton and Joe Brumley of Early Day Miners and Matthew Johnson of Roadside Monument. That same year, Ford collaborated with Ester Drang and members of Oklahoma country band Lasso for a joint project called Circle of Birds. Ford and Tse got help from drummer Matt Putman along with Matt Depper and James McAlister of Ester Drang for The Marionette and the Music Box, issued in 2003. In 2006, Unwed Sailor kept busy with The White Ox and an EP, Circles. Little Wars arrived in spring 2008. Unwed Sailor entered a period of slight dormancy after that, sharing a few EPs throughout the 2010s, but re-emerging in 2019 with new album Heavy Age. This began a second wave of activity for the band, who began touring and releasing new material more frequently. The next few years found Ford and co. releasing two full-length projects, 2020s, Look Alive and 2021 album Truth or Consequences, and in 2023, eighth full length album Mute the Charm was released. Just about a year later, ninth LP Underwater Over There was released, heavy on synth experimentation and shoegaze-y guitar tones.
© Kenyon Hopkin & Fred Thomas /TiVo
Discography
20 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Final Feather
Alternative & Indie - Released by Current Taste on Feb. 14, 2024
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Underwater Over There
Alternative & Indie - Released by Current Taste on May 10, 2024
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
The Faithful Anchor
Rock - Released by Burnt Toast Vinyl on Jan. 1, 2001
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mute the Charm
Alternative & Indie - Released by Spartan Records on Feb. 10, 2023
24-Bit 88.2 kHz - Stereo -
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The Faithful Anchor (20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition)
Rock - Released by Spartan Records on Nov. 19, 2021
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Truth or Consequences
Alternative & Indie - Released by Spartan Records on May 14, 2021
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Firecracker EP
Rock - Released by Burnt Toast Vinyl on Aug. 1, 1999
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Look Alive
Alternative & Indie - Released by Current Taste on Jun. 12, 2020
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
The Marionette & The Music Box
Rock - Released by Burnt Toast Vinyl on Apr. 22, 2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Blue Tangier
Alternative & Indie - Released by Current Taste on Mar. 13, 2024
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
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Live at Commvess EP (Live)
Rock - Released by Spartan Records on Jan. 21, 2022
24-Bit 88.2 kHz - Stereo -
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The White Ox
Rock - Released by Burnt Toast Vinyl on Oct. 17, 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Unwed Sailor on Audiotree Live
Alternative & Indie - Released by Audiotree Music on Jan. 25, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo