Upper Air is of a similar quality to Bowerbirds first album Hymns For A Dark Horse, but reached by a slightly different path, the lyrics focus on relationships and love and being astounded by nature, sometimes in the same song. A more varied musical approach is also pursued, with things like organ, autoharp, varied percussion (less of a reliance on the ol’ bass drum) and upright bass being utilized with some interesting acid etched results, whilst still retaining a basic rustic folkiness. This is a clean sounding album, guitar tone, vocal, violin and that upright bass all beautifully presented.Mark Paulson has left, or is perhaps less involved in Upper Air, in his place is Matt Damron who is listed as ‘drummer’. No doubt about that as there’s more kit audible, (cymbal and snare, for example), the bass drum is still there, it’s just usually paired up with the newer percussion (‘Beneath Your Tree’ being a good example), when it’s not trying out new approaches like the long rumbling thunder in ‘Ghost Life’, ‘Crooked Lust’ and ‘This Day’ (as opposed to the usual thump-thump-clack). It’s good to see the band trying something new out, like the thick organ droning in ‘Chimes’, or stunning upright bass in ‘Bright Future’, and even better when it blends in well with the already established aspects of their sound.It’s fair to say that the last album was about nature, either damning human neglect of it in ‘Marbled Godwit’ (just one song of many in that vein), weaving a pleasant fantasy world with it in ‘Burr Oak’, or coming from a non-human perspective in ‘Hooves’ and ‘My Oldest Memory’. This sensibility is retained throughout Upper Air, but used in different ways, by far the most common theme throughout is Moore trying to better understand and relate to the listener humanity’s (Moore’s) place and connection to the world and the cycles of things. ‘Teeth’ has lines like, "Oh, and the fleeting sun/Oh, the wild, gold beauty/So consumed, so removed/In the far reaches", paeans to nature. More personal pronouns appear, "In my great sun/without boundaries/My love's a giant welt/My heart is burning" and "You are strong and sure without me/You are boldly dismantling" grounding the lines to a person and their perspective, the latter line also alluding to the timelessness of nature, which also pops up briefly in ‘Crooked Lust’, "I live with the tides/I live in reverence/And know the days are endless, endless/But, darling, you seem like you're anxious". ‘Chimes’ sees Moore feeling a connection to all that was, "I draw my breath from an ancient earth", all that is "Oh the light is astounding/Like a sulpher cloud amongst these stately pines" and all that will be "Well, I could hold my gaze just steady/And in a thousand years we’d barely think the same". He reveals how he feels insignificant in comparison "Well, this is my joy spiralling/These are my spoils for simply breathing", almost unworthy "Still for all my faults/I draw my breath from an ancient earth". ‘Northern Lights’ also covers this ground with the lines "And I do need the wind across my pale face/And I do need the fern to unfurl in the spring/And I do need the grass to sway/Yes I do need to know my place". ‘House Of Diamonds’ could easily be added here too.With a trilogy of connected songs in the middle of the album the personal takes centre stage, from wild beginnings in ‘Beneath Your Tree’, to a more steady and lasting romance in ‘Ghost Life’ and dewy eyed sweetness in ‘Northern Lights’, we get a look at parts of a relationship (Moore and Tacular’s?). What connects these songs, apart from a clear narrative that gradually turns more and more into Moore’s perspective/narration as each song passes, is the imagery of a shared look. In ‘Beneath Your Tree’ wild and lusty declarations are traded between Moore and Tacular, "I could bleed, bleed, bleed for days/But my heart would still beat for you dear", before reaching a point of crisis, "And we're soon lost/And we're terrified", which is suddenly and beautifully calmed, "But I'll always find my way to your eyes", this last line brings all of the lust and wildness in the dueting and traded verses down to a point where a real lasting connection is revealed between the two people. This opens up the next two songs where the implication of a more permanent connection is played out. ‘Ghost Life’ starts out with echoes to the last song where big declarations are made "At the margins of the land I get to know your skin/Where the sand dunes slope into a wild ocean/Where the great plain heaps into a jagged mountain", but a more realistic tone enters soon after, "And yet some days we are stones cold and stuck/Whether in time or place or head or heart/But dear we'll never feel the years with the wind at our backs" (a little reminiscent of ‘Dark Horse’ from the debut). This is the relationship maturing and becoming stable, and as a result the declarations are somehow more powerful and concise, "Love/Shapeless love/Wild, tireless love/Fast in the free ether/Ghostly white/And seething hot". The eyes return, 'Swift to the backs of our eyes/Deep wanting eyes", confirming the connection to the previous song and the one to come. Tacular dueted, and even had a couple of lines, in ‘Beneath Your Tree’, and had brief backing vocals on ‘Ghost Life’, but ‘Northern Lights’ is completely from Moore’s perspective. Forsaking those lusty declarations of the last two songs, he says "I don't need from you a waterfall of careless praise", showing how the relationship has become more comfortable and contented with neither needing to impress the other. The softly romantic "But all I want is your eyes/In the morning as we wake/For a short while", finally ties all three songs together.Bowerbirds manage to hit some rarefied heights on this album, both in lyrics and music. The cascading play of ‘Crooked Lust’ is delightful, ‘Northern Lights’ has an acoustic strumming that’s like a cross between early Bob Dylan and playfully lapping waves, the off-key plucks in ‘Teeth’ which could be a violin, and more. As I was saying at the start, this new album is of a similar quality to the debut, but different. The lyrics are about inter-personal relationships and trying to understand ones life and ones surroundings, it’s nice to escape to a place where someone is actually trying to answer those sorts of questions for themselves, and the music is more open and diverse, with the band trying out new textures and ideas. Upper Air is nothing less than a big success. 85%mp3:> Bowerbirds: 'Northern Lights' Bowerbirds on MySpace