Alabaster DePlume – “Don’t Forget You’re Precious” & “The Sound Of My Feet On This Earth Is A Song To Your Spirit”

The bandleader, composer, saxophonist, activist, and orator Angus Fairbairn records under the perfectly ridiculous name Alabaster DePlume, pulling from folk, jazz, and classical traditions in his pursuit of unconventional and compelling sounds. He’s had a flurry of interesting releases in recent years including the Visit Croatia EP, whose title track was sampled on Bon Iver’s gorgeous “PDLIF.”

Today DePlume has announced a lengthy new album called GOLD and shared two songs from it. Set for release on April Fool’s Day through the great Chicago label International Anthem, GOLD is a sprawling double-LP recorded over two weeks at the Total Refreshment Center, the London creative hub DePlume calls home. Its vast cast of contributors includes Tom Skinner (The Smile, Sons Of Kemet) and Rozi Plain (This Is The Kit). The music centers not just on DePlume’s saxophone but also his vocals, a dry, fey sprechgesang his official bio rightly compares to Donovan and Devendra Banhart. The 19-song tracklist includes many intriguing titles such as “Fucking Let Them,” “Mrs Calamari,” “I’m Good At Not Crying,” and “Do You Know A Human Being When You See One?”

The spiritual A-side of today’s pair of tracks is “Don’t Forget You’re Precious.” The song is a chill yet playfully over-the-top spoken-word piece about remembering your own worth, set to the type of futuristic chamber music DePlume specializes in. “I remember to drink, I remember to laugh/ I remember to check my Instagram, but I forget that I’m precious,” he recites. “Don’t do it/ Don’t forget you’re precious.” The song arrives with a music video by director Jordan Copeland that leans even harder into profound goofiness (or goofy profundity?), with a blindfolded DePlume in military garb overseeing an army of children with toy weapons.

Those who find “Don’t Forget You’re Precious” to be a bit too much might enjoy the instrumental “The Sound Of My Feet On This Earth Is A Song To Your Spirit,” which is also out today and is just gorgeous. Check out both songs below.

TRACKLIST:
01 “A Gente Acaba (Vento Em Rosa)”
02 “Don’t Forget You’re Precious”
03 “Fucking Let Them”
04 “The World Is Mine”
05 “The Sound Of My Feet On This Earth Is A Song To Your Spirit”
06 “I’m Gonna Say Seven”
07 “Do You Know A Human Being When You See One?”
08 “Visitors YT15B – Jerusalem, Palestine”
09 “I’m Good At Not Crying”
10 “Now (Stars Are Lit)”
11 “Again” (Feat. Falle Nioke)
12 “Mrs Calamari”
13 “People: What’s The Difference?”
14 “Visitors XT8B – Oak”
15 “Who Is A Fool”
16 “I Will Not Be Safe”
17 “Visitors YT15 – Krupp Steel Condition Pivot”
18 “Broken Like”
19 “Now (Pink Triangle, Blue Valley)”

GOLD is out 4/1 on International Anthem.