Colorado’s Front Range is home to many creative musical acts, but there’s something that feels particularly natural about pensive, spacey folk. Whether due to the mystics of the mountain landscape or the fact that bands must drive hours in any direction to reach larger tour stops, there must be something in the waters of the Poudre, because the canyon just can’t stop driving bands to release thoughtful, sprawling folk records.
Somewhere between dreamy and wide-eyed lies the sound of Fort Collins folk outfit prairie, which released its self-titled debut album on New Year’s Day. The four-piece erupted onto the local scene last summer with a cast of music community mainstays, following a switch from Corbin’s own name to the current moniker of prairie.
The band is made up of principal songwriter, vocalist, and guitarist Chloe Corbin, guitarist Zack Hill (Bitchflower/Copper Teeth), bassist Tucker Valentine (King Crawdad/Wolfblitzer), and drummer Miles Mercer (Bitchflower/King Crawdad).
Spanning nearly an hour across 13 introspective tracks, the album is a cohesive debut with washed-out guitars, a touch of twang, and a rhythm section comfortably rooted in classic folk rock stylings. It was live-tracked to tape on a Tascam 388 by Shane Zweygardt (Dead Pioneers/Leashy) and mastered by Andy Whilden of Treeline Sound.
“It was a really great experience, because we had two full days and we were in our home,” Corbin says. “It was very comfortable, and it was like I was just hanging out with all my best friends for two days and playing music.”
She adds that working with Zweygardt has, “always [been] really great,” noting that the producer and drummer had lots of great feedback and knowledge throughout. Hill also said that tracking the album in Corbin and Valentine’s home made for a particularly special experience.
“Mistakes were made and time was well spent,” the guitarist explains. “At the end of it all, we were able to create an unforgettable moment between the four of us that generated an album I couldn’t be more proud to be a part of.”
Some of what makes prairie’s sound so special are Corbin’s unique vocal articulations, which are at once both meditative and haunting. Her meandering melodies and abstract, nostalgic storytelling are supported by reverb-laden guitars and slow, engaging rhythms, coalescing into an ethereal atmosphere fitting for the mystical terrain of the Front Range.
“Learning Chloe’s songs and writing parts to them took some time because she had a pretty big back catalog,” Valentine says. “But the challenge of fitting impactful lines in with her unique chords and phrasing is fun and rewarding when the end-result sounds the way it does.”
Tracks such as “to be the same,” “harder,” and “closer to content” emphasize the band’s more catchy, upbeat and dynamic approach, while others like “waiting around” and “calling out” find the act leaning into subdued, story-driven ballads.
You’ll also hear a number of special recording artifacts sprinkled throughout the album. For example, on “carousel,” the band crescendos into a rising, Space Echo-drenched outro, and those who listen closely will hear Corbin “screaming and laughing maniacally” beneath the heavily affected swell of sound.
Overall, this collection of abstract, stream-of-consciousness folk songs doesn’t leave much else to be desired, solidifying prairie as a promising young band and one of Colorado’s latest gems.
