The White Birch

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Allmusic	[1]
Pitchfork Media	(8.4/10)[2]

The White Birch is the second and final album by the New York band Codeine. Released in April 1994, the album is considered to be the band's best album and a clear influence on Low, among other bands.^[3]

Background

On their debut album Frigid Stars LP and the follow-on EP Barely Real, Codeine's sound was characterised by agonizingly slow tempos and a stripped-down aesthetic,^[3] their songs rarely venturing beyond the combination of a sharp, robust rhythm section underlying crisply ringing guitars. The White Birch introduced more melodic elements and developed an aesthetic that shifted sharply between clean and heavily distorted guitars in a way that few bands such as Slint had previously explored. Along with Slint's 1991 album Spiderland, The White Birch would prove to be a huge influence on bands such as Mogwai and Shipping News.

Following an extensive US tour, the band split. Scharin returned to Rex, before working with HiM and June of 44. Immerwahr formed a new band, Raymond.

Songs

An alternative version of "Ides" was released as a 7" split single with The Coctails on Simple Machines in 1993.^[4] "Tom" was released as a 7" single on Sub Pop in 1993, backed with "Something New".^[5] "Wird" is a full-band version of "W.", which previously appeared as an atonal piano piece on Barely Real.

Track listing

All songs written by Codeine.^[1]

1. "Sea" - 7:21
2. "Loss Leader" - 4:18
3. "Vacancy" - 3:37
4. "Kitchen Light" - 3:36
5. "Washed Up" - 4:40
6. "Tom" - 5:02
7. "Ides" - 5:07
8. "Wird" - 6:05
9. "Smoking Room" - 3:18

Personnel

• John Engle (guitar)
• Stephen Immerwahr (bass, vocals)
• Doug Scharin (drums)
• David Grubbs (guitar on "Tom" and "Wird")

References