Windborne Announce New Album and Songbook ‘To Warm The Winter Hearth’

Join vocal quartet Windborne by the fire for folklore, magic, and mystery on their new album and songbook To Warm The Winter Hearth, a collection of welcoming wassails, solstice and music for midwinter, performed in English, Occitan, and Lithuanian. Hear the fire crackle and spark as one listens to the songs and reads through the sumptuously illustrated songbook; a work of art unto itself Songs of the holly and ivy, the Derby Ram, singing door to door in Lithuania, and the centuries-old Boar’s Head feast in Oxford are brought to life by the rich harmonies, stunning watercolours, and evocative stories that together conjure a vivid multisensory celebration of midwinter.

With a 20-year background studying polyphonic music around the world, Lauren Breunig, Jeremy Carter-Gordon, Lynn Rowan, and Will Rowan effortlessly shift between different styles of music on a journey that spans continents and centuries, illuminating and expanding on the profound power and variation of the human voice. Windborne’s signature four-part vocal harmonies are the star attraction, with several songs embellished by the addition of guitar, banjo, and the traditional Lithuanian stringed kanklės, and guest appearances by Yann Falquet on accordion and Katie McNally on fiddle.

The members of Windborne grew up in singing families where any gathering of friends was a chance to raise their voices in song, and midwinter was a time rich in music. They learned to sing in harmony not from a book or classes but through the example of the community around them, which passed down songs old and new alike. Windborne envisioned To Warm The Winter Hearth as a concept album that paid tribute to these origins and welcomed new listeners into the world in which they were raised, complete with the illustrated songbook with lyrics and history of each song.

Such an ambitious project was a huge undertaking, particularly as self-publishing musicians, but as Windborne says:

“We have long believed that music can be a powerful force to connect us to tradition and community. In a world where so much music is created to be streamed from the cloud for easy consumption, divorced from any information or context, we bet on the fact that fans would respond powerfully to the idea of ‘slow music’ – music rooted in the past, sung for today, made tangible by the physical art object of the book, and brought alive by stories that reunite the songs with a cultural and historical context.”

Counting on this idea and a growing online following of nearly half a million followers on social media, Windborne set an optimistic crowdfunding goal of raising 30,000 dollars on Backerkit to cover their production costs and crossed their fingers that people would rally to their cause. And rally they did. Within a few weeks, they blew past this initial marker and finished their campaign with a whopping 400,211 dollars from over 8,000 fans. To Warm the Winter Hearth finished as the fifth most-backed crowdfunded album on any platform, as well as the most successful vocal album or folk album ever!

Following on from their critically acclaimed self-published album, Of Hard Times & Harmony (2022), Windborne has gone to great lengths to ensure that their new album is a break from the ordinary in both content and presentation. To Warm The Winter Hearth features audience favourites like the classic “Boar’s Head Carol” and “Come And I Will Sing You,” which they learned from Lauren Breunig’s father, himself a touring musician with New England’s folk icons Nowell Sing We Clear. They also draw inspiration from folk titans The Watersons for songs like “Malpas Wassail” from Cornwall, as well as contemporary artists writing in traditional styles like transatlantic folk singer Zoe Mulford and Scotland’s Ali Burns.

Windborne ‘To Warm The Winter Hearth’ album artwork

The album also explores traditions beyond American and English shores. The rousing Lithuanian wassail “Aisim Bernai Kalėdaut,” which translates as “Come on Lads, Sing Kalėda,” highlights a pre-Christian Lithuanian midwinter holiday, while “Satan Es Ben Estonat” (Satan Was Very Surprised) comes from a medieval manuscript in the Occitan language (France) that describes Satan’s reaction to the nativity.

Windborne’s album of protest music, Song on the Times, catapulted them from obscurity into full-time touring in 2017 and they continue to highlight those themes of social consciousness on this album with “Time to Remember The Poor.” This English carol reminds us of the importance of compassion and solidarity with those who have less, particularly during the season of yuletide, and Windborne has added additional words to this classic carol that asks us to reflect on our own responsibility:

“We’re no different in worth at the core/If by fortune’s fickle favour your estates were reversed/You would sing to remember the poor – Now’s the time to remember the poor.”

For centuries, communities have gathered at this coldest time of the year to sing, celebrate and share the stories of the past. Windborne’s offering of old songs with warm harmonies, extensive song research, meticulously crafted arrangements, and inviting stories has been greeted by a groundswell of support. It seems that thousands of people still crave this version of midwinter music that feels grounded, tangible, and focused on community.

In Windborne’s own words:

“No matter what your traditions are, we hope that the songs and stories on this album help you find moments of reflection, delight, peace, and wonder.”

To Warm The Winter Hearth releases through Wand’ring Feet Records on December 6th, 2024, followed by a UK tour in early 2025, including Celtic Connections.