Dawnbreaker

Submitted by nonesuch on
Release Date
DescriptionExcerpt

Dawnbreaker is the debut album from Daughter of Swords, the solo project of Mountain Man's Alexandra Sauser-Monnig. These ten songs, inspired by a breakup that had yet to happen, lament the inevitable loss but, more important, outline the promise of the future. Working with Sylvan Esso's Nick Sanborn, Sauser-Monnig shaped what began as quiet reflections into confident compositions, crackling with country swagger and a sparkling pop warmth, preemptive odes to the next phase of life. Guests include Mountain Man's Amelia Meath and Molly Sarlé, bandleader Phil Cook, and guitarist Ryan Gustafson.

Description

Daughter of Swords, a.k.a. Mountain Man's Alexandra Sauser-Monnig, released her debut album, Dawnbreaker, on June 28, 2019, via Nonesuch Records (Bella Union in Europe). The album’s ten songs, inspired by a breakup that had yet to happen, lament the inevitable loss but, more importantly, outline the promise of the future. Working with Sylvan Esso's Nick Sanborn, who co-produced the record with her, Sauser-Monnig shaped what began as quiet reflections into confident compositions, crackling with country swagger and a sparkling pop warmth, preemptive odes to the next phase of life. Guests include Mountain Man's Amelia Meath and Molly Sarlé, bandleader Phil Cook, and guitarist Ryan Gustafson.

"'Dawnbreaker’ is about waking to the day beautifully breaking around you, and waking also to the realization that the life you've been leading is breaking with it," Sauser-Monnig says of the title song. "The version of ‘Dawnbreaker’ that is on the record was one of the first takes recorded of the whole record. It wasn't really intended to be the final version of the song, but as the rest of the record came together, we realized that the rawness of that first take embodied the emotional quality that the record wanted to end on."

Last month, Daughter of Swords released "Gem," which was hailed by NPR as "a slice of poppy folk music so sweetly radiant, it's essentially a summer sunbeam in song form." The Wild Honey Pie called it "a precious summer-soaked keepsake, a treasure found amongst sweet green grasses."

ProductionCredits

PRODUCTION CREDITS
Recorded at CD Alley 2, Durham, North Carolina
Engineered and Mixed by Nick Sanborn
Produced by Nick Sanborn and Alexandra Sauser-Monnig
Mastered by Zach Hanson

Art Direction by Martin Anderson and Alexandra Sauser-Monnig
Album Layout by Tim Reavis of Limbo Society
Cover Photography by Kendall Atwater

Nonesuch Selection Number

590870

FormatRestrictions

This album is available from Nonesuch in the world outside of Europe. In Europe, visit Bella Union.

ns_album_releasedate
Album Status
Artist Name
Daughter of Swords
MusicianDetails

MUSICIANS
Alexandra Sauser-Monnig: vocals, acoustic guitars, tape
Phil Cook, electric guitar, dobro, harmonica
Jeff Crawford, electric bass, upright bass
Ryan Gustafson, electric guitar
Amelia Meath, additional vocals
Nick Sanborn, electronic beats, Juno-6, wurlitzer, moog, piano, bass
Molly Sarlé, additional vocals
Joe Westerlund, acoustic drums, auxiliary percussion

reissues?
new-release
Cover Art
UPC/Price
Label
LP+MP3
Price
17.00
UPC
075597925579
Label
CD+MP3+Print
UPC
075597925562
Label
MP3
Price
9.00
UPC
075597925609
Label
88/24 HD FLAC
Price
10.00
UPC
075597925586
  • 590870

Track Listing

News & Reviews

  • Daughter of Swords (aka Mountain Man's Alexandra Sauser-Monnig) kicks off a two-week tour of the United States as special guest of The Tallest Man on Earth this Tuesday, March 1, at Fête Music Hall in Providence. The tour continues up and down the East Coast with shows in Boston, Portsmouth, New Haven, DC, Richmond, New York City, and Philadelphia, before culminating with two sold-out shows at Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago on March 14 and 15. 

  • Daughter of Swords—aka Mountain Man's Alexandra Sauser-Monnig—gave a Tiny Desk Concert for the staff of NPR back in February. She performed songs from her debut solo album, Dawnbreaker—"Long Leaf Pine" and "Shining Woman"—as well as her Jeff Tweedy–produced single "Prairie Winter Wasteland." "Between the rustic sweetness of the arrangements and Sauser-Monnig's between-song banter," says NPR Music's Stephen Thompson, "Daughter of Swords' set doubles as a fine way to trick your doctor into not prescribing blood-pressure medication. In anxious times, it'll settle you right down." You can watch it here. She has also released a new single, a cover of the hymn "What Wondrous Love Is This?," and has launched a Patreon.

  • About This Album

    Daughter of Swords, a.k.a. Mountain Man's Alexandra Sauser-Monnig, released her debut album, Dawnbreaker, on June 28, 2019, via Nonesuch Records (Bella Union in Europe). The album’s ten songs, inspired by a breakup that had yet to happen, lament the inevitable loss but, more importantly, outline the promise of the future. Working with Sylvan Esso's Nick Sanborn, who co-produced the record with her, Sauser-Monnig shaped what began as quiet reflections into confident compositions, crackling with country swagger and a sparkling pop warmth, preemptive odes to the next phase of life. Guests include Mountain Man's Amelia Meath and Molly Sarlé, bandleader Phil Cook, and guitarist Ryan Gustafson.

    "'Dawnbreaker’ is about waking to the day beautifully breaking around you, and waking also to the realization that the life you've been leading is breaking with it," Sauser-Monnig says of the title song. "The version of ‘Dawnbreaker’ that is on the record was one of the first takes recorded of the whole record. It wasn't really intended to be the final version of the song, but as the rest of the record came together, we realized that the rawness of that first take embodied the emotional quality that the record wanted to end on."

    Last month, Daughter of Swords released "Gem," which was hailed by NPR as "a slice of poppy folk music so sweetly radiant, it's essentially a summer sunbeam in song form." The Wild Honey Pie called it "a precious summer-soaked keepsake, a treasure found amongst sweet green grasses."

    Credits

    MUSICIANS
    Alexandra Sauser-Monnig: vocals, acoustic guitars, tape
    Phil Cook, electric guitar, dobro, harmonica
    Jeff Crawford, electric bass, upright bass
    Ryan Gustafson, electric guitar
    Amelia Meath, additional vocals
    Nick Sanborn, electronic beats, Juno-6, wurlitzer, moog, piano, bass
    Molly Sarlé, additional vocals
    Joe Westerlund, acoustic drums, auxiliary percussion

    PRODUCTION CREDITS
    Recorded at CD Alley 2, Durham, North Carolina
    Engineered and Mixed by Nick Sanborn
    Produced by Nick Sanborn and Alexandra Sauser-Monnig
    Mastered by Zach Hanson

    Art Direction by Martin Anderson and Alexandra Sauser-Monnig
    Album Layout by Tim Reavis of Limbo Society
    Cover Photography by Kendall Atwater

  • Format Availability

    This album is available from Nonesuch in the world outside of Europe. In Europe, visit Bella Union.