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01. Magic Tuber Stringband - The Death of Ellenton
02. Magic Tuber Stringband - Marker of a Drowning
03. Magic Tuber Stringband - Sound of a Million Stars
04. Magic Tuber Stringband - Woodpeckers
05. Magic Tuber Stringband - Scintillation
06. Magic Tuber Stringband - Blooms in the Rapids
07. Magic Tuber Stringband - Tribute to the Angels
08. Magic Tuber Stringband - Where the Place Becomes Forgetting
09. Magic Tuber Stringband - Wintering Grounds
10. Magic Tuber Stringband - Soft and Pliable
11. Magic Tuber Stringband - Dog-Headed Man
ARTIST
TITLE
Heavy Water (Opaque Turquoise Vinyl)
FORMAT
LP

LABEL
CATALOG #
THRILL 657X-LP THRILL 657X-LP
GENRE
RELEASE DATE
5/22/2026

LP version. Opaque turquoise color vinyl. "Magic Tuber Stringband act in communion with the natural world around them. Highly skilled players and writers, the trio are leaders within the burgeoning avant-folk world. Growing up in Appalachia studying the folk traditions of the region in tandem scientific and observational work in nature, their music appears to weave in and out of the fabric of the landscape. The ensemble continues to stretch the parameters of acoustic instrumental expression with masterful flourishes of dense, textural arrangements, subtle minimalist gestures and deft improvisation. Heavy Water addresses the impact of nuclear production on the environment and the communities within, a musical evocation of destruction and resilience, an embrace of dissonance and tension within moments of transcendence. The inspiration for Heavy Water is rooted in fiddler Courtney Werner's work as an ecologist in rural South Carolina. Werner explains: 'The town of Ellenton, South Carolina was the largest of the towns displaced in 1952 by the U.S. federal government to build the Savannah River Plant, which produced radioactive materials for U.S. nuclear weapons during the Cold War. The former site of Ellenton was dedicated to the extraction of 'heavy water,' whereas other areas of the plant focused on manufacturing weapons-grade plutonium and tritium within nuclear reactors. Heavy water is chemically altered to be denser than normal water and is incredibly expensive and time-consuming to synthesize, requiring 52 gallons of river water to produce one fluid ounce. Its denser properties made it valuable for use within the nuclear reactors on the site.' The pieces of Heavy Water address the loss of community and untold ecological fallout of invasive, irreversible actions. A verdant countryside often mythologized in American vernacular as a respite or refuge in reality is forever tainted, a dynamic whose emotional impact is captured in the compositions."

"While it's easy to peg their influences, the band's lively performances and ear for rich sonorities affirm that Weird America is in good hands." - The Wire

"North Carolina's Magic Tuber Stringband have emerged as a force in the realm of traditional Appalachian folk music. Fiddler Courtney Werner and 12-string guitarist Evan Morgan create music that drones back through the centuries but feels current and alive." - Stereogum