Today, Dead Meadow celebrates the 20th anniversary of their fourth album, ‘Feathers,’ first released on February 22, 2005. To mark the occasion, the band and Matador Records have released an expanded reissue including thirteen era-appropriate demos that are now newly available on digital services, the music video for “At Her Open Door,” and a complete concert video from 2004. Guitarist Jason Simon also created a new video for the “The Whirlings (Feathers Session)” which you can view HERE. 

In the latest episode of the Matador Revisionist History Podcast, Simon joins host Matt Sweeney (Chavez, The Hard Quartet) to discuss ‘Feathers’ slightly-troubled recording process, as well as the influence of D.C. hardcore, Trad Gras och Stenar, and 13th floor elevators. Listen HERE.

Originally released in 2005, Feathers was a departure from Dead Meadow’s earlier work. The songs were moodier and more densely layered, reflecting the arrival of longtime friend and second guitarist Cory Shane. “The sound was intentionally dark and murky,” says Shane. “Sometimes a rolling stone can gather moss.” 

The album was recorded amidst personal upheavals and a fair amount of pandemonium – from zoned-out late-night basement sessions in D.C. to a fully-gonzo studio date in New York City.

Jason Simon of Dead Meadow on ‘Feathers:’

“Nothing came easy with the ‘Feathers’ album. Each part of the process brought its own challenges, some seemingly laid out by the universe, others our own doing. Upon completion, I think none of us quite knew what to think of it.”

Begun at Loho Studios in the Lower East Side neighborhood of Manhattan with producer Bob Ebeling, the band wound up largely self-producing the album with the help of engineer Tom Gloady before ultimately reconstructing the tracks in D.C.’s legendary Pirate House. The outcome was a record that charted strange new territory for the quartet, at once more polished and more woozily psychedelic. 

Now, Feathers returns to us in an expanded digital edition (via Matador) and in a yellow/green 2xLP (via Tekkeli Li and Heavy Psych Sounds). “Who knows,” says Shane. “Maybe we’ll make a follow-up someday. Until then, get up on down and harken to your weird.”

Dead Meadow will also release Voyager to Voyager, a brand-new LP out March 28 via Heavy Psych Sounds. Written and recorded in 2023, it is the band’s final studio recording with bassist and founding member Steve Kille, who passed away last year.  Heavy Psych Sounds has also re-pressed a number of Dead Meadow catalog titles on limited edition colored vinyl, including Shivering King and Others (2003), Old Growth (2008), and Warble Womb (2013). 

Photo courtesy of Mark Owens.