The band was formed by two members of Okkervil River, back-up vocalist and accordion/keyboard player Jonathan Meiburg and singer and guitarist Will Sheff, so they could write quieter songs. Beginning in 2005, Sheff lessened his role in the band, leaving Meiburg as the band's songwriter from Palo Santo on.
Band members today include Jonathan Meiburg, Thor Harris, Kim Burke, Lucas Oswald, with many contributions from others. The touring band in 2012 featured producer/drummer Danny Reisch and guitarist/vocalist Mitch Billeaud of The Lemurs and Christiaan Mader of Brass Bed.
To date, Shearwater has released nine full-length albums The Dissolving Room, Everybody Makes Mistakes, Winged Life, Palo Santo, Rook, The Golden Archipelago, Animal Joy, and Jet Plane & Oxbow as well as EPs Thieves and The Snow Leopard, and a split LP with Okkervil River entitled Sham Wedding/Hoax Funeral, as well as an album of covers of former touring partners, Fellow Travelers, released in November 2013.
As an ornithologist and writer, Meiburg has a unique perspective. The songs of Palo Santo were partly written at the Galápagos Islands in the footsteps of Charles Darwin. Rook was influenced by studies in the Falklands Islands and by the current mass extinction we are living through. The Golden Archipelago examined the destruction of island cultures in the 20th century and beyond. Animal Joy returned to more personal concerns; Meiburg stated repeatedly in interviews that the foundational idea is that life is most real when "the blood flows fastest and closest to the surface." Fellow Travelers started as a small home EP and expanded into a full album celebrating relationships with the other bands they've met along the way.
Mountain Laurel
Shearwater Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Had a look at your scars
They healed over so well
You forget where they are
They radiate like stars
When the cataract falls
Through the darkening air
Have all been laid bare
Then heaven is right there
And in the mountain laurel
Yes, I loved you, oh
And yes I watched the blossoms fall
We will stand in the waves
While the colors all run
And our minds fill with light
'Til we start to go numb
And then we'll let it come
Shearwater's "Mountain Laurel" is a song that is open to interpretation, but at its core, it's about the deepest and most vulnerable forms of love. The song begins with the singer peeling the shirt from the back of their lover and looking at their scars. The scars have healed over, but they radiate like stars. This could be interpreted as a metaphor for how the scars of the past, while healed, still have an impact on an individual in the present. The line "They radiate like stars" suggests that the scars have a powerful aura that can't be ignored or forgotten.
The song then moves into a more reflective tone, as the singer contemplates the grandeur of nature. The cataract falling through the darkening air and the bones of the earth being laid bare refer to natural phenomena that are grand and awe-inspiring. But even in the face of these grand sights, the singer suggests that Heaven is right there, implying that the love that they feel is just as grand and remarkable as any natural occurrence.
Finally, the song ends with the singer and their lover standing in the waves, allowing the colors to run and their minds to fill with light until they're feeling numb. This could be interpreted as a moment of release, allowing themselves to be fully present in the moment and feel the love they share intensely.
Overall, "Mountain Laurel" is a song about the beauty of love that can exist within the chaos of the world around us. The natural imagery throughout the song heightens the grandeur of this love while also acknowledging how vulnerable it can be.
Line by Line Meaning
Peeled the shirt from your back
I removed your shirt
Had a look at your scars
I examined the scars on your skin
They healed over so well
The scars healed very well
You forget where they are
You cannot recall the exact location of the scars
They radiate like stars
The scars glimmer similar to stars in the night sky
When the cataract falls
Referring to a waterfall
Through the darkening air
Through the dusk
And the bones of the earth
Referring to rocks and stones on the surface of the earth
Have all been laid bare
The rocks and stones are exposed and visible
Then heaven is right there
The view is so serene it feels like heaven is nearby
And in the mountain laurel
Referring to mountain flowers
Yes, I loved you, oh
I loved you very much
And yes I watched the blossoms fall
I observed the flowers falling from the plant
We will stand in the waves
We will stand together in the water
While the colors all run
While the colors of the day become dull
And our minds fill with light
Our minds become enlightened
'Til we start to go numb
Until we lose feeling or awareness
And then we'll let it come
We will allow it to happen
Contributed by Mia K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.