Heron & Crane, the electronic psych folk duo made up of Dave Gibson (Personal Bandana) and Travis Kokas (Cryptids After Dark), are set to release their second record, Streams, via Hibernator Gigs Records on September 3, 2021. The album will be available digitally, on CD and as a limited edition translucent green vinyl LP release.

Work on Streams began shortly after the release of the group’s debut album, Firesides, in September 2019. The duo took advantage of their homebound status in 2020 to reflect on themes both pastoral and political in the shaping of the new record. A closer communion to the natural world is reflected in both the field recordings that drift across the record and the cover art of the LP, while the lyrical content of the songs reflect a disillusionment with the political landscape of the last two years.

For Streams, Heron & Crane strive for a more dynamic sound than their debut, mixing live drums with analog synth melodies and sequences. This change adds a new energy to songs like the Rother-inspired, Fogline, and the psych-meets-shoegaze of Projectiles. Fans of the band’s pastoral side will still find plenty to enjoy on tracks like Compassion Circuit and Fatal Shore, which find the duo mining the gentle library music sounds that informed much of the first record.

The album was once again recorded in Charlottesville, VA and Columbus, OH with the group doing much of the writing and arranging remotely.

All guitars, synths, drum programming, percussion and vocals by Travis Kokas and Dave Gibson

Recorded 2019-2020 in Charlottesville, VA and Columbus, OH

Mixed by Dave Gibson
Mastered by Travis Thatcher

Cover photograph by Dave Gibson
Layout by Renee Reighart

Thanks to friends and families