Justin Vernon has been writing under the enigmatic moniker Bon Iver since 2006, releasing heartfelt, experimental, indie folk-infused tracks that capture the spirit of the wilderness that inspired the project’s name.
On his 2011 sophomore self-titled album, which contrasted with the stripped-down, lower-budget approach of his breakthrough record For Emma, Forever Ago, Vernon recruited renowned pedal-steel guitarist Greg Leisz – whose resume includes work with Eric Clapton, Beck, David Crosby, and Sheryl Crow – in an effort to shift his “role as the author of this band.”
Fast-forward to his 2024 release, SABLE, and Vernon has brought back the pedal steel guitar in a big way, with two of the three new songs featuring the instrument and showcasing Leisz’s exceptional work.
“It’s the most beautiful musical instrument that humans have constructed, for sure. It really is,” Vernon tells The New Yorker. “It’s an impossibility, and truly an American invention. It mimics the voice, but there’s nothing else that slides between chords like that. They’ve been trying to make keyboards in this century that mimic that, and there’s just nothing like it.”
He goes on to say that “Greg Leisz is one of my favorite musicians to ever live, and I was very, very lucky to get to record him again,” and cites Bill Frisell’s Good Dog, Happy Man, which features Leisz on pedal steel, as one of his formative records.
Bon Iver – THINGS BEHIND THINGS BEHIND THINGS (Official Video) – YouTube 
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“The moment in which we felt the most alive and together was this little seven-, eight-second passage where Greg played this pedal steel line. It’s the pinnacle of music to me. And so to get him on SABLE, is just amazing. He’s a master, right?” Vernon asks rhetorically
“And he’s so funny, and we get along so well, but even he’ll sit there and be, like, ‘Oh, shit, how does this go?’ It’s just so many strings and pedals. But he’s always searching.”
In 2020, Taylor Swift selected Vernon as a primary collaborator on her surprise-released, critically acclaimed eighth studio album, folklore.
Bon Iver – AWARDS SEASON (Official English Lyric Video) – YouTube 
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