Four years ago, Donivan Berube left his home in the Sunshine State and headed north to West Bend, WI. Taking up work at a local restaurant, Berube was introduced to Jacquelyn Beupre, a Wisconsin native looking for some help recording her solo music. From this serendipitous introduction, Blessed Feathers was born. The two have been recording together ever since, nurturing a musical and personal partnership highlighted by an on-stage marriage proposal in December.
The recently engaged duo has developed a magnificent sound with alternating vocals and a slow, string-heavy Americana sound, generating earthy tracks infused with an unsettling beauty. Tonight, the pair will be playing alongside Young Buffalo at The Frequency and although there’s no guarantee they can top a mid-concert proposal, it’s bound to be a spectacular show. Jonk Music caught Donivan this week to discuss some very personal topics, from romance to resentment from his home state.
Either musical or personal, what sorts of influences have had the largest impact on the sound of Blessed Feathers?
“Well, we both obviously have our favorite bands, painters, writers, etc. But the music we make is largely based on geographic references, in the people we meet and the cultures they share. Our natural environment in itself is all the inspiration we need.”
Since so many of the themes in your music are relevant to particular geographic areas, how do your respective homes and the places you’ve traveled to fit into your music?
“We’ve both lived in so many different places and experienced so many different lifestyles that it’s a natural follow-through to put it to sound. Even now, we’re living on the road and relying on the good nature of friends we’ve made all across the continent.”
I’m a fan of the title of your most recent work, Peaceful Beasts in an Ocean of Weeds. Where did that come from?
“The Peaceful Beasts title came out of a whole laundry list of possibilities. When we were recording the album in New York, there was a massive school-style chalkboard that we wrote all our ideas on. A lot of them were just for laughs, but this one provided an accurate summation of not only the songs on the album, but our take on living a nomadic lifestyle altogether.”
The deeply personal narrative and aching tone of “Hey! All You Floridians” has kept the track on constant repeat for me. Can you describe what inspired that song in particular?
“There’s been a pretty interesting reaction to our ‘Floridians’ song. Some people say that I’m picking a fight with the entire state. Others think I’m making cheap stereotypical slurs. But the truth is that I lived there for the larger part of my life and every line is a comment on the experiences I had and the need for respect and coexistence in the world we’re all a part of.”
From your introduction while working together at a diner to your recent on-stage marriage proposal, what role would you say music has played in the course of your personal relationship?
“There’s been a bit of a 180 in regards to our music and our relationship. Back when we first met, talking about music and recording together was a way for us to get to know each other. But by now we’ve been living together for years and a lot of that time has been spent trapped in a tiny car together, and the relationship is what’s driving our music now.”