Unwed Sailor is the moniker used by bassist Jonathan Ford to release his particularly relaxed and melodic brand of post-rock. Formed in 1998, Ford has released 5 LPs and just as many EPs, collaborating with a fair few other musicians on the releases. The group, Early Day Miners, whose frontman, Dan Burton, has recorded with Ford in the past, is touring with Unwed Sailor currently. Ford has worked with Burton since at least 2002, and has been playing bass for the opening band on this end-of-summer tour.
Before their Seattle and Portland shows, Unwed Sailor and Early Day Miners stopped in Eugene, Oregon at Old Nick’s Pub. Unwed Sailor’s set was too inspired for such a small venue. A sound that big sound needs to be appreciated by an equally massive crowd. Additionally, being a triple stacked bar-bill, the sets were less than an hour in order to accommodate the other acts. Unwed Sailor could have played twice as long. The band masterfully wielded Ford’s music, despite the small space. The set included powerful renditions of Nauvoo from his last full length record, Little Wars, as well as a new track from the 2011 Tour EP, “Bohemia,” which Jonathan claimed was still evolving. He also mentioned he was nearly finished with his first studio album since 2008. Anticipating the new record and resulting tour is going to be more than torturous.
