The Fiery Furnaces had no expectations for their second album, 2004’s Blueberry Boat. The sibling duo recorded it before their debut, Gallowsbird’s Bark, had even been released, unaware that their first album would receive widespread praise. Pitchfork described it as “a mess of weird, undulating musical bits that are hugely intriguing despite not always making a whole lot of sense.” The band had a five-album deal with Rough Trade, a common path for Brooklyn bands at the time, though their Beefhearty blues set them apart from the Strokes and Interpol.
Matthew and Eleanor Friedberger moved from Chicago to New York, with Matthew buying Eleanor a guitar and drum kit in her teens. Matthew says they aimed to stand apart from the New York indie scene: “We wouldn’t seem like an also-ran New York City band wearing leather jackets.” Blueberry Boat was a 75-minute rock opera inspired by the Who, scoring 9.6 on Pitchfork, coverage from US alt-weeklies, and a notable 1/10 from NME. Matthew called it “a dream come true” to have people react to their work in their small corner of music.
By 2004, the indie scene was changing, with some bands becoming softer and less daring. The Fiery Furnaces sometimes encountered absurd criticism and harassment during tours. Despite this, they produced seven studio albums, splitting opinions, most notably with 2005’s Rehearsing My Choir, which featured their grandmother narrating her life story. The duo went on hiatus in 2011, pursuing solo careers—Matthew with seven experimental albums and Eleanor with four critically acclaimed, 70s-inspired records. They have now reissued Blueberry Boat for its 20th anniversary and plan a brief US and European tour.
Their music was always idiosyncratic, anarchic, and unique, attracting a devoted following despite their small online presence. Today, they have just 17,000 monthly Spotify listeners and minimal TikTok attention, making Blueberry Boat feel like one of the first great lost records of the century. The siblings describe themselves as temperamentally unsuited to mainstream success. “We both only have a certain capacity for trying to expose ourselves,” Eleanor says. Their focus was always on the music, not management or fame.
Being siblings shaped their work: it made contrivance impossible and kept them grounded. Matthew says their dynamic allowed them to challenge each other without pretense, while Eleanor appreciates the freedom to explore music on their own terms. Rehearsals for their upcoming tour are more intimate, focusing on family discussions and playful experimentation. The duo plans shows featuring just piano and two voices, allowing more freedom and the chance to make noticeable mistakes.
Reflecting on their place in music history, they note that today’s audiences are more receptive to weirdness. Matthew calls it “the Balkanisation of particularisation,” where individual expression is widely accepted. The reissue of Blueberry Boat comes at a time when high-concept, ambitious records are celebrated, and Matthew sees their approach as empowering listeners to engage with music in unexpected ways.
The reissue of Blueberry Boat is out now on Everything Nice. The Fiery Furnaces will perform at National Sawdust, Brooklyn (25 October), Pitchfork Festival, London (6 November), Botanique, Brussels (7 November), and Le Guess Who? Festival, Utrecht (8 November).
