Listen: Hem - "Identical Snowflakes"

Glad tidings on two fronts: we learn that longtime DC favorites Hem have completed work on their forthcoming album Departure and Farewell (release date "early 2012") -- an album described as "our most wide-ranging and ambitious work to date." AND they've generously decided to share a new song from the long-delayed project (it was originally due in early 2010), the lovely and seasonal "Identical Snowflakes." As the band notes, "the line 'this cumulus has no room for us,' in particular, never gets old" and Sally Ellison's lilting vocals make this a wintertime keeper to snuggle up to. The noted indie folk and Americana band has recorded enough material for two albums -- a good thing, certainly -- but details are scant at this point. Hey, we'll take what we can get. For now, enjoy.

Hem - "Identical Snowflakes" (from Departure and Farewell)