The Declining Winter sounds like the exact moment autumn turns to winter. It is music of damp earth, grey skies, and the quiet beauty of decay. Richard Adams crafts a sound where the skeletal structures of indie-folk are fleshed out with the ghost-traces of hip-hop production, resulting in something both deeply English and strangely otherworldly. It is intimate, often sounding as if it were recorded in a room where the dust is still settling.
What truly sets them apart is the 'pastoral' quality that never feels precious or twee. Instead, there is a grit to the beauty, provided by field recordings of the Yorkshire countryside and a rhythmic sensibility that leans into the swing of J Dilla rather than the rigidity of traditional rock. The vocals are often a fragile whisper, buried just enough in the mix to feel like a private thought you've accidentally overheard.
Start with 'Goodbye Minnesota' for the foundational sound of the project, or 'Belmont Slope' to hear how Adams has refined this specific brand of rural melancholy into something more expansive and texturally rich.
The Declining Winter is a British band based in Yorkshire, led by Richard Adams, the co-founder of the Domino Records group Hood. The band plays a unique form of pastoral pop taking in influences from lo-fi, electronica and post rock with a strong visual aesthetic inspired by the countryside of Yorkshire. They released their debut single "The Future Sound of Hip Hop Parts 1 & 2" on Misplaced Music in November 2007. This was followed up by a debut album Goodbye Minnesota released by Ireland's Rusted Rail imprint in May 2008. In May 2009, they issued a mini album Haunt the Upper Hallways on Home Assembly Music. The same label also released an unlikely attempt at a song for the 2010 World Cup. After a long period of silence, the band (now consisting solely of Richard Adams with assorted guests) returned to release a 10" Fragment 5 on French label Monopsone in 2013 followed by Lost Songs cassette on Sanity Muffin in 2014. The latter album consists of unfinished recordings rescued by Adams from his crashed hard drive and was later issued as a small run of CDrs. A brand new studio album, Home For Lost Souls, was finally released in March 2015 on Home Assembly Music, quickly followed by The Leaves in the Lane a split 12" with Isnaj Dui and a limited album Endless Scenery. The band once again fell silent as Adams worked with his other project the dulcimer-led instrumental band, Memory Drawings, until a critically appraised new studio album, Belmont Slope arrived in September 2018. In 2021 Adams released the entirely solo Recordings Of Weird Air cassette on his own Signal imprint consisting of songs recorded live to iPAD during lockdown. Later that same year the long delayed The Definition Glance 7" appeared on Spanish indie label Acuarela followed by another single I Remember - the lead track featuring the words of poet Thomas Hood. Richard Adams has also released two albums of ambient and electronic recordings under the name Western Edges.
Shares lo fi, field recordings, analog warmth (production style); breathy, whispered, gentle (vocal style)
Shares indie folk, post-rock, downtempo (subgenres); melancholic, wistful, contemplative (moods)
Shares melancholic, wistful, contemplative (moods); indie folk, slowcore, chamber folk (subgenres)
Shares post-rock, indie folk, chamber folk (subgenres); autumn walk, solitude, rainy day (atmosphere)
Shares post-rock, indie folk, chamber folk (subgenres); lo fi, field recordings, analog warmth (production style)
Shares melancholic, wistful, contemplative (moods); breathy, whispered, gentle (vocal style)
Shares breathy, whispered, gentle (vocal style); indie folk, slowcore (subgenres)
Shares breathy, whispered, gentle (vocal style); post-rock, slowcore (subgenres)
Shares slowcore, post-rock, dusty, chamber folk (subgenre)
Shares field recordings, post-rock, cabin in woods, indie folk (signature)
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