The Long Farewells

Live music

In their trademark style of unearthing the beauty in tragedy, singer Gabrielle Schafer and multi-instrumentalist Aaron Rester paint a haunting portrait of America at a time of creative destruction that echoes our own.

Schafer and Rester first began playing together as members of Chicago alt-country band The Lost Cartographers, whose debut album, 2009’s "Walk On," drew positive comparisons to such luminaries as Lucinda Williams, The Handsome Family, and Wilco. The songs on their debut album as The Long Farewells, "Only the Stars," inspired by historical events and deeply rooted in the band’s Midwestern home, are starkly rendered snapshots of characters both familiar and strange. AmericanaUK called it "A fine album with lyrics to pique your interest and imagination... pleasingly literate songs with stories to tell," while Murry Hammond of the Old 97's says simply, "The songs and recordings are fabulous."

As a live act, The Long Farewells' intricately crafted lyrics and Schafer's passionate vocals walk the line between making their audiences feel deeply about mortality, love, and loss, and keeping their feet tapping with classic-country-inspired singalongs and covers. Schafer and Rester cut their teeth in venues throughout Chicago, from listening rooms like Schuba's and Uncommon Ground to rowdy rock clubs like Double Door and the Empty Bottle and even a headlining spot on the local music stage at Taste of Chicago, while sharing bills with the likes of Jill Andrews of the Everybodyfields, Samantha Crain, and Lily & Madeleine. Frequently joined on stage by virtuoso instrumentalists and singers, The Long Farewells can keep an audience hooked in venues as diverse as quiet coffee shops and rowdy honky-tonks.

Set List