Montreal-based art-folk songwriter Aistis delves deeper into theatrical arrangements and introspective lyricism in his most ambitious work yet.
Using wit and candour as mortar and pestle to grind the ego into finer granules of inner truth, Lithuanian-Canadian singer-songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Aistis returns with his third full-length album, Caviar For Seagulls.
Following the critical success of his 2024 LP Clay—which received regular rotation on SIRIUS XM and was named one of the “50 best albums of the year” by DOMINIONATED—Aistis solidifies his place as a distinctive voice in alternative folk, continuing to push the boundaries of poetic introspection and sonic experimentation.
Caviar For Seagulls, is a self-reckoning, an opening of “a thousand rooms” within Aistis’ mind as he walks through fields of past mistakes, seeking redemption. Inspired by the grandeur of Old Hollywood arrangements and the intricate structures of classical music, this album presents Aistis at his most artistically free. Layering cinematic string arrangements, pedal steel accents, saxophone and clarinet solos, organ swells, trumpets, mellotron, and synth textures, he crafts an immersive world of emotion. Each track stands as its own self-contained vignette, yet together, they form a fragmented journey of self-exploration.
Lyrically, Aistis traverses themes of isolation, morality, mental health, and the inaccuracy of memory, balancing his signature romantic satire with deeper inquiries into forgiveness and identity. He examines stagnation and melancholia in “Nothing Here Ever Changes,” finds a spirit-stirring release in “Rejoice,” and breathes in whimsy before landing on “86/Dove”—an homage to Leonard Cohen, whose wisdom inspires him to accept the things he cannot change. In “The Inpatient,” he strips things back to question the very integrity of empathy, while the album as a whole wrestles with the solipsism of suffering and the fragility of the mind—yet still, Aistis finds hope to sing: “A part of me believes the best is yet to come.”
Recorded at The Treatment Room in Montreal with engineer Gilles Castilloux and co-producer Niall Mutter, Caviar For Seagulls, represents Aistis’ most ambitious and emotionally raw project to date.
Listen to 'Caviar for Seagulls':
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