Matthew Sweet describes the character of the album as “very direct, but seen through the eyes of nature, or rather modeled on its beauty, chaos and freedom.” He introduced the theme of nature on 1999’s In Reverse and fully embraced it on 2004’s Living Things, an intimate, largely acoustic outing. “Living Things is more like a book of poetry to me,” he says, “whereas this record is more whole in the sense that it more fully explores my preoccupations with nature and the universe.” Complementing the organic feel of the music are the striking macro photographs of Brian Valentine, a.k.a. Lord V (http://lordv.smugmug.com), which grace the cover and package.