Jazz Odyssey: May Be Fern's "Three of Swords" Rises Like a Phoenix From The Ashes of Heartbreak, Sorrow, and Loss
Many aspiring musicians and Colorado music lovers may know my first guest on the Thursday Night Jazz Odyssey from their monthly Four O' Fern showcase featuring artists of all ages, genres, skill levels, and expression as the resident band at Bar 404 or was as entranced as I was by the harmonies of their debut record “Okay Grandma, Your Turn.” After two years in the making, Colorado's rising femme trio May Be Fern is out with a brand new album and just concluded a "Week of Swords" series of events to celebrate it. With the release of their sophomore album "Three of Swords," May Be Fern offers up this new body of work like a phoenix risen from the ashes of heartbreak, sorrow, and loss opening the door yet again for community to connect with them, this time through the harder emotions we collectively experience in life.
"The Three of Swords" takes its inspiration from the tarot card of the same name, which serves as a vessel for processing life's more painful truths. The band says that the album is a representation of the fact that the healing journey is non-linear. To tell this story, May Be Fern has tapped into their core to bring new sides of their eclectic musical backgrounds to aid in speaking the message of growth and acknowledgment. As listeners go through these emotions with them, they shine a mosaic of genres, call upon different musical eras, and share a different kind of brew than what we saw on their debut. While songs like Golden Hour, Fine Is Her Name, Talk to Me, and The Way We Do convey love, flirtation, and appreciation by harkening more familiar explorations of funk-rock, pop, and jazzy undertones, other songs like You Want Me To Feel Bad, The Tower, and Midnight tap into heavier sounds like hardcore, grunge and alt rock to address more complex emotions.
This is just a slice of the 15-track LP offering May Be Fern shared with the world September 13, 2025. Bassist/vocalist Kate Fern, keyboardist/vocalist Hannah May, guitarist Madi Spillman, and drummer Ian Spillman dropped by KUVO JAZZ for a listening party and shared more on the band's origin as well as a few of the stories behind the songs. Highlights from this conversation were featured on the Thursday Night Jazz Odyssey on September 18, ahead of their SOLD OUT release show at Globe Hall on September 20.
Photo & video credit: Will Ornberg, Radio Multimedia Producer
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