Credit: Far Out / FatCat Records

Vashti Bunyan reissues expanded edition of ‘Lookaftering’ for 20th anniversary

Thu 6 February 2025 15:49, UK

In 1968, desperate to escape the fast pace of London, Vashti Bunyan set off on a journey that would change her life. In her long antique dress and bare feet, the musician packed just enough to keep her going, namely her guitar, and bundled into a wagon led by a black horse named Bess. Bunyan set her sights on the Isle of Skye, where Donovan was hoping to form a community of artists. Almost 60 years since she left London for the Hebrides, Bunyan is now releasing an expanded edition of her second album, Lookaftering.

On her travels during the late 1960s, Bunyan began writing the songs that would form her first album, Just Another Diamond Day. Indebted to the beautiful British countryside, the tracks that emerged from Bunyan’s acoustic guitar speak of love, dreaming, hopefulness, nature, and travelling, all of which she explores with tenderness and innate poeticism.

Bunyan’s story is one that reflects life’s unpredictableness – but proof that if you pursue an authentic life, things will likely fall into place, perhaps in ways you’d never expect. By the time she arrived at Donovan’s commune, there was nowhere left for her family to live, and when she released her debut album in 1970, it quickly faded into the ether, leading her to give up writing and singing for many years. Yet, decades later, Bunyan’s music was re-discovered and shared online, resulting in the re-release of Just Another Diamond Day and a newfound fanbase hailing Bunyan’s album as one of the most criminally overlooked gems of the ‘70s.

The musician subsequently began writing again, which resulted in her second album, Lookaftering – her first in 35 years. This time around, she collaborated with various well-respected artists like Devendra Banhart and Joanna Newsom while Max Richter took care of production. Bunyan conceived of the tracks alone, writing in the liner notes of this beautiful expanded edition (the February 7th release coinciding with Bunyan’s 80th birthday) that she “bought a Mac, a little mixer, a keyboard and some music software,” with the royalties she received from the re-release of her debut.

After meeting Fat Cat Records’ Dave Howell, who expressed interest in working with Bunyan for a brand new album, she was offered a record deal. “The demos here are some of those that I’d sent to Dave.” Alongside the incredible songs that form Lookaftering, eight demos, one alternative take, and one live version of the album’s songs can be heard on the 20th-anniversary edition.

Lookaftering, released in 2005, is a gorgeous record reflecting the years after Bunyan’s first LP. At times melancholy, the record dissects some of life’s less easily digestible feelings, as well as the strange and often bittersweet nature of being a wife, a mother, a sibling, and a dreamer. The album opens with the gentle guitars of ‘Lately’ that accompany Bunyan’s soft voice, showcasing her propensity for minor details in her lyricism. Each line unravels a deep sense of humanity – quietly shattering or quietly moving that tiptoes up to the listener unsuspectingly and reminds them of the inevitability of both beauty and pain.

‘Lately’ might be just three short verses, but in each, you feel a moving sense of love and warmth – further aided by the use of an oboe – as Bunyan sings, “Add your footsteps to the wear/ For a tiny dent in every stair/ Will let them know that you’ve been there.” The song seems to allude to Bunyan’s children, who also become the topic of ‘Here Before’, which features Ritcher playing wine glasses. Deeply personal, the tenderness with which Bunyan explores her subjects is truly beautiful, but with the availability of these demo tracks, fans can discover their rawest versions, tracing the rough sketches of pieces that would become masterful songs. Still, each track stands gorgeously as a demo, with Bunyan’s sublime voice conveying gentle sadness or wistful reflection over acoustic guitars or keys.

You can really get a glimpse into the bare bones of these songs, the instrumental flourishes that Bunyan championed from the start and the sections that were subsequently changed, allowing the songs to grow with the assistance of her collaborators. On simple songs – like ‘Brother’, which is just eight lines long but deeply poignant – the demo versions feel even more personal at times, with Bunyan’s voice hesitating and fluttering over her hand-crafted instrumentation.

Lookaftering is evidence that it’s never too late to return, in this case, to an art form Bunyan had disowned for many years. The anniversary edition – which is being released as a gatefold album with two LPs and a 16-page booklet full of artwork by Bunyan’s daughter, Whyn Lewis – gives listeners a chance to explore a pivotal moment in the singer’s life when she was re-discovering her voice as a musician. Bunyan has such vast talent inside of her, and her second album allowed her to unlock a part of herself she’d kept bolted shut for decades.