Draft:In Gowan Ring

In Gowan Ring is an American folk band founded in the early 1990s by singer and multi-instrumentalist Bobin Eirth, commonly known as B’eirth. B’eirth spent much of his youth in Salt Lake City, Utah, and his maternal ancestors were members of the Mormon faith. As the driving force behind the band, B’eirth often presents himself as a modern-day troubadour, wandering from place to place with no fixed residence while making music. However, the band is currently based in Portland, Oregon.

The music of In Gowan Ring is characterized by a delicate, melancholic ballad style and a blend of acoustic and electronic sounds. In addition to frequently playing the acoustic guitar, B’eirth also plays the zither, harp, and flute. Various guest musicians, including Annabel Lee and Michael J. Moynihan, occasionally support him with violin and a range of percussion instruments. The acoustic aspect of their music is complemented by subtle keyboard backdrops and, on the album The Glinting Spade, expansive drone sounds. The band's folk influences, most prominently featured on the album Hazel Steps Through A Weathered Home, are oriented more towards the English folk tradition, with some compositions even evoking medieval music. B’eirth, who has learned most of his instruments through self-teaching, also builds custom instruments, such as the "Stringed Spade," a double-neck guitar often associated with the band.

Many of the band's lyrics are noted for their hermetic imagery and personal symbolism, frequently drawing on themes from the animal and plant kingdoms. Since 2005, B’eirth has also been running a solo project called Birch Book, which is more rooted in the American tradition and distinguished from In Gowan Ring by its more conventional lyrics.