[15] "I wanted the album to exist in a liminal space outside of time, inhabiting both the future and the past, accessing something spiritual or personal that is untouchable by whatever the state of the world may be at a given moment, whatever our season."

He created playlists of hundreds of "warm" songs, immersing himself in the music of Arthur Russell, Curtis Mayfield, Nina Simone, Michael Nau, Van Morrison, Sam Cooke, The Roches, João Gilberto, Piero Piccioni, Tim Bernardes, Tim Maia, Jai Paul, and Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou.

Pecknold set out to be productive and avoid another long break between albums, and wrote every day to develop compositions and a musical concept.

At Long Pond, he also worked with The Westerlies, a horn quartet composed of Andy Clausen, Chloe Rowlands, Riley Mulherkar, and Willem de Koch.

[17] Akhere was a Columbia University student studying abroad at Oxford at the time and she traveled by train to Paris to record vocals.

Between November 2019 and March 2020, Pecknold and Artola recorded at Woody Jackson's Electro-Vox Studio in Los Angeles California.

Instruments they were afforded use of at Vox included an extensive collection of various guitar and bass models, Baldwin electric harpsichords, treated congas, a prototype Orchestron, taiko drums, Mahayana temple blocks, and a vibraphone played on The Beach Boys' album Pet Sounds, as well as an organ belonging to Fela Kuti and a drum kit belonging to Frank Sinatra.

[1][16][18] Toward the end of February 2020, Pecknold had the majority of Shore conceptualized and artist contributions recorded, but he failed to write any lyrics he felt comfortable with.

[1][16] Shore was made without the other members of Fleet Foxes: Skyler Skjelset, Casey Wescott, Christian Wargo, and Morgan Henderson.

Pecknold expected to record with the band but did not due to the pandemic lockdown as well as his desire to finish the album and quickly release it.

[citation needed] Will Hodgkinson of The Times characterized the album's mood as similar to the Portuguese/Brazilian emotion of saudade, a "kind of wistfulness containing sadness and hope in equal measures".

[17] The lyrics of "Sunblind" reference Pecknold's musical heroes who have died, including Richard Swift, Bill Withers, John Prine, Elliott Smith, Arthur Russell, Judee Sill, David Berman, Nick Drake, Otis Redding, Jeff Buckley, Curtis Mayfield, and Jimi Hendrix.

[22][23][24] In its chorus, Pecknold expresses gratitude for being alive and pledges to use the inspiration the artists have given him to live a full life in honor of their deaths.

[7] On August 15, 2020, Pecknold debuted "Featherweight" in a performance as part of Vote Ready Live, a livestream event encouraging voter registration.

Pecknold confirmed via the band's Discord channel that Shore was an album and revealed that it would feature contributions from Grizzly Bear guitarist and vocalist Daniel Rossen.

[17] Shore was also promoted on the marquees of numerous venues in the United States, including the Paramount Theatre in Seattle, the Paradise Rock Club in Boston, Webster Hall in New York, Crystal Ballroom in Portland, Oregon, and the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles.

It also features Jean Charles, who previously appeared in Sean Pecknold's music video for "I Am All That I Need / Arroyo Seco / Thumbprint Scar".

The concert features Pecknold performing an acoustic solo set inside the St. Ann & the Holy Trinity Church in Brooklyn.

[45][46] It begins with a performance of "Wading in Waist-High Water" featuring the Resistance Revival Chorus, a collective of women and nonbinary singers.

[50] In the review for AllMusic, Timothy Monger praised the album: "As a collection, Shore emits a sense of coming through something and arriving anew with the welcome bruises that foster greater understanding and compassion.

"[4] Matthew Strauss of Pitchfork wrote that the album "looks to the world and realizes there is already enough, as if staring into a darkness and responding with beauty, acceptance, and light.

"[55] James McNair of Mojo rated the album 5 out of 5 stars, writing, "The vital spark that graced Fleet Foxes' debut is back.

"[56] Steven Johnson of musicOMH rated the album 5 out of 5 stars, calling it a "future classic" and commending Pecknold's "move to the centreground that shows his absorbing of musical influences is paying rich dividends.

"[24] Robin Murray at Clash also commended the album, praising "how natural, how unhurried everything is" and called it "a broad record of real depth that contains moments of striking beauty.

"[58] Writing for Consequence of Sound, Lindsay Teske commended Pecknold's "thoughtful and openhearted" lyrics and praised the album's musical subtleties for making it a "conglomerate of detail" with rewarding discovery.

[51] In a 5/10 review for Loud and Quiet, Tristan Gatward called the album "quickly stifled each time a redeeming chorus comes around" and wrote, "In a career first, Pecknold's lyrics feel rushed and insular, like we're watching smoke particles bounce around a small plastic container looking for the breathing hole.