[7] The two albums were conceived in the aftermath of a breakup and after touring with her band Big Thief was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Adrianne Lenker is the lead vocalist and guitarist of the American indie rock band Big Thief.

Lenker flew back to New York and drove to Western Massachusetts to be with her sister Zoë, staying in a one-room cabin next door.

[18] Recording took place from April 22 to May 23, 2020, in Westhampton, Massachusetts in the small one-room pine cabin in the foothills of the Berkshire Mountains.

The albums feature Lenker's vocals and her playing acoustic guitar, as well using a paint brush and the needles of a white pine tree as instruments.

It also features recordings of the rain, the wind, the fire from a wood stove, the chimes on her front porch, the birds, and the insects of the forest.

[9][20] Both albums present a lo-fi sound, consisting primarily of Lenker's vocals and acoustic guitar.

[26] Lenker performed five tracks from the album on NPR's "Tiny Desk (Home) Concert" series, released on November 18, 2020.

[28] A video for "Forwards Beckon Rebound" was released on February 3, 2021, featuring Lenker dancing in the California desert at Wild Heart Ranch in Joshua Tree.

[32] Roisin O'Connor of The Independent gave Songs a perfect score, writing, "It's excruciating in its honesty – even for Lenker, who's hardly known for shying away from her feelings.

"[36] Peter Watts of Uncut gave the album an 8 out of 10 rating, writing, "Most musicians would use these sounds to ground the music in a sense of naturalism, but with Lenker it enhances the mystery.

"[5] In her three-star review for Mojo, Victoria Segal wrote that the albums "seem to have rolled away from the modern world entirely" and that Songs felt more focused with Lenker's "sweet, freshly cut" vocals.