His Name Is Alive- Livonia

Label: 4AD

Reissued 5/8/2026, Originally released 1990

His Name Is Alive’s 1990 4AD label debut Livonia cemented the band’s presence among 4AD’s well-established ethereal lineage, reinventing and refracting the label’s sound through a prism. A tender and slightly deranged dream-pop record, it packages nearly ten years of Defever’s home recordings — brought to haunting chorus via the spectral, feminine vocals of Karin Oliver. Produced / mixed by Ivo Watts-Russell and This Mortal Coil collaborator John Fryer, the record is a powerful opening statement, inviting intrigue via noisy refrains and textural guitar. It examines the dual themes of love and loss, woozily delivered as if dreamlike.

Track listing:

1. As We Could Ever
   
2. E Nicolle (Introduction)
   
3. If July
   
4. Some and I
   
5. Fossil (Verse)
   
6. E Nicolle
   
7. Caroline's Supposed Demon
   
8. Fossil
   
9. Reincarnation
   
10. You and I Have Seizures
    
11. How Ghosts Affect Relationships
    
12. Darkest Dreams