On The Mirror, the artist's fourth solo record and second album released by 4AD, there's a tender power, countered by immutable vulnerability. Meek grew up in Wimberley, Texas. His first gig was at thirteen, playing rhythm for the Memphis bluesman Brandon Gist, kicking Gist';s old amp when it would short out on stage. Later, he moved to New York where he met Adrianne Lenker. The two lived in a van while singing their songs across the country before forming Big Thief. 

Emerging from a decade of work together in Big Thief, the partnership of Meek and producer James Krivchenia on The Mirror arrived from the idea to combine the band's live, kinetic energy with an oblique electronic world. From production projects like Big Thief's Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You, and Westerman's An Inbuilt Fault, to his recent solo record, Performing Belief--Krivchenia's work enlivens through electronic elements, always seeking to deepen sound. 

Adrianne Lenker, who contributed vocals, is Meek's creative collaborator of fifteen years, while Adam Brisbin on guitar and Ken Woodward on bass have been strongholds in Meek's solo project for a decade. New creative partners and longtime friends like composer and ambient musician Alex Somers joined in on synthesizer, toy microphone, and piano, and Mary Lattimore brought in the sounds of her prismatic harp. Germaine Dunes, Staci Foster, Jolie Holland, and Lenker sing as a choir on many songs. The album includes fan-favorite tracks from Buck's 2024 Australian tour. 

The album was recorded in Meek and Germaine Dunes' log cabin studio, Ringo Bingo. While Meek recorded vocals outdoors on the front porch, looking through the living room window where the band played inside.