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Talkhouse

Dougie Poole is a country musician and songwriter based in LA. Coming of age in Providence, Rhode Island he dabbled in heavier and more experimental music before maturing into a country auteur. He writes earnestly about his experience (life in the big city, heartbreak in the digital age) and approaches country music with honesty and a deep respect for the genre&#8217;s traditions. His latest record, At Tubby&#8217;s, is out now on Wharf Cat.

Dougie Poole

Music

Best of 2020: Dougie Poole Got Into Organizing This Year

Benny Sings is a songwriter’s songwriter.  A surprising talent from the Netherlands, he signed to Stones Throw last year and his upcoming 2021 album will feature lots of cool guests, which is just the latest in this incredible run of collaborations.  Benny co-wrote and is featured on Rex Orange County’s platinum single “Loving Is Easy.”  He’s featured on Anderson Paak and the Free Nationals’ album from last year, plus Mayer Hawthorne, Goldlink, PJ Morton, Cornelius. Another big supporter is NPR.  Benny taped a<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jVn_JCjpT4" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Tiny Desk</a> in 2016 and was invited to do a<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4vnYGgoYBQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Tiny Desk (Home) Concert</a> this summer.

Benny Sings

Best of 2020: Benny Sings on Charlie Kaufman and Noah Baumbach

Lillie West is an artist, musician, and producer from London, currently living in Chicago. She values collaboration, fervor, and community.

Lillie West

Best of 2020: Lillie West (Lala Lala) Talks Nnamdi’s “Wasted”

Alicia Bognanno is the front-woman of the Nashville-based band Bully. Their most recent album, Losing, was released in 2017 via Sub Pop.
(Photo Credit: Alysse Gafkjen)

Alicia Bognanno

Best of 2020: Alicia Bognanno Loved the New Waxahatchee Record

Rhett Miller is the frontman of the Old 97’s, and has released five solo albums. The most recent Old 97’s album, Twelfth, is available now via ATO Records. You can follow the Old 97’s on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/Old97s" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>, and Miller on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/rhettmiller" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.

Rhett Miller

Best of 2020: Rhett Miller Loved Utopia Avenue

Kristin Hersh is a musician who also fronts the bands Throwing Muses and 50FootWave. She is the author of the books Rat Girl and Don&#8217;t Suck, Don&#8217;t Die: Giving Up Vic Chesnutt.

Kristin Hersh

Best of 2020: Kristin Hersh Talks Fred Abong’s First Record in 30 Years

Hamilton Leithauser lives with his wife and two baby girls in New York City. He was the singer for rock band the Walkmen from 2000-2014. He recently got social on the internet and now has<a href="https://twitter.com/HLeithauser" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Twitter</a>, <a href="http://facebook.com/jameshamiltonleithauser" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a> and a <a href="http://www.hamiltonleithauser.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">website</a>.

Hamilton Leithauser

Best of 2020: Hamilton Leithauser on Charlie Kaufman’s Other Big Project of This Year

Porridge Radio originated from Dana Margolin’s bedroom, where she first started making music. Living in the seaside town of Brighton, she recorded songs and played them at open mic nights to rooms of old men staring quietly, as she screamed in their faces. Their second album (and Secretly Canadian debut) Every Bad glistens with grand, sweeping ambition. 80s-esque synths shine against Margolin’s urgent vocals – with all the rawness of early Karen O, and influences as disparate as Charli XCX and The Cranberries. Oscillating between desperation, resignation, and, crucially, hope, Porridge Radio’s unmistakable take on pop music is like a jewelry box twinkle just out of kilter.
(Photo Credit: El Hardwick)

Porridge Radio

Best of 2020: Dana Margolin of Porridge Radio Loves Sorry’s 925

Bartees Strange was born in Ipswich, a town in Suffolk, England. His family did stints in Germany, Greenland, and a number of states across America before he hit his 12th birthday when they settled in Mustang, Oklahoma. Bartees began producing music for friends with a small project studio he built out of a Tascam 388, the family computer and a pirated copy of FL Studio. Through AOL instant messenger, Bartees connected with old friends in the UK, who brought him up to speed on a new world of sonic influence led by Bloc Party, Burial, Robyn and Skream. College, and a half-decade stint in Brooklyn connected him with the rising indie scene — particularly favorites like Bon Iver, TV on The Radio, Frank Ocean, James Blake, King Krule, Japanese Breakfast, Mt. Kimbie, Mitski, Thao Nguyen, and The National, giving him a crash course in lyrical intrigue and textural brilliance.
Say Goodbye to Pretty Boy is a summary of his influences and the first commercial release by an artist who we truly think can go on to become a cultural influencer in his own right. Bartees resides in Washington, DC — where makes music and works at a non profit fighting against climate change and poverty.
(Photo Credit: Bao Ngo)

Bartees Strange

Best of 2020: Bartees Strange Talks Vivarium

Basia Bulat is a three-time Polaris Music Prize finalist and has been nominated for three JUNO Awards. She is known for her extensive touring and vibrant live shows that feature her powerful voice and multi-instrument skills – switching from piano, to autoharp, to charango, to guitar. She has performed at such festivals as Montreux Jazz Festival, Austin City Limits and Newport Folk Festival and has performed for audiences at venues like Carnegie Hall, Royal Theater Carré and headlined at Massey Hall. In addition to releasing her own album in 2020—the Jim James-produced Are You In Love?—Bulat co-produced and co-wrote songs with Meg Remy for the new U.S. Girls album, Heavy Light, and co-produced the soon to be released debut album from Kass Richards, The Language Shadow.

Basia Bulat

Best of 2020: Basia Bulat on U.S. Girls’ Heavy Light

SSION is Cody Critcheloe, a New York City-based songwriter, musician, visual artist, and director.

SSION

Best of 2020: Cody Critcheloe (SSION) Thinks Róisín Machine is Perfection

Oceanator’s debut full-length, Things I Never Said, sees NYC multi-instrumentalist Elise Okusami hyperbolically equating early adulthood malaise with apocalyptic destruction. The type of anxieties that form when thoughts bottle up and stress gets the best of you. Throughout the record, allusions to intrusive thoughts and depression-induced stasis are weaved in between references to falling skies, rolling fires, and the possibility of the world literally falling apart.
However, while Okusami’s emotional and physical solitude makes for a resilient foe, Things I Never Said is ultimately a record about finding comfort in the face of destruction, whether it be through appreciating the little things or forming a bond with someone you can mutually confide in about mental afflictions. There’s no concrete resolution to the album, but rather a vital reminder that love and friendship, both with others and herself, will always reign victorious in our darkest moments

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