Darlingside

Caffè Lena has been part of Darlingside’s growth, having graced our stage since 2013 as part of the Emerging Artist Breakout Series. These multi-instrumentalists first met at Williams College in 2009, and since then have been described by NPR as “exquisitely arranged, literary minded, baroque folk-pop.” Darlingside’s career has been defined by the elegance of their compositions and the unity of their voices. The group’s talent for harmony and melodic world-building is part of what garnered praise from Rolling Stone and The New Yorker, and what has created demand worldwide for their extraordinary live performances. With a vigor and discipline more common to graduate-level writing workshops than to indie rock, Darlingside has, over the years, experimented with all manners of idiosyncratic methods for elevating and upholding a truly democratic process of songwriting – processes that include multiple rounds of group writing and recording exercises.

The band’s fourth LP, Everything Is Alive, marks a subtle but remarkable departure. Grappling with change both personal and universal, with quandaries domestic and existential, their latest is an album about loss and the struggle for a semblance of redemption. Nudged by the limitations created by pandemic isolation, as well as through other more voluntary catalysts, the album, which was produced and recorded by the band and mixed by Tucker Martine (My Morning Jacket, Sufjan Stevens, Iron and Wine), sustains the individual voices of each member. It’s rare that a group of musicians create emulsifying magic to make the whole greater than the sum of its parts – and to see Darlingside perform live is to confirm this special chemistry. We are excited to bring Darlingside back to Saratoga Springs for Caffè Lena@SPAC.

Field Guide (aka Dylan MacDonald) is a weaver of worlds. Built around his inviting voice and wrapped in warm textures, his self-titled sophomore full-length builds his most engaging world yet. It lives in a place between darkness and hopefulness with unshakeable melodies at its heart. “Melody is what makes words fall out of my mouth. It’s disarming. When I find a melody that represents my internal world, I drop my guard. I allow the words to appear out of thin air without judgement. A lot of these songs came to life that way. I wasn’t trying to make anything, but the songs became a home for words that I wasn’t yet ready to write on the page,” MacDonald says. “Field Guide creates a chimerical dreamlike soundscape, brought to life by his soft-spoken lyrical imaginings.” (Under the Radar). Indie 88 writes: “With tender instrumentals and intimate vocals, [Field Guide] is sure to pull at your heartstrings…he has truly cemented a signature sound.”