Hummingbird

Description

The Whiles is an indie-folk-rock band from Columbus (Ohio), whose career spans four decades. Formed in the late 90s, the band has shared the stage with The National, Grizzly Bear, and My Morning Jacket; one of their songs was featured in an Oscar-nominated documentary (*Murderball*), and all its members were at the heart of the famous "Sgt Peppercorn's Marathon" - an event praised by Paul McCartney himself - unique in its kind, where the entire repertoire of the Beatles (220 songs) is performed during a 14-hour marathon concert. In 2024, The Whiles planned to record a new album with legendary producer Steve Albini (Nirvana, Pixies, Breeders). Unfortunately, Albini tragically passed away three months before the scheduled recording dates. The band then changed direction and completed two albums independently in their personal studios: 'Hummingbird', a polyrhythmic meditation of ten tracks on middle-aged parenting in a post-Covid world, and 'Colors of the Year', a 3D reinterpretation and new recording of the band's 2004 masterpiece. These two albums showcase the band's ability to blend Beach Boys harmonies, guitar compositions in the spirit of George Harrison, 2000s indie aesthetics (in the style of The Shins or The National), lyrical precision inherited from Dylan and Cohen, as well as an emotional vulnerability reminiscent of The Smiths and Elliott Smith. The Whiles offers a musical kaleidoscope of unique sincerity through these two records, hoping they will resonate in a fragmented world in search of beauty and truth; the band looks forward to returning, celebrating both the revival of a forgotten gem ('Colors of the Year') and the future with a new series of songs ('Hummingbird').