Starcleaner Reunion is ready to shoot for the moon with the release of their debut album, Umbrella. The Brooklyn-based band, consisting of vocalist Jo Roman, bassist Adam Kenter, and guitarists Neil Torman and Pat Drummond, has spent years honing their sound through a series of EPs and consistent live performances. As they prepare for their September release, the group reflects on the happy accidents and creative risks that defined their transition from a local favorite to a band with grand, psychedelic ambitions.
The Evolution of a Sound
The band’s origin story traces back to Springfield, New Jersey, where the members first bonded over a shared love for indie staples like Pavement and art-pop pioneers such as Stereolab. After years of gigging in New York and releasing projects like Club Estrella and Café Life, the band felt the time was right to assemble their first full-length LP. For Umbrella, they made a conscious decision to move beyond the constraints of a traditional rock band.
“We were like, ‘fuck it, let’s make it crazy, who cares how we perform it live?’” Torman explains. This shift in mindset allowed the band to experiment with production techniques that they previously might have avoided. By embracing the freedom of the studio, they created a record that feels like a half-remembered dream, incorporating everything from banjo textures to the rhythmic slamming of a metal door.
Creative Quirks and Studio Magic
Recording in Adam Kenter’s home studio—a space that served as their creative hub for over a decade—provided the band with the luxury of time. This environment fostered a sense of experimentation that would have been difficult to replicate in a professional studio setting. Drummond, who dove deep into sound design, utilized Ableton to transform samples into synth-like pads, while other tracks feature unconventional sounds like the crackling of a Yankee Candle or the rhythmic clatter of a box of keys.
“We were more interested in doing something that sounded like us instead of something that sounded perfect,” says Torman.
The band’s collaborative spirit extends to their inner circle as well. They enlisted friends to contribute unique instrumentation, including an “aluminum cello” crafted by Talullah Calderwood and string arrangements composed by the father of their mixing engineer, Ruben Radlauer. These contributions add layers of depth to the album’s nebulous, free-flowing structure.
Looking Toward the Future
As they look ahead to touring, the band is already considering how to translate their complex studio creations to the stage. While they acknowledge the challenge of replicating the intricate layers of Umbrella, they remain optimistic about the future. For Jo Roman, the songwriting process remains a constant, driven by a collection of thousands of voice memos and a desire to explore new narratives. With Umbrella arriving on September 25 via Take Care Records, Starcleaner Reunion is poised to cement their place in the indie landscape, proving that their willingness to experiment is their greatest strength.
