Biography
Originating in Brooklyn, singer/songwriter Nicole Schneit launched the Air Waves project toward the end of the 2000s, blending lo-fi indie rock with introspective folk in ways that felt both haphazard and atmospheric. Early releases such as Dungeon Dots in 2010 and Parting Glances in 2015 built the project's profile, yet the 2018 album Warrior earned Schneit wider critical attention; five years afterward came the 2022 return titled The Dance.
Schneit first operated independently under the Air Waves name in 2007, drawing the moniker from a Guided by Voices song. An affinity for straightforward melodies and a mildly roughened pop approach attracted early supporters, among them Dan Deacon, who once described the music as "a favorite blanket wrapped around you." Echoes of the Clean, the Velvet Underground, and Neil Young informed an amalgam of folk, country, and lo-fi indie rock that reached the New Jersey-based Underwater Peoples label, which issued the second LP, Dungeon Dots, in 2010. Recorded by Kevin McMahon at Marcata Recording, the Walkmen's home studio, the album included a guest vocal from fellow Brooklyn songstress Sharon Van Etten. After sustained touring, Schneit spent extra time shaping the next collection, enlisting Woods member Jarvis Taveniere to produce 2015's Parting Glances, Air Waves' third album and its debut on the Austin-based Western Vinyl imprint. Three years later, more explicitly political songwriting surfaced on Warrior, addressing human rights and LGBTQ issues alongside her mother's battle with cancer, marking Air Waves' most personal statement to that point.
Schneit stayed productive in the ensuing years, developing fresh material at Brooklyn's Figure 8 Studios alongside Luke Temple, Cass McCombs, and Fleet Foxes' Skyler Skjelset. Following a signing with Fire Records, Air Waves issued their fifth LP, 2022's The Dance.
Schneit first operated independently under the Air Waves name in 2007, drawing the moniker from a Guided by Voices song. An affinity for straightforward melodies and a mildly roughened pop approach attracted early supporters, among them Dan Deacon, who once described the music as "a favorite blanket wrapped around you." Echoes of the Clean, the Velvet Underground, and Neil Young informed an amalgam of folk, country, and lo-fi indie rock that reached the New Jersey-based Underwater Peoples label, which issued the second LP, Dungeon Dots, in 2010. Recorded by Kevin McMahon at Marcata Recording, the Walkmen's home studio, the album included a guest vocal from fellow Brooklyn songstress Sharon Van Etten. After sustained touring, Schneit spent extra time shaping the next collection, enlisting Woods member Jarvis Taveniere to produce 2015's Parting Glances, Air Waves' third album and its debut on the Austin-based Western Vinyl imprint. Three years later, more explicitly political songwriting surfaced on Warrior, addressing human rights and LGBTQ issues alongside her mother's battle with cancer, marking Air Waves' most personal statement to that point.
Schneit stayed productive in the ensuing years, developing fresh material at Brooklyn's Figure 8 Studios alongside Luke Temple, Cass McCombs, and Fleet Foxes' Skyler Skjelset. Following a signing with Fire Records, Air Waves issued their fifth LP, 2022's The Dance.
Albums
Singles
