Caveman

Brooklyn-based quintet Caveman formed in January 2010 when Matthew Iwanusa, handling lead vocals along with guitar and drums, joined forces with Jimmy “Cobra” Carbonetti on guitar, Stefan Marolachakis on drums and vocals, Sam Hopkins on synthesizer and vocals, and Jeff Berrall on bass and vocals. Their sound merges experimental rock, post-rock, wistful indie rock, and African music traditions into an expansive vision of indie pop. Early live performances quickly drew notice, securing support slots alongside Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, Cursive, and the War on Drugs while earning the group a place on Stereogum’s 40 Best Bands of 2011 list.

CoCo Beware, their debut full-length, appeared first as a digital release in September 2011 and then in physical format two months later through the band’s own Magic Man!/ORG Music imprint. The record interweaves four-part harmonies, tribal drums, trickling keyboards, and hazy guitars into cohesive arrangements, anchored by the single “In the City,” whose video starred actress Julia Stiles. A self-titled follow-up emerged in 2013 on Fat Possum; its quieter, introspective melodies prompted frequent comparisons to the Shins, largely because of vocal parallels between Iwanusa and James Mercer.

Festival appearances at South by Southwest, Bonnaroo, and CMJ followed, along with repeated headline and support tours across the United States and Europe that included dates with Rogue Wave, Ra Ra Riot, and Frightened Rabbit. After Marolachakis departed in fall 2015, multi-instrumentalist Matthew Prescott Clark joined the lineup. The resulting album, Otero War, surfaced in 2016 with Cinematic Music Group handling the digital edition and Relativity Entertainment responsible for the physical release.