Cupid & Psyche

Suspended in murky strata of guitar haze, Cupid & Psyche’s introspective post-punk echoes the wistful spirit of the Cure and the Psychedelic Furs while nodding toward subsequent shoegaze influences. The pair, both former members of Abe Vigoda, issued their first full-length album, Romantic Music, in 2023.

Drawing the moniker from Scritti Politti’s 1985 release and retaining every mythological resonance implied by its Greek counterparts, Cupid & Psyche originated in Los Angeles when ex-Abe Vigoda colleagues Michael Vidal and Juan Velasquez—the latter also known from Lunch Lady—reunited. During the initial COVID-19 pandemic period, lacking motivation, they began casual rehearsals in a practice space without any fixed objective. Velasquez described navigating Vidal’s extended chord sequences amid the resulting noisy dissonance, emotion, and eventual catharsis; those qualities prompted additional sessions that shaped the material for Romantic Music, which Felte issued toward the end of 2023.