Desert Liminal

Emerging from Chicago in 2017, Desert Liminal originated as singer/songwriter Sarah Jane Quillin’s endeavor. Across multiple years the project evolved into a three-piece ensemble whose releases merged introspective songcraft with layers of noise and shoegaze, evident on the 2017 album Static Thick and the 2021 follow-up Glass Fate. Their 2024 set Black Ocean adopted a more inward and somber palette.

Quillin, still active in the lo-fi outfit Heavy Dreams, started capturing hazy, understated material in late 2016 on a Casio CT-310 augmented by assorted effects pedals. The resulting three-song Catalina, Still EP appeared under the Desert Liminal banner in March 2017, conceived at first as a solitary outlet. Anticipating live performances, she enlisted drummer Rob Logan in August 2017; by November the pair had completed their debut full-length, Static Thick. That recording blended warped synth tones, minimal percussion, and heavily processed voices. A year afterward they issued the four-song cassette EP Comb for Gold. Violinist and noise artist Mallory Linehan joined in 2019, expanding the group to a trio whose richer sonic approach surfaced on the 2020 singles “Pipedream” and “Alien Grace” before reaching fuller expression on the November 2021 album Glass Fate.

Desert Liminal’s third LP, Black Ocean, pursued broader arrangements that emphasized a denser, more contemplative atmosphere. The record, issued in October 2024, was co-produced by the band and Nick Broste.