Desolation Wilderness

Desolation Wilderness emerged from Olympia, Washington, channeling dreamy electro-pop influences through an analog recording process that leaned loose and was shaped substantially by a Roland Space Echo, two Maestro Echoplex delay units, and several spring reverbs, yielding a hazy, narcotic variant of the sound. Nicolas Zwart launched the project in 2005 as his own solo venture, beginning to lay down vocal and guitar tracks during his final year at Evergreen College, the liberal-arts school in Olympia. Written during a 2008 stay at his grandparents’ beach house in Australia, the debut album White Light Strobing—itself narcotic in tone—reached completion at Calvin Johnson’s Dub Narcotic Studio on the K Records label, where Zwart had interned the previous year. Zwart supplied the majority of the performances himself, layering vocals with overdubbed guitar, vibraphone, and synthesizer, though he also recruited assistance from fellow musicians. Evan Hashi’s drumming ultimately solidified the recordings, while Andrew Dorsett and Adam Oelsner contributed guitar and bass. After a U.S. tour promoting White Light Strobing, K Records released the 7-inch Until Forever, and Zwart later issued his third full-length, Hey Someone, on his own in a limited edition of 100 CD-R copies.