DRINKS

Tim Presley, frontman of White Fence, and Cate Le Bon each commanded respect as neo-psych artists and already admired one another’s recordings when they formed DRINKS. The pair converged on Los Angeles in 2013—Presley from San Francisco, Le Bon from Wales—so she could complete Mug Museum, after which both settled in the Highland Park district. Le Bon’s subsequent role in the White Fence touring lineup made further collaboration feel inevitable.

Securing a downtown rehearsal room, they recruited White Fence drummer Nick Murray and began probing the more exploratory edges of their individual approaches. No finished composition could be introduced; instead, hours were spent shaping guitar textures until viable ideas emerged. The sessions yielded Hermits on Holiday, issued on Presley’s Birth Records in August 2015.

Separate and joint activity continued through the next several years. Presley issued an experimental W-X album in 2015, while 2016 brought The WiNK—produced by Le Bon—and Crab Day, whose direction reflected her time spent with Presley. The duo toured together in 2017, then signed with Drag City for a second DRINKS release.

They withdrew to the South of France for a month of writing and tracking, assisted only by Stephen Black of Sweet Baboo, who also played bass in Le Bon’s live band. John Thomas, another member of that group, added drums afterward, and Samur Khouja mixed the material in Los Angeles. The resulting Hippo Lite revisited the sonic territory of their debut and appeared in April 2018.