Connecticut duo Have a Nice Life fused somber atmosphere with traces of droning shoegaze and an industrial edge of post-punk, riding grassroots online momentum during the late 2000s and earning acclaim as advocates for the troubled and despondent. Their experimental sound, first heard on the self-released 2008 debut Deathconsciousness, gradually built a revered cult following that paved the way for further bleak outings such as 2014’s The Unnatural World and the comparatively brighter Sea of Worry in 2019.
Dan Barrett and Tim Macuga formed the project in the mid-2000s, regularly clearing rooms at area open mikes with bleak material that they soon captured in home-recorded lo-fi sketches. They issued the sprawling double album Deathconsciousness in 2008 on their own Enemies List Home Recordings imprint with little fanfare or expectations. Blending hazy narcotic layers, shadowy post-rock, shoegaze, and brooding post-punk, the set gained traction organically through forums such as Sputnikmusic and 4chan’s /mu/, astonishing Barrett and Macuga with its intense grassroots devotion; emo-rapper Lil Peep later sampled its opening track, boosting the duo’s visibility. They performed only occasionally, issuing the Time of Land EP in 2010 before partnering with the West Coast outsider imprint the Flenser for The Unnatural World in 2014. That release intensified the noise and goth elements of their style and resonated strongly with devoted listeners. They kept running Enemies List, putting out kindred doom-rock efforts from similar acts. Their third album, the more vigorous Sea of Worry, surfaced in 2019 via the Flenser.
