Biography
Before embarking on her own path as a solo performer, the vocalist, composer, and multi-instrumentalist Heather Trost took part in several experimental indie-rock and folk ventures during the 2000s and the years that followed, most prominently as half of the acclaimed Balkan-inspired folk-rock duo A Hawk and a Hacksaw. Her first full-length solo statement, Agistri, arrived in 2017 on her own L.M. Dupli-Cation imprint; she handled multiple instruments herself and steered the material toward psychedelia and lounge-tinged space-pop textures. Later releases refined that approach, with 2020’s Petrichor introducing dreamy folk introspection and 2022’s Desert Flowers favoring a brighter, more innocent strain of psychedelia, all while documenting her steady evolution as both producer and songwriter.
Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Trost began working with former Neutral Milk Hotel drummer Barnes in 2004, becoming a central member of his project A Hawk and a Hacksaw, whose chief inspiration came from the folk traditions of Romania, the Czech Republic, and neighboring Balkan regions. Initially issued on the U.K. imprint The Leaf Label, the duo’s sound relied heavily on Trost’s fiddle and vocals alongside Barnes as the core partnership. During the same period she and Barnes also joined Zach Condon’s Beirut, appearing prominently on the albums Gulag Orkestar and The Flying Club Cup. Deepening her engagement with European folk practices, Trost relocated to Budapest with Barnes in the late 2000s, where the pair recorded their fourth album, 2009’s Délivrance. After parting ways with The Leaf Label they established Living Music Duplication, frequently stylized as L.M. Dupli-Cation, to issue their own recordings; the first of these was 2011’s Cervantine, which folded mariachi and Greek elements into the group’s existing palette.
Trost next issued an experimental, limited-edition cassette of two minimalist keyboard instrumentals titled Ouroboros on the boutique Cimiotti label in 2015. Two years afterward she delivered her proper solo debut, the Agistri LP, again on L.M. Dupli-Cation. The more song-focused set revealed traces of soundtrack music, psychedelic pop, and samba, and included contributions from Barnes, Deerhoof guitarist John Dieterich, and Drake Hardin and Rosie Hutchinson of Mammal Eggs; among its atmospheric psych-pop tracks was a spacey reading of Harry Nilsson’s “Me and My Arrow.”
Trost returned in 2020 on Third Man Records with the more introspective and intimate Petrichor, which likewise contained a Nilsson cover, “Jump into the Fire.” She and Barnes produced the album themselves in their home studio, a method they repeated for 2022’s Desert Flowers. Released by Ba Da Bing, the record merged the expansive pop sensibility of her solo debut with the folky closeness of Petrichor, resulting in a concise, melodically rich collection of arrangements.
Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Trost began working with former Neutral Milk Hotel drummer Barnes in 2004, becoming a central member of his project A Hawk and a Hacksaw, whose chief inspiration came from the folk traditions of Romania, the Czech Republic, and neighboring Balkan regions. Initially issued on the U.K. imprint The Leaf Label, the duo’s sound relied heavily on Trost’s fiddle and vocals alongside Barnes as the core partnership. During the same period she and Barnes also joined Zach Condon’s Beirut, appearing prominently on the albums Gulag Orkestar and The Flying Club Cup. Deepening her engagement with European folk practices, Trost relocated to Budapest with Barnes in the late 2000s, where the pair recorded their fourth album, 2009’s Délivrance. After parting ways with The Leaf Label they established Living Music Duplication, frequently stylized as L.M. Dupli-Cation, to issue their own recordings; the first of these was 2011’s Cervantine, which folded mariachi and Greek elements into the group’s existing palette.
Trost next issued an experimental, limited-edition cassette of two minimalist keyboard instrumentals titled Ouroboros on the boutique Cimiotti label in 2015. Two years afterward she delivered her proper solo debut, the Agistri LP, again on L.M. Dupli-Cation. The more song-focused set revealed traces of soundtrack music, psychedelic pop, and samba, and included contributions from Barnes, Deerhoof guitarist John Dieterich, and Drake Hardin and Rosie Hutchinson of Mammal Eggs; among its atmospheric psych-pop tracks was a spacey reading of Harry Nilsson’s “Me and My Arrow.”
Trost returned in 2020 on Third Man Records with the more introspective and intimate Petrichor, which likewise contained a Nilsson cover, “Jump into the Fire.” She and Barnes produced the album themselves in their home studio, a method they repeated for 2022’s Desert Flowers. Released by Ba Da Bing, the record merged the expansive pop sensibility of her solo debut with the folky closeness of Petrichor, resulting in a concise, melodically rich collection of arrangements.
Albums
Singles
