Isbells

What began as Gaëtan Vandewoude’s one-man project, the same musician who once played drums for blues-rock outfit Ellroy and handled guitar duties in emo group Soon, eventually took shape as Isbells, whose acoustic folk textures have invited parallels with Bon Iver and Fleet Foxes. Vandewoude composed the bulk of the band’s 2009 self-titled debut in seclusion inside a disused stable, after which he enlisted Naima Joris, Bart Borremans, and Gianni Marzo to bring the material to audiences, resulting in 140 concerts across eighteen months that included support slots for Megafaun and the Low Anthem. The album’s gradual, grassroots ascent yielded 10,000 copies sold within Belgium, prompting a 2012 follow-up titled Stoalin'.