Ola Podrida

Ola Podrida originated in early 2005 as David Wingo's solo project following his relocation back to Texas from New York. Although Wingo had performed on various instruments during high school and college while also scoring three films directed by his friend David Gordon Green—George Washington, All the Real Girls, and Undertow—he had not yet created any material in the role of singer or songwriter. Working alone in his basement before each shift at the video store, he captured the tracks that would form his first album, later recruiting guitarist Robert Patton and drummer Matthew Frank solely for live performances. In 2006 the trio relocated to Brooklyn and expanded the lineup with Johnny Christ handling keyboards and guitars plus American Analog Set vocalist Andrew Kenny on bass. Plug Research issued the self-titled Ola Podrida debut in spring 2007, after which Wingo resumed film-scoring duties that included Todd Rohal's The Guatemalan Handshake and Craig Zobel's Great Wall of Sound, the latter premiering at the 2007 SXSW festival in Austin. Belly of the Lion, Ola Podrida's second album, arrived in 2009 while Wingo maintained his soundtrack commitments, among them a 2011 co-composition with Explosions In The Sky for the Emile Hirsch and Paul Rudd feature Prince Avalanche. Preparing the project's next release, Wingo moved beyond his earlier bedroom approach by assembling a full band that featured Colin Swietek on guitars, Matt Clark on bass, and David Hobizal on drums; together they developed the songs that became the 2013 album Ghosts Go Blind.