Pure Bathing Culture

Pure Bathing Culture crafts tracks that blend the otherworldly with the recognizable, pulling from the shimmering dream pop of the Cocteau Twins, the enigmatic allure and instant melodies of Fleetwood Mac, plus hints of chillwave and R&B. The alluring peculiarity at the heart of Sarah Versprille and Daniel Hindman’s work defined their first full-length, Moon Tides, issued in 2013; on later efforts such as Pray for Rain from 2015 and Night Pass in 2019, the duo tightened their approach and placed their ear-catching songcraft at the forefront.

Vocalist and keyboardist Versprille first crossed paths with guitarist, bassist, and keyboardist Hindman at college in New Jersey during the late 1990s; the two began a relationship a decade afterward and subsequently joined the indie folk outfit Vetiver. They launched their collaborative writing in 2009 through loop-based experiments before committing more fully to the process. Once they relocated from Brooklyn to Portland, they linked with Richard Swift, who produced their self-titled EP for Father/Daughter Records in 2012. The pair rejoined Swift for Moon Tides, where the stylistic imprint of Fleetwood Mac and Benny Mardones grew clearer; Partisan Records put the album out in August 2013.

To support the Moon Tides tour, Versprille and Hindman recruited bassist Zachary Tillman and drummer Brian Wright, both of whom also appeared on the band’s next studio recording. John Congleton, whose credits include St. Vincent and Angel Olsen, produced that sophomore album, Pray for Rain, released by Partisan in October 2015. Following tours alongside Lucius, Chvrches, and the Shins, the core duo began shaping their third album in 2017 while working with Tucker Martine; around the same time they issued their own take on the Blue Nile’s 1989 release Hats. Night Pass, marked by 1980s textures, arrived on Infinite Companion in April 2019. The following year they released the EP Carrido in memory of their friend and earlier collaborator Richard Swift, who died in 2018.