The Nude Party

The Nude Party channel the raucous frat-rock clang of the 1960s along with the influence of the Rolling Stones and the Velvet Underground. Early guidance came from Oakley Munson of Black Lips, who produced their opening release, the Hot Tub EP, issued in 2016. Subsequent albums appeared on New West Records: the Munson-helmed The Nude Party in 2018, Midnight Manor in 2020, and the self-produced Rides On in 2023.

What began as an extended circle of childhood friends and stepsiblings evolved into a band after the members taught themselves their instruments. The project took shape inside a dormitory at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, during 2012, when freshman Patton Magee, handling lead vocals and guitar, assembled lead guitarist Shaun Couture, organist and pianist Don Merrill, bassist Alec Castillo, percussionist Austin Brose, and drummer Connor Mikita. Backup vocals are shared among most of the six. The group soon relocated to a lake house, where nightly basement sessions became routine. Regular appearances as the house band at a Boone party spot led to their habit of playing unclothed and earned the local tag “the naked party band.” They settled on the name the Nude Party shortly before shifting to club and bar engagements that required clothing.

The band crossed paths with Black Lips drummer Oakley Munson at a 2014 Charlotte performance. Munson recorded their initial set of tracks, the Hot Tub EP, which surfaced in early 2016. Growing attention to its unpolished energy prompted a move to Munson’s New York Catskills base and frequent shows in Brooklyn and nearby areas. New West then signed the group for a debut album produced by Munson and featuring the original six members; The Nude Party reached stores in July 2018. Returning to the Catskills with Munson after two years of road work, they issued Midnight Manor in October 2020, which introduced pedal steel guitarist Jon “Catfish” Delorme.

Now a seven-piece, the band chose to self-produce the follow-up, laying down more than twenty songs that occasionally departed from prior styles. The final selection of thirteen tracks emphasized 1970s blues-rock touchstones such as the Rolling Stones while still allowing 1960s excursions. Rides On appeared on New West in March 2023.