Vandaveer

Vandaveer functions as an indie folk endeavor led by Washington, D.C.-based singer/songwriter Mark Charles Heidinger. An experienced performer and group leader, Heidinger previously served as frontman of the indie pop outfit the Apparitions and also performed on bass with These United States. The project began as a solo effort via the 2007 release Grace & Speed before developing into a sustained partnership once singer Rose Guerin became a permanent member with 2009's Divide & Conquer. The pair's vocal interplay received strong focus amid the minimal, lo-fi textures of the 2010 EP A Minor Spell. Country and Americana leanings shaped 2011's Dig Down Deep, which sustained the band's work with Kentucky-based producer Duane Lundy. Heidinger's longstanding interest in roots traditions led him to compile a set of traditional songs and old murder ballads for the rustic 2013 album Oh, Willie Please…. Initial plans for the fifth album called for a stripped-down presentation of intimate new songs, yet rehearsals prompted a shift toward richer arrangements. Heidinger and Guerin, alongside producer Lundy, brought in longtime associates Robby Cosenza, Justin Craig, and J. Tom Hnatow—all former members of These United States—to track The Wild Mercury, which appeared in early 2016.