Winterpills

Formed in Northampton, Massachusetts, Winterpills draw on the combined efforts of guitarists Dennis Crommett and Philip Price, bassist Max Germer, drummer Dave Hower, and keyboardist-vocalist Flora Reed to shape their atmospheric sound. The project began as a quartet during the winter of 2003, when Crommett, previously active in Spanish for Hitchhiking, and Price, whose background included the Maggies, decided to enlarge their acoustic gatherings. They recruited Hower, already known through Spanish for Hitchhiking, Vatican Commandos, and the Nields, to anchor the rhythm section. Early the following year, folky singer-songwriter Reed—whose solo debut, Settle Down, had appeared in 2002—came aboard, establishing the group in its definitive five-piece configuration.

Signature Sounds issued the self-titled debut album in 2005, after which outlets such as NPR’s Weekend Edition and XM Radio’s The Loft began highlighting the band’s dreamy, delicate indie-rock approach. Touring alongside Erin McKeown, the Mountain Goats, Jesse Sykes & the Sweet Hereafter, and Martha Wainwright helped sustain visibility for that first release. Frequently echoing the style of Elliott Smith, Winterpills returned with The Light Divides on the same label in 2007 and followed it with Central Chambers the next year. An EP titled Tuxedo of Ashes surfaced in 2010, succeeded in early 2012 by the somewhat more muscular and densely arranged All My Lovely Goners.

Continued road work brought support slots with Cake, Vampire Weekend, St. Vincent, Josh Ritter, and Fountains of Wayne. Once Max Germer joined on bass, the quintet delivered its fifth long-player, the earnest covers collection Echolalia, in late 2014; the set included interpretations of material by Nick Drake, Sharon Van Etten, Matthew Sweet, Beck, Buddy Holly, and others. Justin Pizzoferrato, whose credits encompass Pixies and Dinosaur Jr., produced the subsequent studio album of original songs, Love Songs, which arrived in 2016.