Pure Bathing Culture

The Portland duo Pure Bathing Culture play music that sounds like lo-fi and warped Cocteau Twins album tracks, filtered through late-night R&B and chillwave remixes of Fleetwood Mac. The duo of Sarah Versprille (vocals, keyboards) and Daniel Hindman (guitars, bass, and keys) first met at college in New Jersey in the late '90s, ended up dating a decade later, and joined the indie folk band Vetiver. They formed their own band almost by accident while fooling around with loops, then got serious, moved to Portland from Brooklyn, and released a self-titled four-song EP for Father-Daughter Records in 2012. Part of the reason for the move was to work with producer Richard Swift, and their first album, 2013's Moon Tides, was recorded over ten days at Swift's National Freedom studio and released by Partisan Records. For the touring that followed, the duo added bassist Zachary Tillman and drummer Brian Wright to the lineup. They were involved in the recording of the next album, too. Pray for Rain was produced by John Congleton, who worked with St. Vincent and Angel Olson, among others, and released by Partisan in late 2015. ~ Tim Sendra