シルヴァン・エッソ

Sylvan Esso began taking shape in 2012 and formally emerged in Durham, North Carolina, in 2013, bringing together vocalist Amelia Meath of the folk trio Mountain Man and producer and multi-instrumentalist Nick Sanborn, who performed solo as Made of Oak and had played with Megafaun. They met at Milwaukee’s Cactus Club, where Meath asked Sanborn to rework Mountain Man’s “Play It Right.” The result established the duo’s combination of folk-rooted vocals, spare electronic arrangements, and bass-heavy rhythms. After signing with Partisan Records, Sylvan Esso released their self-titled debut album in 2014. It reached number 39 on the Billboard 200 and included “Hey Mami,” which Paste named its top song of 2014, and “Coffee,” which the duo performed during their network-television debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. They appeared at Coachella in 2015 before moving to Loma Vista Recordings for What Now in 2017. Featuring “Radio” and “Die Young,” the album reached number 32 on the Billboard 200 and received a Grammy nomination for Best Dance/Electronic Album. The 2019 WITH tour expanded the duo into a ten-piece ensemble, and its rearrangements were documented through the concert film and live album WITH in 2020. Their third studio album, Free Love, followed later that year, supported by “Ferris Wheel,” “Rooftop Dancing,” “Frequency,” and “Free.” It earned Sylvan Esso a second Grammy nomination, while the live-performance EP WITH LOVE and the 2021 remix EP Numb extended the project. In 2022, the duo unexpectedly performed their fourth album, No Rules Sandy, in full at the Newport Folk Festival before releasing it through Loma Vista. The record, preceded by “Sunburn,” “Your Reality,” and “Didn’t Care,” moved toward more improvisational and fragmented electronic production. Sylvan Esso commemorated their debut with Sylvan Esso (10 Year Anniversary Edition) in 2024 and organized the inaugural Good Moon festival in Durham. In 2025, they released “WDID” and “KEEP ON” through their artist-run Psychic Hotline label and removed their catalog from Spotify, citing objections to the company’s business associations. After collaborating with Gregory Alan Isakov on “Fade Into You,” they issued “Hot Slob,” “Concrete Glen,” and “On & On” in 2026. Those songs preceded their fifth studio album, Ow ∞, which was released on September 11, 2026 as their first full-length release on Psychic Hotline.