Given the rising popularity of meditative, folky indie acts in the early 2000s, forming a twangy, rootsy folk trio was probably the least surprising move
Derek Fudesco could have made. The former bassist and founding member of the successful indie rock group
Pretty Girls Make Graves picked up an acoustic guitar and formed
the Cave Singers following
PGMG's demise in January 2007, teaming up with vocalist
Pete Quirk (formerly of
Hint Hint) and drummer
Marty Lund (formerly of
Cobra High). Though not an "official" member, ex-
PGMGer Andrea Zollo made an appearance on the group's first album as a vocalist and washboard player. Drawing from canonical folkies like
Bob Dylan and
Woody Guthrie, and sounding more than a little like other early-2000s acts like
Lightning Dust,
the Snake the Cross the Crown, and Samamidon, the group had its first album,
Invitation Songs, recorded and ready to go (thanks in large part to
Black Mountain producer
Colin Stewart) within months of
PGMG's breakup. Matador picked up the trio soon after, and following a few delays
Invitation Songs was slated for release in late September. The band continued on a similar path for 2008's
Welcome Joy, but worked with producer
Randall Dunn -- who also made albums with
Sunn 0))) and
Boris -- on 2011's eclectic
No Witch. Following that record the band was joined by former
Blood Brothers bassist Morgan Henderson, who was also doing time as bassist in
Fleet Foxes. The expanded group spent 2012 working on its summery fourth album,
Naomi, which was released on Jagjaguar in early 2013. In 2015,
the Cave Singers began work on their fifth album, and rather than working with a record company, they opted to coordinate the project themselves and financed the recording through a crowdfunding campaign. The campaign raised 116 percent of the group's goal, and the album,
Banshee, was released in February 2016. ~ TiVo Staff