* En anglais uniquement
Between their tireless D.I.Y. work ethic and constantly evolving sound, Boston's
Pile earned both a large homegrown following and the respect of their peers. The band evolved on a string of increasingly complex albums released throughout the 2010s, bringing a varied instrumentation to their often-aggressive sound on albums like 2017's
A Hairshirt of Purpose or 2019's
Green and Gray. The band took a different approach to their 2021 album Songs Known Together, Alone, with the band's founder revisiting their early songs solo.
Pile was initially born as the solo project of Boston-based singer/guitarist Rick Maguire. He issued a pair of rough but engaging lo-fi albums (2007's Demonstration and 2009's Jerk Routine) that segued between experimental folk, jagged indie rock, and elements of the post-rock approach that the band would later become known for. Transforming
Pile into a collective, Maguire assembled the full-time lineup of guitarist Matt Becker, bassist Matt Connery, and drummer Kris Kuss in 2010 and released Magic Isn't Real, establishing the dark and noisy tones that would become one of the group's hallmarks. Following a 2011 EP titled Big Web,
Pile signed with Exploding in Sound and made their label debut with 2012's widely touted
Dripping. The 7" release Special Snowflakes/Mama's Lipstick preceded 2015's
You're Better Than This as the band continued a daunting touring schedule, hitting North America and Europe. With each release,
Pile's sound continued to evolve, adding piano, banjo, and strings on 2017's
A Hairshirt of Purpose, which ran the gamut from slow orchestrated tracks to massive noisy assaults.
Jack White's Third Man label issued
Pile's first live album, Live at Third Man Records, in late 2017. Between albums, the band collected singles and other miscellaneous tracks on the appropriately titled 2018 collection
Odds and Ends before returning with seventh studio album
Green and Gray in the spring of 2019. For 2021's Songs Known Together, Alone, Maguire returned to various songs from
Pile's early catalog, recording the album entirely by himself over the course of a three-day session. The album reworked 16 compositions that went as far back as Demonstration. ~ Timothy Monger