Cosmic Guilt

Cosmic Guilt is an extended family of musicians from Fishtown, Philadelphia.  Founded in late 2019 by lead singer, James Everhart, a er 6 years on the road  as Low Cut Connie's lead guitar player, The Guilt have merely existed as a  recording project during the long quarantine of 2020 with only two sold out  shows under their belts.  

Now, as the world turns into a new era, the super group, comprised of some of Philadelphia's best session players, is eager to share their music with the world.

The first two singles, "Cautious Lovers" and "Sun In Your Eyes" are lush folk orches trations with Spaghetti Western and British influence - think Lee Hazelwood  meets Fairport Convention. The band has recorded a self-produced album,  mastered by Charlie Stavish (Jenny Lewis, Ryan Adams) that is set to be  released in early 2022. With Cosmic Guilt entering AAA radio rotation right from  the onset, the Guilt’s future is looking bright as can be thanks to hometown  radio station WXPN, who named The Guilt “Artists to Watch” for the month of  September 2021. With their debut indoor show on 9/4/2021 being a wild sell-out  at Johnny Brenda’s, the group looks forward to a fruitful fall in the studio.

Formed in New Jersey by guitarists Tom Malach and Danny Arakaki, the band took a few years to find their flying shape, solidifying into a lineup with Danny’s brother Cesar on drums and Derek Spaldo on bass by mid-2016. Ramping up their acceleration around the time of their 2018 Cosmic Cash debut on Beyond Beyond Is Beyond Records, they’ve blasted through residencies and new songs and sessions and collaborations, relocating to New York, picking up two new members in keyboardist/multi-instrumentalist Pat Gubler and bassist Andy Cush, and leaving a trail of live tapes in their wake. This year, they’ve delivered not one but two new albums for BBiB: the sleek and song-oriented Natural Facts and the sprawling improvisatory opus of One Step Behind. 2019 also saw the first performances by the full Garcia Peoples lineup, a six-person behemoth with Spaldo on third guitar.

With a stash of live recordings accumulating at the Live Music Archive, Garcia Peoples’ music is very much a living entity. Since the release of their previous two albums, songs have started to expand, jam suites have grown, and experiments have been undertaken. The first part of 2019 has seen Garcia Peoples back Philadelphia guitarist Chris Forsyth (an expanded Solar Peoples Band has hit double-drummer overdrive several times now), and joined with guitarist Ryley Walker. They’ve improvised on WFMU, and jammed with the sounds of ocean waves and falling rain at strange late night happenings. Probably something else new and wonderful and weird has happened in the Garciaverse since I wrote this.

Whether or not you thought you knew Garcia Peoples’ music, One Step Behind is something new and beautiful, for new heads and old. No matter where you stand–behind, beyond, or another plane altogether–One Step Behind is ready. For those about to get on the Bus, we salute you.