Maria BC signed to Sacred Bones for their sophomore album, Spike Field, which is out today; stream it below, and read our review HERE. To celebrate the release, we asked them to tell us about the influences behind it, and they made us a list of five albums. Read that, complete with their commentary, below.
MARIA BC’S SPIKE FIELD INFLUENCES
Dear Laika – Pluperfect Mind
I first listened to this album alone in my car at night, looking out at the Emeryville marina with tears in my eyes. There’s truly nothing like it. It’s haunting, sublime, and tender all at once. I love Izzy’s lyrics, and the last lines of this record are absolutely crushing: “Pluperfect mind / That pummels and injures the skin / In bygone shame and in questioning / Fixation on what might have been.” Izzy’s poetic style is inspiring.
G. Brenner – Brushfire
Gabe’s voice is divine – he could sing anything and I’d be entranced. But he’s an incredible songwriter, too. Vivid, devotional lyrics, engrossing melodies… There’s a certain brashness in his writing that I really admire. I love music that insists on feeling all the way, and Brushfire insists on that start to finish.
ODAE – Ataraxic
I love the music Ruairi releases as ODAE. They’re a master of texture, truly, and craft rich, imaginative sonic landscapes. Ataraxic is magnetic and surprising – the first track especially gets to me, the moment about halfway through where the portal breaks open…
Rachika Nayar – Heaven Come Crashing
Spike Field only sounds the way it does because I had the privilege of working on and falling in love with Heaven Come Crashing. The urgency and intensity of Rachika’s music is infectious. She’s a genius maximalist, just so skillful at dialing in sounds and making something impossibly huge in scale and scope. You can hear traces of her all over my record, I think.
MIZU – Distant Intervals
“Tied” – track 08 on Spike Field – only works because Mizu plays cello on it. Her romantic expressiveness is something I strive for but can’t quite reach, so adding her voice to the mix felt totally cathartic and satisfying. The sense of drama on her album Distant Intervals thrills me and continues to be a guiding light.
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Maria BC has tour dates in Europe and the UK in October and November, followed by a few West Coast shows in the US. See all dates below.
MARIA BC: 2023 TOUR DATES
Oct 25, 2023: Lisbon, PT ZDB
Oct 26, 2023: Brussels, BE Botanique
Oct 27, 2023: Amsterdam, NL London Calling
Oct 28, 2023: London, UK MIRRORS Festival
Oct 29, 2023: Bristol, UK Crofters Right
Oct 30, 2023: Glasgow, UK Glad Cafe
Oct 31, 2023: Leeds, UK Headrow House
Nov 01, 2023: Manchester, UK Soup Kitchen
Nov 02, 2023: Brighton, UK Mutations Festival
Nov 03, 2023: London, UK Rough Trade West (in-store)
Nov 24, 2023: Portland, OR Show Bar
Nov 30, 2023: Seattle, WA The Vera Project
Dec 06, 2023: Los Angeles, CA Gold Diggers
Dec 07, 2023: Oakland, CA Bandcamp HQ