Ophelias, The - Crocus [Limited edition Pale Yellow color vinyl record]

 After 2018’s critically acclaimed Almost opened The Ophelias to a world beyond their Cincinnati home, the indie rock quartet craved a return to a sense of community. The band members no longer lived in the same city — bandleader Spender Peppet (she/her) and new bassist/longtime music video collaborator Jo Shaffer (they/them) live in New York, while drummer Mic Adams (he/him) and violinist Andrea Gutmann Fuentes (she/her) remain in Ohio. When it came time to record the candid, expansive Crocus, The Ophelias purposefully focused on the experimental, communal spirit that fueled their first record.

Crocus was recorded at night in a converted “2000 percent haunted” Masonic lodge, which surely had an effect on the album’s ability to weave darker tones through the taut song structures. Engineer John Hoffman kept spirits high at The Lodge KY, ensuring the Ophelias had the freedom to experiment in the grey area between pain and rebirth. Despite The Lodge’s eerie nature, the ghosts remain personal, finding Peppet facing herself and her own truth without blinking. Through songs equally infused with references to the Bible and The Twilight Zone, The Ophelias extract mystic emotion out of the spaces between their past, present, and future.

The four core Ophelias members provide a wide-reaching exploration into genre, emotion, and sonic textures over the course of Crocus. That expansiveness shines on album highlight “Neil Young on High,” a track that finds Peppet’s firefly vocals backed by harmonies from Julien Baker. On “Spitting Image” Gutmann Fuentes leans hard into country swing, showing her range as a violinist while a chorus of voices sing the taunting “ha ha ha” hook below her. Shaffer’s bass intertwines seamlessly with the drums on “Becoming a Nun,” which explodes into feedback and punk-inspired textures beyond what The Ophelias have previously created.

Crocus

Sacrificial Lamb

Neil Young on High

Vapor

Spirit Sent

Biblical Names

Mastermind

Becoming a Nun

Spitting Image

Under Again

The Twilight Zone

Vices