Idiot Glee

Combining elements of space rock, <a href="spotify:artist:3iJJD5v7oIFUevW4N5w5cj">Arthur Russell</a>, chillwave, and the <a href="spotify:artist:3oDbviiivRWhXwIE8hxkVV">Beach Boys</a>' Smile sessions, Lexington, Kentucky-based indie pop crooner James Friley's echo-laden, keyboard-driven alter ego Idiot Glee first appeared in 2008 after the classically trained pianist decided to leave his lo-fi punk outfit for a life of loops and samples. Occupying the same rainy porch milieu as acts like <a href="spotify:artist:6fLrPFLWLSCrp7gcTZXcKb">Twin Shadow</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:687094MtNCTh262Otm1LOD">Summer Camp</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:2ueoLVCXQ948OfhVvAy3Nn">Perfume Genius</a>, Friley's debut single, "All Packed Up" was released in 2010. Moody, atmospheric, and tinged with the hymnal colors of a strict Mormon upbringing, Idiot Glee's full-length studio debut, Paddywhacking, arrived in March, 2011 on <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Moshi+Moshi+Records%22">Moshi Moshi Records</a>. Riding acclaim for his debut, Friley followed up in 2013 with two new releases, the Life Without Jazz EP and the all-instrumental, classically-minded album, The Prairie. Recording for a number of labels, including his own Hop Hop Records, Friley continued to his prolific run with 2014's more pop-centric Four and a handful of early-2016 singles preceding his next self-titled album, which arrived in late January. ~ James Christopher Monger, Rovi