Sleepy Zuhoski

On his debut album, Better Haze, Garrett “Sleepy” Zuhoski went into the studio with a
collection of songs he’d been working on for years. “It was a little unconventional,” says
Zuhoski, “because we started with just the acoustic guitar and the vocals.” No doubt, it
was this approach in the studio with producer Salim Nourallah (Old 97s, The Damnwells,
Nicholas Altobelli) that gave his vocals a shoe-gazing, late-night phone confessional
quality. “I was fascinated at how good that came out but it also kept me from getting too
hyped when things started happening.”

The songs on Better Haze run the gamut of styles and influences. “I like a lot of variety,”
says Zuhoski. “It keeps me from getting bored.” From the moody, ethereal folk and
playful melancholia of “Asleep for a Year” and “Sour,” to The Foals dance-infused rock
of “New Tattoo” and “Tsunami,” to the Radiohead-inspired sci-fi rock of “On a Cloud”
and “Hate To Sleep,” there is no shortage of eclecticism. “I do kind of bounce around on
different things. One of the cool things about working with a producer like Salim is he
helped give it a cohesive element.”

Better Haze will be released on June 1 on Palo Santo Records.