Tlooth - Tlooth SM072

Tlooth - Tlooth SM072
Cassette

Tlooth (/tlüth/) is a band that thrives in the tension between opposites: the noise of the city and the quiet mystery of the forest, dissonance and melody, the ugly and the pretty. Splitting their time between an off-grid nonagon cabin in the woods and a weather-prone warehouse in Reading, PA, Tlooth’s music reflects this duality, balancing raw, DIY energy with moments of unexpected beauty. Their sound embraces tape hiss, off-the-cuff notes, and sharp inhalations, polished just enough to draw in curious listeners.

Formed after a period of upheaval and reinvention, Tlooth emerged in 2024 with a renewed sense of purpose. The band features David (vocals, guitar), Joe (guitar), Pat (bass), and Dave (percussion), each bringing their own history of musical experimentation. David, who joined after witnessing the band’s last show, helped steer Tlooth into a new chapter, with the group quickly writing and recording their debut full-length over the summer and fall of 2024.

The album, recorded in piecemeal fashion, captures the band’s eclectic spirit. Drums and bass (and the occasional fujara) were tracked live in Dave’s cabin, while guitars, vocals, and synths were layered in home studios and Pleasuretone, the DIY space Joe and Pat run with friends. Mixed by the band and mastered by Dan Angel at his Germantown studio, the record embraces the artifacts of lo-fi recording while pushing into new sonic territories.

Tlooth’s rhythm section is jazz-strong, their guitars roughed-up, and their vocals unflinchingly honest. Drawing from influences like Blonde Redhead, Sonic Youth, and early Queens of the Stone Age, their sound is a blend of alternative, lo-fi, art rock, noise rock, shoegaze, and DIY punk. Lyrically, the band explores themes of science-fiction, the unrelenting news cycle, end-stage capitalism, and the possibility of extraterrestrial life, all with a touch of absurdist humor.

The band’s name, taken from Harry Mathews’ experimental novel Tlooth, reflects their playful, wandering approach to music. Like the book, the band strays freely, playing at games that, in the end, may have no purpose past a joke they tell themselves.

All Songs By Tlooth
Patrick Schneider - bass
David Henson - vocals, guitar, synth
Joseph Murphy - guitar
Dave Hall - percussion, fujara

Proceeds from this album will support Phillips Black, a non-profit public interest law practice dedicated to providing legal aid to incarcerated individuals, particularly those facing the severest penalties under US law. Tlooth believes in a future without prisons, and our music is a small step toward that vision.
www.phillipsblack.org