Scuttlebuggs is a scrappy Midwestern indie folk-rock band described as "raw" "edgy" "honest" and "weird but cool". Their original vocal melodies, harmonies and lyrics are the focal point of their sound and people have likened their music to Neil Young, Modest Mouse and Phoebe Bridgers. Their debut album After Brilliance was filled with genuine emotion - tracked live on analog tape at legendary Chicago studio Pieholden Suite Sound in 2013, it received glowing reviews: "their harmonies are delicate and graceful, and bring an indie edge to the Americana arrangements"... reviews additionally described songs as "beautiful", "haunting" and "positively life-affirming." [Leicester Bangs]
In 2018 they released a limited edition CD combining their two most recent EPs: No Fast Legs and End Of The Itch - which received play on radio stations across the country. After their release, a review described their lyrics as "perfect”, "genius", and "a punch in the stomach through a pensive penning style Nick Cave would approve of”... before attempting to sum up the Scuttlebuggs sound: “Genre-wise, Scuttlebuggs skate between a Lo Fi Dream Pop sound and throw in some Folk to perfectly round off their ethereally strange combination of sounds.” [A&R Factory]
Scuttlebuggs have toured extensively around the US as well as a month long tour of Japan, and they've just returned from their first successful stint touring the UK August 2022. Two of their most recent music videos ("Hey There, Skipper!" and Trout Town) were selected for worldwide broadcast debut by Ditty TV.
The newest Scuttlebuggs LP "Kirk's House" was written, self produced and engineered at a DIY home studio in Chicago amid pandemic quarantine - it became an era of intensive introspection, and they captured the lo-fi intimacy of their emotionally raw material in a fitting bedroom confessional style. Eventually, the duo took the tracks on the road (even doing some recording in a solar powered camper) and collaborated with six additional musician friends along the way. The album features gripping lyrics, swirling guitars, moving vocals, violin, pedal steel and swinging basslines. Through its unique journey, Kirk's House became Scuttlebuggs most intimate, collaborative and dynamic work to date.