The Ophelias

Crafting a thoughtful, pastoral style of indie rock that employs a dedicated violinist in addition to guitar, bass, and drums, the Ophelias were formed by Cincinnati, Ohio high school students already active on the music scene. Coming from diverse musical backgrounds that included classical performance, garage rock, and surf bands, they emerged from early rehearsals with a mature, low-key chamber pop that they introduced on their first album, Creature Native. Self-released in 2015, it led to a record deal with Joyful Noise Recordings. Singer, guitarist, and main songwriter Spencer Peppet, violinist/pianist Andrea Gutmann Fuentes, bass player Grace Weir, and drummer Micaela Adams all felt marginalized, creatively speaking, in their various majority-male high school bands. After bonding over that frustration, the teens decided to try playing together. Early sessions not only went well musically but left all four members feeling valued as contributors, and thus the Ophelias were born. Their self-released debut LP, 2015′s Creature Native, consisted of eight original songs and a cover of Jackson Browne’s “These Days.” After catching the band live, fellow Cincinnati scenester Yoni Wolf of Why? passed the album along to his label, Joyful Noise Recordings, and they signed the Ophelias for the band’s second full-length. Released in 2018, Almost was produced and mixed by Wolf. ~ Marcy Donelson