Welcome to this week’s Launch Box
featuring Sweet Spirit
Sweet Spirit are a monstrous nine-piece band from Austin. Fronted by songwriter and musician Sabrina Ellis, known for her dearly departed heavy pop eccentrics Bobby Jealousy and still-fierce Austin punk quintet A Giant Dog, Sweet Spirit is a mission of self-discovery.
Aptly named, the project not only utilizes the sounds of soul music as points of reference but also came to exist as a way for Ellis to look deeper into her own spirit. Ever changing and growing, Sweet Spirit’s restlessness underscores the group’s pursuit of outstanding music and deeper connections with themselves and others.
Take a listen to their debut EP out December 2014
Sweet Spirit have been kicking around Austin for a year and a half, with a couple of tours under their belts. They even headlined Spoon‘s surprise tour kickoff show last year at small East Austin club Hotel Vegas. Spoon’s Britt Daniel has enlisted them as a backup band for solo performances, and partnered up with them for a 7″ single from Nine Mile Records.
Check out “Have Mercy” – The track is a chewy, heavy palette of synth sounds and programmed drum loops. Ellis and Daniel’s vocal harmonies are layered with masterful subtlety, adding to the almost mystical float of the song.
Look for Sweet Spirit’s debut LP Cokomo on October 16.