SYLVAN ESSO Releases New Single, “WDID” & Pulls Catalog from Spotify

During Tortoise‘s set at this year’s Big Ears music festival, I noticed Nick Sanborn of the Durham, NC electropop duo, Sylvan Esso, standing toward the back of the venue. With so many collaborations and sit-ins at the Knoxville fest, I asked if he would be performing himself. He explained that he and partner Amelia Meath were there supporting artists like William Tyler, Phil Cook, and Amaro Freitas. Until then, I hadn’t realized they were the ones behind the label, Psychic Hotline.

We have a lot of respect for Sanborn and Meath, who first entered our radar with the 2017 track, “Radio.” Not unlike Pavement‘s “Cut Your Hair,” the concept of their breakout song lampoons the very industry and formulaic world of music marketing they were infiltrating. In essence, they made a radio hit about radio hits. Their work with Psychic Hotline promoting an eclectic and experimental roster further demonstrates the range and dedication to musical freedom and exploration by the pair.

Today, Sylvan Esso releases the single, “WDID,” their first new music since 2022. Although Psychic Hotline has distributed reissues for the band’s older work, this latest tune marks their first new material to come out on their own label. Furthermore, it was recorded at their own studio, Betty‘s, set in the woods of Chapel Hill, North Carolina. My initial, and admittedly lazy, description of “WDID” is that it feels like a socially urgent mashup between my favorite elements of 4-track-era WEEN and the aggressive, driving electronics of M.I.A. The lyrics reflect the current times wherein chaos and hedonism rule as basic civil rights are at constant risk. With references to genocide and the constant stream of natural disasterse terrorizing the planet, the subject matter could be considered “politically charged,” but more than anything, it highlights the interconnectedness of a global community effected universally by capitalism, colonization, and the exploitation of human bodies and resources. These are issues that touch all of us, albeit it at different levels, whether we choose to engage or outright ignore them altogether.

Coinciding with the release is the news that the duo is removing the masters in their control from Spotify.


Sanborn and Meath‘s official statement regarding the decision:

“As we prepare to release new music, we have to decide what we want to be a part of and what we don’t. To that end, with Sylvan Esso being on our own label for the first time, we have decided to remove our music from Spotify. While no solution is perfect, we simply can’t continue to put our life’s work in a store that, in addition to all its other glaring flaws, directly funds war machines.

reaching towards the world we all deserve,

even though we are not in it yet,

a&n”

Sylvan Esso have spent the past year working on new material with new collaborators. “WDID” will be released as a physical 12″ single on January 9th, backed by the b-side “KEEP ON,” built from a week of improvisation alongside bassist Daniel Aged (Frank Ocean, Dijon) and drummer TJ Maiani (Weyes Blood, Neneh Cherry). You can preorder it now by clicking HERE.