Featured Artist of September 8, 2024
with the album: "Octoberland"


Artist's Biography

The Armoires are Christina Bulbenko (vocals, keys) Rex Broome(vocals, guitar), Larysa Bulbenko (viola), Clifford Ulrich (bass, vocals), and John Borack (drums).

Drawing on influences as diverse as '60s sunshine pop, new wave and postpunk, classic country and shoegazer dreampop, their unique harmonies give life to literate and deeply felt tales of love, loss, confusion and joy. Anything could be inside.


About the Album

With a new and definitive album on the way, THE ARMOIRES have become what they were always meant to be. The new material from the Burbank, CA indie pop quintet represents both a fresh start and the distillation of the potential inherent in their unique sound – somewhere between the sunshine pop of the '60s, the college rock jangle of the '80s and the Sarah Records/C86 chamber pop aesthetic of the '90s – and a lyrical approach that's always felt untethered to any one era or place. They've even put a name to the soundscape they inhabit: Octoberland, both the title of their forthcoming album (appropriately due in Autumn of 2024) and a destination frequently referenced in its songs. Their songwriting has become worldbuilding, even as their melodies and arrangements have grown more accessible, accomplished and inviting over the course of their career. The world around them may be a mess, but The Armoires are in a very good place of their own creation, and eager to welcome you to join them there.

The first preview single “Music & Animals” set the stage at the very end of 2023. The followup “We Absolutely Mean It” went so far as to put forth a manifesto (and a de facto theme song) for the band, and the rich chamber pop of “Here Comes The Song” saw the band stepping fully onto mythological terrain. More than ever before – and very much by design -- the signature harmonies of co-leaders Christina Bulbenko (keyboards) and Rex Broome (guitar) present themselves as the voice of a singular, ambiguously androgynous entity. And their instrumental chemistry with violist Larysa Bulbenko, drummer John Borack and bassist Clifford Ulrich feels more instinctive and communal than the product of any singular perspective or ego. There's a cohesion, confidence, and sense of purpose to The Armoires today that's both a reaction to, and a natural progression from, the pop experimentalism of their 2021 breakthrough album INCOGNITO, a playful collection made of up double-sided singles originally released under fictitious band names. Having played as fast and loose with their identity as artistically possible, the band has refined their identity and staked out a territory that's very nearly a genre of its own.

Although they emerged from the LA power pop scene and wear their penchant for hooks and harmonies on their paisley sleeves, The Armoires have always displayed ambitions that run towards the more impressionistic side of indie rock. The fact that their repertoire features covers of songs by The New Pornographers, XTC and John Cale tells a tale in itself, and the set of originals that make up the new album represent a compelling synthesis of their cross-genre influences. But it's also the most distinctive statement of the band's unique collective personality yet. “This is the first record that Rex and I sat down and wrote together with a full understanding of the band's strengths and quirks,” says Bulbenko, “and we found ourselves delighted to lean into every last one of them.”

Joining them for the first time across an entire album is the band's definitive lineup, with Larysa Bulbenko's viola weaving through the arrangements and the rhythm section of Ulrich and Borack empathetically driving the journey ever forward. Along with Michael Simmons' deft touch as a producer, they ensure that the band's most adventurous album is also their most coherent and warmly welcoming yet. The Armoires are headed out for Octoberland… arriving in Autumn, 2024. Come join them for the ride.

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