Skateland Grapples with the Modern World on Transcendent EP "Joyce Howell, How are You?"

Austin-based artist Skateland is taking his bedroom-pop daydreams to new heights. His newly released EP Joyce Howell, How are You? highlights his unique propensity for vocal abstraction and crafting sparkling vignettes of nostalgia. The project is a time capsule of Skateland's past year as an artist that grapples with insecurity, metamorphosis, and all-too-familiar brain rot. The ear-catching melodies and vividly ethereal soundscapes strike a nerve that satisfy the indie-kid's sentimental cravings.  

Joyce Howell, How are You? radiates with sublime strings, effervescent synths, and whimsical vocals that tap into a visceral collective of unconscious emotion. His opening track "Sunset Cinema" features haunting howls that reminisce on hypothetical love stories that unravel in his imagination. "Autobahn!" captures the stark dichotomy of dating in the modern world; how feelings can swing on the pendulum from torturously casual to devastatingly devoted in the blink of an eye. Closing song and title track "Joyce Howell, How Are You" combines a mesmerizing array of sonics from church bells to sun-drenched riffs that capture the blissful nature of the EP as a whole. 

Skateland is surfing the momentum of his recent bill alongside Two Door Cinema Club and Day Wave. He's also opened for Foster the People and swept away multiple showcases at SXSW this year. Joyce Howell, How are You? bites at the heels of an impressive live circuit and gives Skateland a platform to take it all in and reflect. The outcome is a romantic, celestial love letter to the characters in his head, the muses that strike him unexpectedly, and most importantly, himself. 

Related Articles

On 'Pursuit of Anything' Vacations Aren’t Slowed down, But Settled

On 'Pursuit of Anything' Vacations Aren’t Slowed down, But Settled

October 2, 2026 The band’s leader, Campbell Burns, has said the group reached a point where they had to step back and take stock, and Pursuit of Anything, is the result of that pause.
Author: Matt Keenan
Dolly Ave Lets Listeners Inside Her “Bad Brain” With New Album

Dolly Ave Lets Listeners Inside Her “Bad Brain” With New Album

September 25, 2026 Dolly Ave's sophomore album is an impressive collection of early-00s garage rock, taking listeners for a ride through her self-professed “bad brain” — and providing some solidarity for anyone who feels the same.
Author: India McCarty
Valley Announces New Album 'Do You Need To Be Entertained?' [Q&A]

Valley Announces New Album 'Do You Need To Be Entertained?' [Q&A]

September 18, 2026 About a month ago, we had the opportunity to chat with Valley frontman Rob Laska about the new album, finding fun again, their partnership with Chase Lawrence, cows, covers, life on the road, and what it means to make something deeply personal knowing it might simply be the soundtrack of someone’s drive to work.
Author: Chancey Stefanos