Jesse Sykes and The Sweet Hereafter was born of, and is the result of, an enduring musical alchemy between singer-songwriter Jesse Sykes and guitarist Phil Wandscher, which began in Seattle, Washington in 2001.

Blending dark folk, blues, orchestral pop and various psychedelic stylings, their sound culminates in what Jon Pareles of The New York Times described as, “spellbound music, rapt in fatalism and sorrow.”

Known for her dusky, otherworldly vocals and lyrics that touch on the metaphysical, she was once described by MAGNET Magazine as being “less like a performer and more like a sage ” and “whether the sonic setting is one of doomy distortion or fragile finger picking, Sykes remains a truly unique vocalist whose dusky voice is capable of imparting a transcendent, almost spiritual quality to almost any tune it touches.”

The band has released five critically acclaimed albums; three on Barsuk Records (USA) Reckless Burning (2002), Oh, My Girl (2005) and Like, Love, Lust and the Open Halls of the Soul (2007), while their fourth album Marble Son (2011) was released through Thirty Tigers in Nashville, on their own US imprint (Station Grey).

This year, after a seeming 10 year hiatus, Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter released their long-awaited 5th album, Forever, I’ve Been Being Born, on Sunn O)))’s label Southern Lord (USA) and Ideologic Organ (Europe). Filled with themes of emotional dislocation, magical thinking, death and transformation, the album also features exquisite vocal contributions from singer-songwriter Marissa Nadler. UNCUT magazine called it, “Rapturous, psyche-folk melancholia” giving it 9 out of 10 stars and featured it as “Americana Album of the Month”.

Sykes is also known for her diverse collaborations — most notably for co-writing and singing cult classic “The Sinking Belle” on the monolithic album “Altar” (Southern Lord), a joint project with art metal bands Sunn O))) and Boris (Japan). Pitchfork called The Sinking Belle the albums “centerpiece and masterpiece,” and Sykes claims the inspiration for the lyrics came from Joan Didion’s, “The Year Of Magical Thinking”, which she’d been reading during the writing process. Wandscher and (bassist) Bill Herzog also appear on this recording and the three have performed with the ensemble on a number of occasions, including the headlining performance at the prestigious “All Tomorrows Parties” music festival in Monticello, NY in 2010 (curated by film maker Jim Jarmusch). Sykes also collaborated on the musical score (composed by Stephen O’Malley of Sunn O))) for “Eternal Idol” (Shelter Press, Paris, 2015), a performance art piece written, choreographed, and directed by the acclaimed French artist, Giselle Vienne.

In 2008, Sykes and Wandscher composed the music for the Seattle Shakespeare Company’s production of Shakespeare’s The Tempest (soundtrack self-released 2008).

The two took on full production duties for “Marble Son ” (2011) which moved the band progressively into its own unique genre, allowing Wandscher to explore heavier tones and more complex song structures, further blurring the lines between the avant-garde and the timeless. According to Sykes, this move into heavier terrain had a lot to do with being influenced by Sunn O))) and Boris, and that creative friendship, which included producers Mell Detmer and Randall Dunn. “In the early aughts a doom metal band working with a spooky Americana singer -songwriter, wasn’t as common as you would think,” says Sykes,”I think it just gave us this surge of inspiration to move beyond the perceived confines of Alt-Country/Americana (which is definitely how we were being billed at the time.) “But frankly, we were too out in left field musically, to ever be fully embraced by that scene anyway,” she adds. ‘We were seen as being pretty depressing in the era of those first two records, and too minimalist I suppose.”

Spin magazine called Marble Son “a sprawling psyche rock vision” and the UK’s Line Of Best Fit called it; “a triumph… in a word.”

Sykes explains, “It’s impossible to speak on the new record without bringing up Marble Son, because that’s were we left off..and right after that record came out, everything stopped..the band fell apart…too vast for a bio!

“I guess if i had to define it, I’d say the new record, Forever, I’ve Been Being Born, is a bit of all of our albums combined….it feels right to me in context to our own personal evolution…it feels like a prairie in bright light and also complete darkness. It feels like every season and every era at once.”

Looking back, I see all of our albums as one body of work now. One long piece, where our lives play out through these sonic etchings depicting our souls…It’s always been about chasing that notion of recording your heart and soul. But it’s more then the performance being captured, it’s a distinct sound caught in the recording process that seems to be contained in the ethers (much the way light hits old film and the chemical reaction is part of the actual aesthetic in the photograph,) I see recording the same way. I think its taken 5 records to just barely figure it out in terms of why its an emotional struggle each time…All I know is its always been dire (to find this distinct sound, this world your creating) and its always been hard to meet that desire through music, because in the end, what does a soul even sound like? Bottom line is, one must try and remain sane in this journey of the beautiful and impossible. I do think this last record captured just a bit of “the impossible”;)

In 2004, the early years, the band was featured on NPR’s All Things Considered, (which was a huge deal at the time, pre – social media etc) which brought to the band a new found national audience, and led to what is now a rich history to reflect on, one with lots of touring nationally and internationally, paired with bands and artists spanning across many genres; this includes tours with: Sunn O ))), EARTH, Sparklehorse, (aka Mark Linkous RIP) Bright Eyes, Iron and Wine, J.Tillman, Jason Isbell, Marissa Nadler, The Sadies, The Knitters, The Great Lake Swimmers, Nicolai Dunger, Inara George, Laura Veirs, Black Mountain and many more.

Shows were also shared with legendary songwriters; The band opened for Lucinda Williams at Red Rocks, played some shows with Neko Case, did a night with Steve Earle and Sister Helen Prejean, then crossed paths with a young Justin Townes Earl and later Gillian Welch. Again, always lots of genre hopping,  and the band had the honor of playing with cult legends, such as Boris, Ian Astbury, Giant Sand, Calexico and Coco Rosie.

Prior to his work with Jesse Sykes, Phil Wandscher help co-found the influential alt- country band Whiskeytown with the now infamous Ryan Adams, in which he appears on the groups first three records, co-writing some of the bands most beloved songs, most notably songs on Stranger’s Almanac, which many say was also arguably the band’s most beloved album. Wandscher too, appears on singer- songwriter, Marissa Nadler’s acclaimed album “July” and has in recent years, recorded and toured with Jon Langford, the leader of the legendary Mekons. Other album guest appearances include; Rocky Votolato, Nada Surf and Death Cab For Cutie.

Sykes also plays presently in a band with guitarist and Grammy winning songwriter Dave Alvin (a project called the The Third Mind, on Yep Roc Records,) alongside members of Camper Van Beethoven, Counting Crows and Richard Thompson’s band.

*Sykes (also a visual artist) photographic work has been featured in Vice magazine.

Having recently completed a headlining tour of the UK (2026) which included some shows in Europe, as well as an appearance at the beloved Roadburn Festival (and previous to that, both US and European runs supporting Sunn O))) (and then Black Mountain last spring,) they now look forward to more shows and tours in the coming months.

Members have come and gone over the years, but the band still draws from the same collective, which includes long time bassist, Bill Herzog, ( Earth/ Joel R.L Phelps) who is still an integral part, musically and otherwise.

Sykes says of her relationship with Phil Wandscher; “We share the same heart, and I cannot not imagine life without Phil as my musical soul mate. Without him, there is no Sweet Hereafter.”

So with that sentiment, Sykes and Wandscher continue on their decades long musical journey, lately touring mostly as a duo; her voice and his guitar, a call and response…“a dance,” she says smiling, “across a sun lit room, up into the warm dark expanse, that hovers beyond the night sky, tucked beneath a benevolent cosmic shroud…If the music is needed, this is where you will find it;)”

Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter were fortunate to have worked under the guidance of notable producers; Tucker Martine, Martin Feveyear, Mell Dettmer, Randall Dunn, Johnny Sangster and most recently Seattle’s Robb Davidson.

Past and sometimes present members have included Bill Herzog (bass), also of (Earth and Joel R.L. Phelps), Eric Eagle (drums), Anne Marie Ruljancich (viola), Kevin Warner (drums), Jason Merculief (drums) and Rebecca Young (bass).

ABOUT THE NEW RECORD;

“Forever, I’ve Been Being Born is a suite of masterful, emotive songs filled with themes of magical thinking, emotional dislocation, death, and transformation. In the making for ten years, the album centers around the power of Jesse’s transcendent voice, which has never been more beautiful, evocative, and hauntingly intimate. Phil Wandscher masterfully frames these songs with classic and fractured tones, creating a duet of vulnerability and strength often blurring the lines of folk and psychedelia. The album also features exquisite contributions from Marissa Nadler.” –Rarely Unable

UNCUT magazine recently picked it as Americana Album of The Month, calling it “Rapturous psyche-folk melancholia.” 9/10

“This album is our attempt to create elegant folk and sometimes ragged, cosmic, heart rendered songs full of eulogies and laments. When we started recording this album, I remember saying, “Play the songs as if the edge of a butterfly wing was brushing against your cheek in the dark while you’re holding a small child.” I wanted to connote tenderness and a state of grace in the wake of resolution—paying homage to the creeping knowledge of an emerging, menacing undertone forming in our collective psyche at the time. In hindsight, the delay in releasing this record has been a bit of a blessing, as the lyrics seem more poignant now, transcending our own internal voices and psyches. Maybe because there is an innate fragility on this record, it almost feels like a form of resistance in these times, as heavy handed as that might sound;)

As the world shares its collective crisis, so we too, share our songs…And it is with great pleasure and humility that we bring you, Forever, I’ve Been Being Born. Produced by Robb Davidson.

Listen in the dark.”

-J. Sykes

“It’s that ancient light that wanders,
 Rapt in the splendor of your form,
And to this I will surrender, Forever, I’ve been being born, 
Beneath an overarching
Melody, so forlorn.”