The Delines surprised in 2014 with their critically acclaimed debut album Colfax, but a follow-up was a long time coming due to singer Amy Boone’s serious car accident. In 2019, the time had finally come: the wonderful The Imperial was released. This album offers a relaxed mix of country soul, narrative lyrics by guitarist Willy Vlautin and Boone’s penetrating voice. Vlautin’s masterful lyrics, which you can expect from an award-winning novelist with several book adaptations to his credit, explore somber themes about people whose lives are always going wrong and relationships on the verge of collapse. All this wrapped up in an enchanting “late night country soul” makes listening an unforgettable experience.

The Delines’ concerts have been highlights at festivals such as TakeRoot. The Imperial was praised by the Volkskrant as “a literary musical gem,” and Dolf Jansen expressed his admiration for the band on television. Their latest album, The Sea Drift, released in February 2022, was labeled “glorious” by OOR and “a literary masterpiece in 11 chapters” by the Volkskrant. It also topped the year-end lists of both readers and journalists of Heaven Magazine, and received high listings in UNCUT and MOJO Magazine. A vinyl album of the soundtrack The Night Always Comes was recently released on Record Store Day.