Cass McCombs (born November 13, 1977) is an American singer-songwriter.

Career

McCombs has played in numerous bands in the

Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose. The Association of Bay Area Governments ...

during the 1990s before relocating to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. He released his debut EP '' Not the Way E.P.'' (2002), debut album '' A'' (2003), and follow-up '' PREfection'' (2005) via Monitor Records and

4AD 4AD is a British record label owned by Beggars Group. It was founded in London under the name Axis Records by Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent in 1980 as an imprint of Beggars Banquet Records. The name was changed to 4AD after the release of th ...

. In 2007, McCombs signed to Domino Records and released '' Dropping the Writ'' (2007). Domino Records released his following four records including ''

Catacombs Catacombs are man-made underground passages primarily used for religious purposes, particularly for burial. Any chamber used as a burial place is considered a catacomb, although the word is most commonly associated with the Roman Empire. Etym ...

'' (2009), which was voted one of the "50 Top Albums on the Year" by ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

''. It was followed by '' Wit's End'' (2011), '' Humor Risk'' (2011), and ''Big Wheel and Others'' (2013). He toured with

John Cale John Davies Cale (born 9 March 1942) is a Welsh musician, composer, and record producer who was a founding member of the American rock band the Velvet Underground. Over his six-decade career, Cale has worked in various styles across rock, dr ...

in 2012. His single "Bradley Manning" premiered on the '' Democracy Now News Hour'' in 2012. His songs have been featured in films including the surf film ''The Present'' (2009), and Ralph Arlyck documentary '' Following Sean'', as well as notable skate videos featuring Jason Dill,

Jerry Hsu Jerry Hsu (born December 17, 1981) is a Taiwanese-American Skateboarding, skateboarder, photographer and owner/operator of the skate company "Sci-Fi Fantasy". Early life As of 2007, Hsu's family home remains located in San Jose, California, Un ...

, Chima Ferguson and Dylan Rieder. In 2014, he did a co-headlining tour with the

Meat Puppets Meat Puppets are an American rock band formed in January 1980 in Phoenix, Arizona. The group's original lineup was Curt Kirkwood (guitar/vocals), his brother Cris Kirkwood (bass guitar/vocals), and Derrick Bostrom (drums). The Kirkwood brothe ...

. In June 2016, McCombs performed at the

Primavera Sound Primavera Sound (commonly referred to as Primavera) is an annual music festival held at the Parc del Fòrum in Barcelona, Spain, during late May and early June. It was founded in 2001 by Pablo Soler as "a showcase for Spanish Noise rock, noise ban ...

and Field Day music festivals. McCombs ANTI- Records debut, ''Mangy Love'' was released on August 26, 2016, which NME referred to as "McCombs' richest ever recording." On February 8, 2019 he released '' Tip of the Sphere'' on ANTI- Records. In 2020, Spurl Editions published McCombs' debut poetry collection ''Toy Fabels''. His tenth studio album, '' Heartmind'', was released on ANTI- Records on August 19, 2022. In 2023, McCombs and Mr Greg, a

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

school teacher, released the album ''Mr Greg & Cass McCombs Sing and Play New Folk Songs for Children'' on

Smithsonian Folkways Smithsonian Folkways is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution. It is a part of the Smithsonian's Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, located at Capital Gallery in downtown Washington, D.C. The label was f ...

Discography

Studio albums

*'' A'' (2003) *'' PREfection'' (2005) *'' Dropping the Writ'' (2007) *''

'' (2009) *'' Wit's End'' (2011) *'' Humor Risk'' (2011) *'' Big Wheel and Others'' (2013) *'' Mangy Love'' (2016) *'' Tip of the Sphere'' (2019) *'' Heartmind'' (2022) *''Mr. Greg & Cass McCombs Sing and Play New Folk Songs for Children (With Mr Greg)'' (2023) *'' Seed Cake on Leap Year'' (2024)

EPs

*'' Not the Way E.P.'' (2002)

Compilations

*'' A Folk Set Apart'' (2015)

References

External links

CassMcCombs.comMystery Man
– Interview w/

Vice Magazine ''Vice'' (stylized in all caps) is a Canadian-American magazine focused on lifestyle, arts, culture, and news/politics. It was founded in 1994 in Montreal as an alternative punk magazine, and its founders later launched the youth media company V ...

Review of ''Tip of the Sphere''
by

Review of ''PREfection''
by

Transcript of interview
on

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

's '' World Cafe'' show
''Portland Mercury'' article by Zac Pennington
{{DEFAULTSORT:McCombs, Cass 1977 births Living people American folk rock musicians American indie folk musicians American indie pop musicians Psychedelic folk musicians American male singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from California 4AD artists 21st-century American singer-songwriters 21st-century American male singers Domino Recording Company artists Record Collection artists Anti- (record label) artists