Bayonne - Primitives (2016)

A performance pseudonym of experimental musician Roger Sellers, Bayonne incorporates voice, synths, piano, looping, effects pedals, and acoustic percussion into his textured art songs. His affection for music began when, as a two-year-old, he became fascinated with Eric Clapton's MTV Unplugged performance. An early love of Phil Collins, whom the adult Sellers cites as an influence, led to his first drum kit at age six. With a background in formal study but largely self-taught, the Spring, Texas native released the self-titled Roger Sellers in 2010, Moments in 2011, and 8 Songs in 2012, all under his own name, and each progressing further from avant-garde sound experimentation toward mesmeric, electro-acoustic indie folk. Sellers established a fan base in Austin, Texas with his live, loop-layering solo shows before adopting the Bayonne moniker for his more electronics-based work. Both ambient and percussive, his Bayonne debut, Primitives, was issued by Punctum Records in the fall of 2014 before it was picked up by Mom + Pop Music for broader release in March 2016. ~ Marcy Donelson