SUSS: Counting Sunsets

"Their first savvy move was to embrace the kind of pat labeling that many artists try to avoid. Self-branding as "ambient country," they made the tradition of diffusing American roots music through a new-age filter sound sexy and modern and algorithmic. They played to the playlists and got results, and were branded as pioneers in the process"

"SUSS expanded their brand under the rubric Across the Horizon, which consists of a podcast; a compilation series featuring fellow travelers like Mark Nelson of Pan American, William Tyler, Marisa Anderson, and Chuck Johnson; and now a revolving all-star jam at the Big Ears Festival, a booking that'd be a feather in any upscale experimental musician's cap (and an intuitive pairing of artist and venue that I called back in 2022)."

"Jonathan Gregg plays pedal steel, an ambient-country must, and has a tidy Americana background. Pat Irwin, who primarily handles piano and synths but also dips into slide guitar, harmonium, and autoharp, comes from surf rock and new wave, and played with the Raybeats and the B-52's. And Bob Holmes, on acoustic guitar, harmonica, and unobtrusive tape loops, is the bridge between: He's best known for a countrified new-wave band called Rubber Rodeo, with Gary Leib, a SUSS cofounder who died in 2021."

"With all the promotional heavy lifting done in the background, they get down to making their albums, half a dozen since 2018, without fuss or frills. No overinflated concepts-after making a record about nature called Birds & Beasts, they named their new one Counting Sunsets. Then they counted them: "Sunset I," "Sunset II," and so on. Supply your own themes of mortality if you like. But you get what it says on the artfully dented tin: the American West in slow motion, low slung and high lon"

SUSS gained attention by embracing a clear label of “ambient country,” reframing American roots music through a modern, algorithmic new-age sound. The project aligned with playlist culture and earned recognition as pioneers in that approach. The brand expanded under “Across the Horizon,” including a podcast, a compilation series featuring artists such as Mark Nelson, William Tyler, Marisa Anderson, and Chuck Johnson, and a rotating all-star jam at the Big Ears Festival. The group’s members bring extensive industry experience, spanning pedal steel Americana, surf rock and new wave influences, and a bridge between countrified new wave and country-adjacent textures. With promotion handled in the background, they release albums steadily since 2018, including Birds & Beasts and Counting Sunsets, structured around numbered sunsets.

Read at Pitchfork