Hiding Places

Twinkly, raw folk-alternative rock collaboration that blends earnest storytelling with intricate, guitar-driven textures. JOY presents Hiding Places Plus supports TBA. Hiding Places formed in the countryside of Athens, Georgia in 2020, but their roots trace back to a shared college radio station in North Carolina. Guitarists/vocalists Audrey Keelin and Nicholas Byrne, bassist Michael Matsakis, and drummer Henry Cutting create a twinkly, raw folk-alternative rock collaboration that blends earnest storytelling with intricate, guitar-driven textures. Now based in Brooklyn’s DIY scene, Hiding Places has carved out a space with their gentle, evocative vocals and lush, layered melodies. Recently, the band self-booked a tour through the South to SXSW, where they debuted their latest record—an intimate, emotional, and gritty reflection of their years of movement, growth, and collaboration. Their 2024 EP *Lesson* was produced by Colin Miller (MJ Lenderman, Wednesday), engineered by Liam Brand (Mount Kimbie, Jeff Rosenstock, Katy J Pearson) and recorded at Abbey Road’s Angel Studios in London. *Lesson* was released on March 22nd of that year through independent Brooklyn-based label HATETOQUIT. In April 2025, the band released two songs (set to release as “Bonus Tracks” on their new album) on a split release with two Asheville NC bands, Tombstone Poetry and trust blinks. Engineered and mixed by bassist Michael Matsakis, *The Secret to Good Living* is a testament to the band’s ascent into collaborative songwriting, found sounds, and finding play in recording as an art. Focus tracks “Holy Roller,” “Dead Dove (Your Love Was Never A Waste of Time),” and “Waiting” found their strengths from live performance, touring, and collaboration in practice rooms rather than via computer screens, as the band was fully “remote” for 4 years before the recording of this project. Gratitude, trust, and joy all feature as prominent narrative themes on this album. A band that started young is now growing into a chapter of storytelling as a form of engagement in the future betterment of the self, the other, and the group: a band.