Bristler began as a recording project formed initially by lead vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Rudy Meier. A producer/engineer by trade, Meier began fidgeting with leftover songs from his previous band, Wetbrain, and that experimentation became Bristler’s debut LP Cascades At Play, released via Mint400 Records in 2024. Bristler quickly expanded to become a four-piece live unit featuring Biff Swenson (drums, percussion), Dana Yurcisin (bass, harmonies), and later Robert Bost (guitar, harmonies). Whereas Cascades At Play came together quickly on account of being composed entirely of mostly finished songs from Meier’s previous band, the writing process behind the tracks found on the new album were the result of a more drawn out approach.
“It was a slow process that I was adamant about letting unfold organically,” says Meier. He began recording and building demo versions of songs on his own over the course of many months, eventually bringing in Swenson and Yuricisin to begin chipping away at getting the actual drum and bass takes in. Along the way, Meier invited his good friend and collaborator Bost to join the band and added his parts to the songs as well. Together and with help from other friends in the tight knit Asbury Park music scene, they fleshed out and recorded various parts for the songs that would become Inside, Outside, Upside, Downside.
While Cascades At Play leaned into glitchier Minus the Bear-meets-Death Cab For Cutie textures, IOUD places an emphasis on immediacy and simplicity within the skeletal structures of its songs. That emphasis is related to the aforementioned goal of having each song on the album working within a strummed acoustic format. “I wanted the songs to be more vocal centric and accessible up front,” shares Meier. “The first album had more of the tap guitar gymnastics and glitchy effects leading the way, which I wasn’t necessarily trying to get away from, I just wanted to try something new. I wanted to have any sort of vibey stuff like that to come from the texture and backdrops.“ As a result, the songs on the album are further brought to life via several layers of synths, theremin, strings, and tasteful percussion, serving as a sort of distressed canvas meant to invoke the mood of each track’s lyrical themes, which touch on overcoming ambivalence, anxiety, and self-doubt with a healthy dose of cynicism.
Produced, recorded, and mixed entirely by Meier at his studio, Yung Bull Recordings, IOUD provides some therapeutic catharsis for anyone who feels uneasy or unsure of where life will be taking them. While Bristler might not have a concrete answer on which direction to go in all of life’s winding roads, they can certainly provide the soundtrack for the drive.
Inside, Outside, Upside, Downside is out February 12th, 2027 via Mint400 Records.