It isn’t just for the Recording Academy’s “Best New Artist” scouts that LA’s Casino Hearts are classifying their new EP Lose Your Halo as their debut when, in fact, the project has existed in some form for over a decade now. But the bubbling cult success of the onslaught of hypnagogic-pop tapes released in their early years served as more of a pre-alpha phase to their sound—quite literally two-thirds of what it’s become in 2024 after vocalist Forest Holter entered the equation.
Backing Holter’s dream-pop vocals on the new release is an amped-up version of the foundation bandmates Nick Minor and Jacob Rubeck formed Casino Hearts atop. There’s considerably more depth to these tracks, which have been updated to refract the sounds of more contemporary figures working in this space rather than mid-’10s artists like Dirty Beaches or even the early solo recordings of Panda Bear a few years prior. Instead, songs like the blissed-out, George Clanton–esque “In & Out of Time” and the shoegaze-informed “Blue Eyed” seem to look forward while simultaneously looking back.
With the EP dropping this Friday, we asked Holter, Minor, and Rubeck to each share a few of the influences that informed the direction Lose Your Halo ultimately took, with their picks ranging from generation-defining artists like MBV and Björk to more specific picks, such as the much-overlooked 2010s shoegaze group Stagnant Pools and the German experimental artist GUI.tar. Find more from the band below, and pre-order the new EP here. You can also catch up to speed with Casino Hearts’ prior material here.
NICK MINOR
My Bloody Valentine, “Sugar”
I’ve been obsessed with this song for years—the looped percussive elements, the way the guitar morphs into the next chord, the feeling of lag each time a section repeats. It feels “produced” in a way that feels very, very modern and nonlinear. The whole thing just feels like you’re pulling it through a tape machine. It tugs on my soul in a way few songs do—still gives me chills. I think this might be my favorite song?
Panda Bear, “Good Girl / Carrots”
Person Pitch really clicked for me with this track. I’m a huge Animal Collective and Panda Bear fan—they really challenge you to be fully immersed. The second half of this track (I guess “Carrots”?) made me really appreciate this record as a manifesto, a personal philosophy of being and interacting with the world. I really admire that. This record makes me want to be attentive and present. I think it’s perfect—so many lessons to learn or unlearn.
Stagnant Pools, “Consistency”
Two brothers from Indiana—from what I can tell they kind of vanished in, like, 2020? I found a signed copy of Temporary Room while on tour and was, like, giddy. They deserved so much more. Huge sound from a two-piece. When I was starting out I was so interested in their guitar tone and how they were writing in ways that would carry two different melodies at once. I don’t really know what happened to them, I hope they’ll come back someday.
Broadcast, “I Found the F”
I mean, they’re really just so good. Everything is so considered, tidy, purposeful, and well-defined. They do such a good job of writing to what best serves the song. It’s haunting, noisy, controlled, nuanced, driving. The bass on this song, vocals—iconic. They were just too good. Truly a tragic loss.
Duster, “Orbitron”
Jacob and I saw Duster twice last year. There are so many songs from the Duster extended universe, it’s hard to choose (the heads know). “Orbitron” is so huge and powerful right from the start, then it leaves you with a sense of emptiness that really resonates with me—that feeling of loss or despair after so much effort and chaos. When the dust settles, when it all falls away, it’s still just you. Metaphor, metaphor, Sysiphus, metaphor, etc. etc. There’s so much Duster to enjoy, I just really admire the way they work.
JACOB RUBECK
GUI.tar, “Feel Flow Free”
I didn’t know that this guy existed until very, very recently, and I sent it to the rest of the band and we loved the album Sunkissed. I was so obsessed that I reached out to see if he wanted to produce one of the songs. Sadly, with his broken English and my lack of German, it kind of got lost, but the respect and love is still there.
Helvetia, “Something Difficult”
I listened to Helvetia so much before working on these songs and so much during. He really makes you think about guitar playing and not being afraid to fly and try out things. I think this song specifically feels like it belongs in the Casino Hearts wheelhouse.
SASAMI, “Not The Time”
I always think of this song as a standard reference of what you need to accomplish in a song or songwriting. It’s good inspiration to go back to, and it’s one of my favorite earworms.
Palm, “Feathers”
Palm is one of those bands that shows you how limitless music is. They’ve taught me more than any other band about exploring sounds and song structure. One of the biggest lessons is to keep searching for those sounds and let them shine. Be proud of what you find and capture it.
FOREST HOLTER
Frou Frou, “Shh”
This album has been a heavy influence on my production and songwriting this last year. It’s full of bangers, but “Shh” is a track I think more people should appreciate. The whimsy of the melodies, the drum outro—it’s all really fun and free.
Cocteau Twins, “Aikea Guinea”
I’ll always be inspired by the way Elizabeth Fraser sings and arranges her vocals. This track is a great representation of the vocal and guitar walls that Cocteau Twins is known for. While writing our track “In & Out of Time, “I recorded a ton of backgrounds in hopes of echoing that sound; coincidentally these drums share some similarities to the track, as well.
SOPHIE, “Lemonade”
I remember some of my first explorations into sampling were with SOPHIE’s pack released in 2017. After years away from those samples, I made my way back to them using “SOPHIE_Crash_2.wav” to create the pulsing rise and fall on the hook of our song “R U Coming 2 My Room.” It also felt right to take back a sound that’s been co-opted by straight emo white boys who hate their moms.
Björk, “Alarm Call”
I fell in love with Björk’s music only in the last few years—my gateway being Vespertine, an album made of microbeats and whispers. Since working with Jacob and Nick I’ve grown to love Björk’s heavier songs like “Alarm Call.” The sampling of her vocals and drum break are a perfect reflection of what we’ve got in the works for our second EP.
