For Joyer, the east coast indie rock duo of brothers Nick and Shane Sullivan, distance has been a strange throughline as of late-distance from home, distance from each other, distance from a stable routine. Produced by Slow Pulp's Henry Stoehr, their latest LP, On the Other End of the Line..., ruminates on how their respective experiences relocating cities and an increasingly hectic tour schedule uncovered both their anxieties and a burning desire for connection. It's a hopeful reflection of two distinct perspectives on fluctuating backdrops and the pressures of creativity, filtered through hook-y earnestness and crunchy six-string bluster. Itching to dial back their shoegaze leanings in favor of folkier touches and less conventional, more ambitious arrangements On the Other End of the Line... is Joyer at their most vulnerable, leaning less on imagery and abstractions and cracking the door to their bursting insides.
