The American Analog Set perform “Magic Hour” (2 Nights)
with support from Bull Thieves
Pioneer Works is proud to present the American Analog Set for the Brooklyn debut of Magic Hour, a special seated performance in our Main Hall. An intimate, immersive live show, Magic Hour features thoughtfully selected songs from the band’s first six albums: The Fun Of Watching Fireworks, From Our Living Room To Yours, The Golden Band, Know By Heart, Promise Of Love, and Set Free. It’s also the band’s first proper show in nearly 20 years.
First conceived in their hometown of Austin, Magic Hour features original members Andrew Kenny (guitar, vocals), Jesse Lee (bass), Tom Hoff (keys, guitar), Sean Ripple (vibes, vocals), and special guest Matthew Frank (drums, percussion). The show is presented in a fully seated, theatrical environment enhanced by immersive lighting and set design by Lisa Laratta (Paper Chairs). More than a carefully staged retrospective of the American Analog Set’s early discography, it’s something quieter, more intimate: a sonic memory book of the slowcore, post-rock, and lo-fi lullabies that defined a cult corner of American indie music from the late ’90s through the mid-2000s.
About the Artist
Formed in Austin in the mid-90s, the American Analog Set quietly became cult legends of American indie music with their distinctive blend of analog warmth, ambient textures, and minimalist pop restraint. Over six albums between 1996 and 2005, the band developed a sound that drew from German kosmische, ‘90s slowcore, and home-recorded psychedelia—always intimate, often hypnotic, and never in a rush.
Formed in Brooklyn in 2009 by three Texas ex-pats (Lance Scott Walker, Birdlikebats, and Nicholas Phelps), Bull Thieves released one self-titled album before going underground in 2011, after which Walker pivoted to work on his books about Houston hip-hop (Houston Rap Tapes, DJ Screw: A Life In Slow Revolution) and the other band members relocated. In 2024, Walker fully rebooted the band in New York with his best friend, the artist Joan LeMay (Quantum Criminals: Ramblers, Wild Gamblers, and Other Sole Survivors From the Songs of Steely Dan) playing bass, and after a few shows as a duo they were joined by drummer Liana Katz (Brooklyn Cyclones Surf Squad) at the center of a larger collective that includes collaborations with the original Bull Thieves as well as Houston producers JGtheengineer and Stenographer. The core trio of Walker, LeMay, and Katz plays a noisy grade of indie rock that descends from Texas punk threaded with shoegaze and the rap/jazz/funk/R&B back catalogues that have informed their other artistic pursuits. Bull Thieves released the 7-inch "Pasture Kills" b/w "Wild Own" in May 2025, with an album, Rattlesnake & Swan, to follow.