Portland band Small Pond creates a lush indie sound
Small Pond to Play Portland House of Music, Belfast Festival, and Release New Album Oct. 21
Portland, Maine – Indie‑rock outfit Small Pond, originally from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, will perform in Portland on Thursday night before heading to the All Roads Music Festival in Belfast on Friday, Oct. 17. The band’s upcoming shows are the first in a tour that will include dates in Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C.
The quartet – lead singer‑guitarist Molly McDevitt, drummer‑vocalist Colin McKenna, guitarist Ian Howard and bassist Joe Murphy – formed in 2022 in Portsmouth. McDevitt recently relocated to Portland, giving the group a new local base. Their first release, the seven‑song EP Let it Fall Like it Should, dropped in 2022. A year later, they performed at The Press Room in Portsmouth and issued a live album of the show.
The band is set to release their full‑length album Soft Burn on Oct. 21. The record opens with the hooky “Background Noise,” followed by the 3½‑minute ethereal “Darlene.” The mid‑album tracks “The Cat Died on a Tuesday Night” and the title track, which the band’s manager says is not to be missed, round out the set list. A single, “Silver Coin,” was highlighted in a press release as “watching a relationship from the outside, catching yourself not showing up the way you want to for the people who matter and sitting in that discomfort instead of looking away.”
Small Pond has also been busy covering other artists. In January, the group released a five‑song covers EP, You Should Know Me Better Than That, featuring renditions of “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys,” “I Should Live in Salt” (The National), “The Moonlight Song” (Blaze Foley), “Between Days” (Red House Painters) and a slowed‑down version of 1997 Third Eye Blind hit “How’s It Going To Be.” The band’s take on the latter pulls the tempo down roughly 30 %, adding lush vocals and muted electric guitar licks. They also produced a sped‑up version of the classic country track “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys,” giving it a punchier beat and electric guitar hook.
Show Details
Portland House of Music – 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 12 (ticket prices $12 in advance, $15 on the day; admission 21 plus). The venue is located at 25 Temple St. Tickets are available at statetheatreportland.com.
All Roads Music Festival – 6:15 p.m. Friday, Oct. 17 on the Legion Hall stage. Festival passes cost $55, with a $10 youth option. Full schedule and ticket information can be found at allroadsmusicfest.com.
After the Belfast performance, Small Pond will continue touring the East Coast, with shows planned in Boston, New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
The band can be followed on social media and streaming platforms at smallpond.band, Instagram @smallpondband and Bandcamp. For press inquiries, contact the band’s manager, whose office is located in Portland.
