Maria BC (they/them), born in Ohio and based in Oakland, California, has gradually revealed more of their creative process over the years. From the recording of the EP Devil's Rain (2021), which was made in a single room while taking care not to disturb their housemates and neighbors, through the unedited apartment sessions of Hyaline (2022, Father/Daughter), to the home of a family friend with a detuned baby grand piano on which their debut for Sacred Bones, Spike Field, was recorded.
Hyaline was one of the standout ambient-folk albums of 2022. On it, the singer-songwriter created haunting songs that sound as if broadcast straight from the heart of a mystical, cobweb-covered attic. With Spike Field, their dreamy formula was further refined and the sound took on a more developed form, revealing the development of a young artist with a rapidly formed, distinctive voice. Strings, plucked guitar parts, and humming sound waves accompany their classically trained mezzo-soprano, making the arrangements feel denser and more colorful than on earlier work. Maria BC describes this as “filling the sonic space,” with Spike Field building upon the intimacy of Hyaline through liberating instrumental embellishments.
In 2026, Maria BC returns with their third studio album and second release on Sacred Bones, Marathon. Born from a sense of urgency, masochistic determination, and endurance, Marathon reflects what it means to keep going — whether you are resisting or simply trying to survive, you are in it for the long term. On this album, Maria BC explores themes such as resistance, ecological devastation, personal disruption, and destruction, interwoven with musical rawness and drive.
