In the past, Mapache recording sessions have been pretty laid-back affairs, with friends coming and going, the sessions starting and stopping at the band’s discretion—as relaxed a process as the immaculately sunny vibes that their four albums would suggest. But on their dynamic and ambitious fifth album of cosmic-folk, Swinging Stars, Sam Blasucci and Clay Finch decided to take a trip and hunker down somewhere particularly special. “It’s a pretty impactful place,” Finch says of the Panoramic House, the artist retreat where Swinging Stars was recorded. “It’s kind of dramatic. It’s a castle-y building on a hill, way up overlooking the Bay.” Located in Stinson Beach in Marin County, California, the Panoramic House has recently hosted acts like My Morning Jacket, the War on Drugs, and Cate Le Bon, and was the ideal combination of scenic beauty and self-imposed confinement to allow Mapache to settle in for their most cohesive album yet. “That environment yields itself to a higher level of focus because everybody’s together for a week,” says Finch, explaining that the band stayed there during the process, sharing every bit of their time and energy on a shared vision. “We were all captive. No one could escape,” he laughs. Swinging Stars, an album of calm, second-nature swagger, is the natural result of a band that’s existed in one form or another for its founders’ entire adult lives. Finch and Blasucci first met as students at La Cañada High School, just north of Los Angeles, where they both had a guitar class: “There wasn’t much supervision or anything,” remembers Blasucci. “It was really nice. And we got to just play guitars together.”
Release date:
August 18, 2023
Install our app to receive notifications when new upcoming releases are added.

Recommended equipment and accessories
-
Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO
Featuring a one-piece carbon fiber tonearm, precision-tuned motor, and a heavy steel platter with TPE damping, it ensures superior stability and sound quality.
-
Technics SL-1500C Turntable
Features a direct-drive motor, a high-precision tonearm, and a premium MM cartridge, delivering exceptional sound quality
-
HumminGuru: Ultrasonic Vinyl Record Cleaner
Advanced ultrasonic technology with customizable cleaning cycles and a large tank capacity to thoroughly remove dust, dirt, and contaminants
-
Ortofon 2M Blue Premounted
Mounted on the SH-4 Black Headshell, this setup delivers exceptional clarity, dynamic range, and accurate sound reproduction.
-
Nobsound Little Bear T7 Tube Preamp
Delivers rich, warm audio through its high-quality vacuum tubes, featuring multiple inputs and adjustable gain
Featured Upcoming Vinyl
-
KAROL G Tropicoqueta (Tangerine) (Amazon Exclusive) [2xLP]
Bichota Records/Interscope
September 26, 2025 -
Signs of the Swarm To Rid Myself Of Truth
Century Media
August 22, 2025 -
Buckingham Nicks Buckingham Nicks
Rhino Records
September 19, 2025 -
Creem Circus Get. Switched. On!
Creep Records
August 29, 2025 -
Ruston Kelly Pale, Through the Window (Deco Green; Signed Insert)
Rounder
September 12, 2025 -
Geese Getting Killed
Partisan Records
September 26, 2025 -
Molly Tuttle So Long Little Miss Sunshine
Nonesuch
August 15, 2025 -
Mariah Carey Here For It All
Gamma.
September 26, 2025 -
Ludwig Göransson Sinners Score [2xLP]
Mutant
September 26, 2025 -
Novembers Doom Major Arcana [2xLP]
Prophecy
September 19, 2025 -
Various Artists Antones: 50 Years of The Blues (Purple, Blue And Red) [4xLP]
Antone's Records
August 22, 2025 -
Flyte Between You and Me
Nettwerk Records
August 29, 2025 -
Revocation New Gods, New Masters
Metal Blade
September 26, 2025 -
Royel Otis hickey (Platinum) (Alt Cover) (Amazon Exclusive)
Ourness/Capitol
August 22, 2025