Biography
Widemouth is a Chicago indie-folk quartet built around the songwriting partnership of vocalists and guitarists Makena lei Carnahan and Jamie Eder, joined by drummer Lily Mitchell and bassist Pat Pilch. The band formed in 2023 after Carnahan and Eder began performing Paul Simon and Big Thief covers together in a Northwestern University dorm basement[1], a casual, low-stakes beginning that shaped the collaborative, two-voice songwriting approach the band has kept ever since.
The group's debut full-length, No Gasoline, was released May 29, 2026 via Urban Scandal Records, and was recorded almost entirely live over five days in a converted barn studio in rural Indiana with producers Sam Genualdi and Jack Henry[2]. Carnahan has said the live-tracking process felt freeing, shifting the band's focus away from individual technical perfection and toward the collective feel of a performance[2]. Eder, who has been open about nearing four years of sobriety, has described the album as being centered on growing up and making peace with the past[2]. Both members have spoken about their pride in Chicago's music scene and credit the city's community of musicians with shaping the band's sound[2].
References
- Widemouth | Feature Interview — Post-Trash interview with Makena lei Carnahan and Jamie Eder on the band's origin, songwriting process, and the Indiana barn recording sessions
- Widemouth Announce Debut Album 'No Gasoline': Hear The Title Track — Stereogum announcement of the debut album with band background and release details