Duster always made room for space between notes. In the California trio’s five years as an active concern, they made warm, fuzzed-out sounds that hit home like a tight, melancholic embrace from your favorite person. They never really seemed in a hurry to get anywhere in particular, which felt special, even among the other so-called slowcore bands they've often been lumped in with over the years. Which is why when they went on hiatus in 2001, after just two albums, there was always an implicit hope that they might find their way back. Maybe they were just playing slower than ever.

In April, following 17 years without a signal, a new transmission from @thisisduster appeared on Instagram: “hi. it's been a long time but we are recording a little bit.” A photo of some sweet analog studio equipment. 701 likes. A handful of comments expressed the wholesome excitement that a certain subset of Very Online music nerds experienced: "Holy fucking shit," "duster pls," "i'm beyond excited for you three to share how much you've grown with us."