Strata Florida

Welsh dream pop act Strata Florida formed in 2012 around the home recordings of singer Louise Trehy. Trehy first made her name back in the early '90s as one half of the shoegaze/dream pop band Swallow, which disbanded in 1994 after completing only one album for prominent U.K. label 4AD. Following Swallow's breakup, Trehy retreated to rural Wales, leaving the music business altogether until the late 2000s when a stint singing in a local alternative choir reignited her interest in recording. After teaching herself to play the guitar, she began writing songs and recording them on a borrowed four-track recorder. She recruited bassist and collaborator Peter Pavli in 2012 and the duo began working on the songs that would eventually comprise their first album. Naming themselves after a 12th century Welsh Cistercian abbey, Strata Florida signed with U.S. label Saint Marie Records and released their debut LP, Made of Stars, in early 2014.