Sydney Worthley & TJ Foster - Kindred [EP]

When Sydney Worthley and TJ Foster (The Cast Before The Break, E.R.I.E.)  first met in 2022, it quickly became apparent they were kindred spirits. The duo from the greater Albany, New York region bonded over a shared love of vulnerable songwriting and Phoebe Bridgers, and in the years since, they’ve become musical siblings of sorts, collaborating often in each other’s respective projects.

Now, the prolific pair of songwriters are coming together with their own project more than two years in the making. In 2023, they discussed cowriting some songs and began putting ideas to paper — or Google Drive, to be exact. The sessions were some of the most inspiring either one of them had had in a long while, with creative energy abound. But nothing fully materialized… until now.

“Raise the Bar” and “Stronger Stuff” are two standout songs from those sessions, taking influences from The National, Frightened Rabbit and, obviously, the aforementioned Bridgers. Each song features lush ambient arrangements orchestrated by Foster, and stunning vocal production from Worthley, blended together to make something entirely unique for either of them. The songs exist as a time capsule of sorts, with half the performances rooted in 2023, and the other half in 2025.

The final track, “Later Down the Line,” was a song Worthley had brought to the project but never developed further. This was largely because the original voice memo sounded so appropriate, it was hard to imagine it in any other format. When the idea to revisit it came about, the solution was simple: record it exactly like the demo was. The two recorded their parts in one take via separate iPhones, stitching them together after the fact like a patchwork quilt.

The impeccable songwriting, earnest lyricism and collaborative spirit make Kindred a standout for fans of emotional, indie-pop. One can only hope there’s a follow-up in store, later down the line.