Racing Mount Pleasant formed at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor under another name, Kingfisher. In April 2025 the band renamed itself after a highway exit sign near Chicago, Stereogum reported, and released its first album under the new name that August.
Who is in the band
Stereogum’s 2025 Band To Watch profile lists seven members: Sam DuBose on vocals and guitar, Callum Roberts on trumpet and guitar, Connor Hoyt on alto saxophone, Samuel Uribe Botero on tenor saxophone, Kaysen Mortensen-Chown on strings and guitar, Tyler Thenstedt on bass and Casey Cheatham on drums. At the time, members were split between Detroit, Ann Arbor and Chicago.
The sound
The lineup includes horns and strings. Stereogum compared them to 2010s Andrew Bird merged with Bon Iver. Writing about the album for The New Yorker, Hanif Abdurraqib described a band that “dwells in emotional quietude without sacrificing sonic grandeur.”
The records
Racing Mount Pleasant, the self-titled album, came out Aug. 15, 2025, on R&R Records, preceded by the singles “Call It Easy,” “Racing Mount Pleasant” and “Your New Place.”
Why now
A year after the album, the band is moving up the bill. They played the Fine Line in Minneapolis in June and headlined the second night of the PYGMALION festival in Champaign-Urbana on Sept. 25, 2026, the Daily Illini reported. Consequence also named them one of its emerging artists to watch in 2026.
Official links
Sources
- Stereogum: Band To Watch, Racing Mount Pleasant
- The New Yorker on X: Hanif Abdurraqib on Racing Mount Pleasant
- The Daily Illini: Racing Mount Pleasant at PYGMALION
- First Avenue: Racing Mount Pleasant at the Fine Line
- Consequence: Emerging Artists to Watch in 2026
- Racing Mount Pleasant official site
