A classically trained vocalist, Maria BC's melancholic, atmospheric songs are at least as concerned with shapes, shadows, and emotions as technique, hooks, and other forms of structure. Inspired by the literary archetypes of the dreamer and the watcher, they made their full-length debut in 2022 with the self-recorded Hyaline. Its use of phone recordings and collected audio samples led the musician to liken it to a "sonic collage." While still delicate in nature, the looser and more fully arranged Spike Field followed a year later.

Born in Ohio and based in Oakland, California, Maria BC often found solace in being alone as a child, when they learned to entertain themselves creatively, including writing songs from a young age. After formal training as a classical mezzo-soprano, they eventually recorded their first EP, February 2021's Devil's Rain, in a single room, so as not to disturb their roommates or neighbors. Later the same year, Maria BC recorded their debut album, Hyaline, in multiple areas of a Brooklyn apartment. Incorporating session work, phone recordings, and audio samples, including field recordings from nearby Prospect Park, Hyaline was released on Father/Daughter Records in May 2022. Recorded instead in the home of a family friend with a creaky, out-of-tune piano at their disposal, the follow-up, Spike Field, arrived on Sacred Bones in October 2023. It featured a looser but still artful approach that looked to fill out more empty spaces. ~ Marcy Donelson