NATURAL VELVET
Natural Velvet is Corynne Ostermann (bass, vocals), Greg Hatem (drums), Spike Arreaga (guitar) and Kim Te (guitar). The post-punk quartet is known in their native Baltimore for a distinct sound that is both aggressive and catchy. Framed by washing guitars, vocals that alternately howl and harmonize, and throbbing drum sounds, Natural Velvet creates music that moves between gazey indie pop and guttural, "wall of sound" noise rock. Aggressive bass lines throughout tie together a dark and foreboding framework, ultimately leaving the listener with haunting melody and hypnotic rhythm. At times confrontational, at times seductive, Ostermann's vocals guide the listener through dark rolling narratives of identity, existence, rage, and femininity.
The band formed during a summer break from art school in 2012, with original drummer Adam Jones.
Natural Velvet recorded their debut EP Salome With the Head of John the Baptist (2013), and their first full length, Shame (2014) in Chicago in a single studio session. These recordings afforded the young band their hard-earned entry into the Baltimore music scene and the American DIY music scene at large.
Their following full length, She Is Me, was released September 2015 on Friends Records, and was recorded and engineered by drummer Greg Hatem, a Berklee music engineering graduate. The album was mastered by Mickey Freeland.
Their newest record, Mirror To Make You, was released in spring 2017 on Friends Records. Recorded at B.C. Studios in New York with Martin Bisi, and mixed by veteran engineer Rob Girardi at Wrightway Studios, the album was mastered by Sarah Register, and features artwork from Nolen Strals.
Photo by Kevin Granger,
Styled by Corynne Ostermann
Cover to Natural Velvet's 2017 "Mirror To Make You" album out on Friends Records.
Photography by Frank Hamilton
Design and Typography by Nolen Strals
Photo by Micah E. Wood
Photo by Micah E. Wood
Photo by Dan Motz
Photo by Micah E. Wood
Cover to Natural Velvet's 2015 record "She is Me" out on Friends Records.
Photography by Brian Henry
Design by Spike Arreaga
Photo by Micah E. Wood
Cover to Natural Velvet's 2014 self-released record, "Shame".
Photography by Ian Bosak
Design by Spike Arreaga
Photo by Micah E. Wood
Cover to Natural Velvet's 2015 single, "Fruits".
Featuring stills from the music video "Fruits", directed by Chris LaMartina
Photo by Ian Bosak
Cover to Natural Velvet's self-released 2013 EP "Salome With the Head of John the Baptist".
Photography by Ian Bosak
Design by Spike Arreaga
