Los Angeles
The Psychedelic Wild, Wild West

In old Western speak, a gun outfit refers to a roving band of gunmen hired to ensure safe passage through the dark corridors of the Wild West. These outfits were typically friends who came and went from the group and possessed a deep knowledge of pastoral American lands. “When I read that there was a fluidity to the gangmanship, I thought that was a good name for playing music with different people at different times,” says guitarist and vocalist Carrie Keith. Formed nearly a decade ago on the western shores of Olympia, Wash., a town known as much for its punk rock past as its hippie college scene, Gun Outfit began as a bedroom recording project between Keith and local noise musician Dylan Sharp, who found inspiration in both of those schools and drew comparisons to the male/female vocal pairing of Sonic Youth. From a duo to a bass-less trio, the group gradually emerged from their DIY upbringing with a country-psych sound that alternately calls to mind both Hüsker Dü and the Grateful Dead. A few years back, the original duo packed up from Olympia and moved down to LA, where they added a bassist and tracked their fourth album, Dream All Over—by far their most actualized to date. “It’s like this slow train,” says Keith. Much like the gun outfits of yore, few seem better suited to guide you on a harrowing journey. It’s music that beckons for the trail, the road, the trip.