The project of Los Angeles sound explorer Patrick McDermott, North Americans appeared in the mid-2010s with a pair of dense experimental drone albums before segueing into a more pastoral guitar-based style on 2018's Going Steady. Signing with Third Man Records, McDermott altered his sound further, joining Portland pedal steel player Barry Walker for 2020's Roped In and its tranquil follow-up, 2023's Long Cool World.