Volcano Choir

In 2005, long before Justin Vernon started making recordings under the name of Bon Iver — and before his previous band, DeYarmond Edison, had even split up — he collaborated with Collections of Colonies of Bees' Jon Mueller, Chris Rosenau, Jim Schoenecker, Daniel Spack, and Thomas Wincek on a side project called Volcano Choir. The group's first album, Unmap, was recorded in Vernon's studio in late 2008. The buzz surrounding this release was palpable, given that it was essentially arriving on the heels of Bon Iver's 2008 debut, For Emma, Forever Ago, an album that had enjoyed considerable popularity among indie crowds that year. Unmap was released on Jagjaguwar Records in the fall of 2009.