Fust (band)

Fust began as the musical project of Aaron Dowdy and his friends John Wallace, Avery Sullivan, and Frank Meadows.^[2] Dowdy began Fust by self-releasing EPs and eventually self-releasing an album titled Evil Joy.^[3]

In 2023, Fust released their second full-length album titled Genevieve, through Dear Life Records,^[2][4] with the singles "Violent Jubilee"^[2] and "Trouble".^[5] Upon release, the album was named by Pitchfork one of "9 New Albums You Should Listen To Now"^[6] and one of "24 Great Records You May Have Missed: Spring/Summer 2023".^[7]

In 2024, Fust released a compilation album titled Songs of the Rail, which is a collection of the band's demos from the years 2017–2018.^[8]

In 2025, Fust released their third studio album, Big Ugly, with the singles "Mountain Language", "Bleached", and "Spangled".^[9]

In 2025, Fust received significant recognition from major national outlets. Time ranked the band’s album Big Ugly at number 9 on its list of the Best Albums of 2025.^[10] Individual songs by the band were also highlighted: NPR included “Spangled” among its “25 Best Songs of 2025” and later discussed the song again in a year-end roundup of favorite tracks,^[11][12] while The New York Times ranked “Jody” at number 20 on its list of the Best Songs of 2025.^[13] In addition to Time, Big Ugly was included at number 13 on Paste Magazine’s list of the 50 Best Albums of 2025.^[14] In the same year, Fust appeared on CBS Saturday Morning, performing multiple songs from Big Ugly.^[15][16][17]