With a sound rooted in '90s D.I.Y. indie rock and grungy low-key folk, Palehound emerged in the mid-2010s as the project of Boston-based singer/songwriter El Kempner. Evolving from their lo-fi bedroom pop roots, Kempner soon cemented Palehound as a rock trio and joined the Polyvinyl roster for albums like 2017's well-received A Place I'll Always Go and 2019's Black Friday. They later formed the duo Bachelor with Jay Som and released the 2021 collaborative album Doomin' Sun. Still evoking '90s inspirations, Palehound returned with a more impulsive-sounding breakup album, Eye on the Bat, in 2023.