Sam and Louise Sullivan Detail New Album ‘Love & Devotion’ with Wonky Folk-Rock Single “Down On Love”

Sam and Louise Sullivan’s music exists at the loose, collaborative center of Philadelphia’s Historic New Jersey scene—the same home studio and label that released Star Moles’ Highway to Hell. The sibling duo, who began playing folk together as kids while moving around the country, now live in the city: Louise runs a ceramics business, Sam works as a teacher. Both are core players in a network that includes Emily Moales (Star Moles), Kevin Basko (Rubber Band Gun), and drummer Jem Seidel, all of whom appear on their forthcoming album, Love & Devotion.

The record arrives July 24, following a run of self-recorded releases that began with a pandemic-era debut EP. Its first single, “Down On Love,” splices a misremembered rap beat from 2012 into a ragged, chromatic folk-rock ramble. “It’s one of our wonky attempts at pop music,” Louise says, describing a track that aimed for a straight love song but ended up manic and layered with double drum takes and Moales’ backing vocals. The sound is unpolished without being careless, grounded in the specific geography of a tight-knit group making records in houses, not studios.

The album’s tracklist leans into songwriting that feels conversational rather than performative—titles like “Irish Goodbye” and “Treehugger” suggest the same offhand precision. Two live dates are on the calendar, including a July show with Iron & Wine in Lowell, Massachusetts, though the Sullivans’ work seems built more for the incremental, collective effort of a label that functions as community. Love & Devotion doesn’t announce itself as a breakthrough. It just adds another layer to an ongoing, quietly prolific collaboration.