Los Angeles guitarist Cole Berliner dives into the world of his solo material with his first album, The Black Door, out May 29. Known for his shape-shifting pop compositions as one half of Sharpie Smile (formerly Kamikaze Palm Tree), his debut LP features acoustic-electric arrangements and lineups ranging from stripped down folk, to chamber ensemble, to jazz combo. The second single, "Bongo Syndicate," is out today with a new music video by Brian Bartus.

Guitar and bass lines push and pull with a glacial glow on "Bongo Syndicate," a guitar track that sounds like an ‘80s Leo Kottke session at ECM. Synth patches rise into the chiaroscuro atmosphere Cole paints, drawing chemtrails behind as the analog keyboard dawn begins. Warbling string sounds conclude the track with a sudden, last chattering of soundwaves dispersing through the ambient mist. The music video patches in analog signals of mystic grasslands and undulating bodies of water, with Cole's meditative silhouette glitching through each biome.

Simultaneously an experimentalist and a traditionalist, Cole's multifaceted style calls upon the likes of Bert Jansch, Philip Glass, Elizabeth Cotten, Jim O'Rourke, and Marc Ribot. As a session musician, he's worked with artists such as White Fence, Zsela, PAINT, Steven Brown (of Tuxedomoon), and Angel Deradoorian. Cole's playing now takes an introspective turn with a record equal parts civilized and surreal, ornamented with lap steel guitars, violin, viola, horns, and woodwinds among the ensemble. The Black Door unlocks on May 29, 2026; see Cole and his band on tour this June along the West Coast.

Cole Berliner 2026 Tour Dates

June 3 - Los Angeles, CA @ Zebulon (Album Release Party)
June 4 - San Francisco, CA @ Makeout Room
June 6 - Arcata, CA @ Moss Oak Commons
June 7 - Portland, OR @ Turn, Turn, Turn
June 8 - Olympia, WA @ The Crypt
June 11 - Sacramento, CA @ The Press Club (w/ Pregnant, Dog Patch)
June 12 - Nevada City, CA @ Sans Backup Plan Records
June 13 - Joshua Tree, CA @ Firehouse