It’s not many artists that can say that they’ve written songs in Antarctica, but for Joey Capoccia of Olympia, Washington Americana band The Pine Hearts, the South Pole was just another place to stop and look for inspiration. Working as a carpenter for the National Science Foundation, Capoccia holed up in the South Pole Station’s greenhouse to write the song “Wouldn’t You Know” on The Pine Hearts’ new album, Lost Love Songs, coming February 18, 2022.

Traveling and songwriting are two constants in his life, with other songs written while playing with friends on Kauai, or traveling through California’s wine country, or rolling around in Nashville. “It’s probably true of a lot of songwriters,” Capoccia says, “that you need to be in a tiny quiet place to write a song. So, while traveling, you end up in these tiny nooks or crannies you find, a closet, a beach, wherever you can go to get away from people and hash the songs out.” On Lost Love Songs, Capoccia brings together the punk DIY songwriting aesthetic of Olympia, Washington with a lush strain of Pacific Northwest Americana and bluegrass. His songs call to mind lost times with old friends, moonshine passed around a campfire, and late night jam sessions afterhours at festivals. It’s music made by three friends for a rainbound Northwest community looking for reasons to dance.