The band Sad House Guest has deep roots in Eau Claire with some of their own members having attended and graduated from UW-Eau Claire. 

The group consists of Samuel Stein, a UW-Eau Claire alumni, as lead vocals and guitar, his brother Ben Stein on drums, Tor Kjartansson on bass and the fiddle as well as Sam Lakmann, another UW-Eau Claire alumni, on piano. 

According to the group’s Spotify profile, the group has two EPs out, the first is “Bugs in My Brain” which includes a combination of both indie and folksy tunes, and the second is “Electric Veins”.

The group performed from 9 p.m to midnight on Friday, Oct. 14 at the Mousetrap Tavern on Barstow Street.

The group formed during the pandemic, as it started out as a solo act from Samuel Stein.

Before the show, Samuel Stein talked about what the group was planning for in the near future. When asked about upcoming events, Samuel Stein said that it was the “end” of their fall tour, “The Bugs In My Brain” tour.

“So we’re actually just getting done with a bunch of shows. We went to Chicago and Milwaukee,”  Samuel Stein said. 

Samuel Stein also stated that since it was the end of their fall tour, they were planning on making an album, including some of the songs they performed at the Mousetrap.

When asked if performing for the Eau Claire community and their peers from the university had more or less pressure than other communities, Samuel Stein said that “it makes it easier” and “it’s always good… it’s a very supportive community.”

Both Samuel Stein and Lakmann studied music composition when they attended UW-Eau Claire, and the music major “helps with the band,” as well as always working with each other since being at the university.

The group performed a variety of their songs at the show, including one of their most popular songs on Spotify, called “The Water,” which has over 1,000 streams, as well as their song “Bugs in My Brain” which has nearly 20,000 streams.

Members of the community gathered together to listen to live music and share their support of the group, as there was a big fan turnout. 

At the show, the group was selling merchandise for attendees to buy including earrings, stickers and keychains, which individually cost less than $10.

Overall, the group performed a show with a variety of different music styles and many different visual effects, such as strobe lights. Check out Sad House Guest’s website for updates on upcoming events and new music. 

You can listen to Sad House Guest on Spotify and Apple Music, and check out their Youtube channel. 

Pflaum can be reached at [email protected].