Constantine

Constantine, the project of Chicago-based musician Constantine Hastalis, is a contemporary practitioner of acid folk and psychedelic baroque pop. Emerging with the 2015 debut 'Day of Light', the project gained immediate cult status for its uncanny ability to replicate the sonic signatures of 1970s private press folk.

L.) , bridging the gap between the original era and the modern revival. The sound identity is defined by intricate acoustic guitar work, prominent use of flute and sitar, and a vocal style that is gentle and heavily harmonized. Critically, Constantine is viewed as a preservationist of a very specific, high-art folk aesthetic, moving away from the 'freak folk' movement of the 2000s toward a more structured, baroque sensibility. His work is characterized by a rejection of digital artifice, opting instead for tape saturation and orchestral arrangements that evoke the pastoral landscapes of the British and American folk underground.