born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, justJOY has absorbed both the culture and music from big city upbeats, coupled with West Coast soundscapes, influencing her indie pop sound today. With Brett Sassetti on drums, Nathan Cowan on lead guitar and Mikey Harms on bass, justJOY's unique sound is ready to take over. Exploring topics such as love, friendship and being in your twenties, she aims to create an authentically relatable space for her listeners, where her lyrics feel like home. Recently, she opened for a West Coast artist, by the name of “sorryimolive” on their album release tour, played a show in Nashville, Tennessee and released her most "justJOY" single to date, "2052." Into 2025, justJOY is excited to reach more listeners, grow in fans, and overall have more fun making music!

People Magazine’s “Sexiest Chicago Band Containing Sulfides”

Sad House Guest makes music because nothing else makes sense.  ​We are an indie-rock band based in Chicago. Our original music is a blend of folk-punk, indie-pop, and alt-rock that showcases stream-of-conscious lyrics with energetic, easy-to-listen-to instrumentation. After gigging for a number of years as "Samuel Stein", the name Sad House Guest was born about year into the pandemic to encompass our new fuller and ambitious sound, inspired by bands such as The Front Bottoms, Pinegrove, Hippo Campus, Death Cab for Cutie, and Slaughter Beach, Dog. The current lineup was formed in 2023 after moving from Eau Claire, WI to Chicago and since the our guitar/drums/saxophone trio has played at venues such as the Subterranean, Cobra Lounge, Cubby Bear, Reggie’s, various DIY venues, and more.  We have released two EPs since the birth of our new name (inspired by a line in "Fantastic Mr. Fox"). The first is Bugs in My Brain which was recorded during the pandemic and features 3 basement pop tunes followed by 2 slow folksy tunes. The second EP, Electric Veins, features the full band on 5 representative songs. Our live shows feature energetic playing, improvisation, and covers of 2010s anthems at any dive bar, basement, porch, brewery, winery, or garage.  In fall 2022 we toured both EPs all over the midwest from Chicago to Fargo. During this tour we also performed a collection of songs which would eventually become our first full-length album "Can I Make This Lighthearted?"