Pupa's Window

Pupa's Window was an American East Coast lo-fi musical artist from Baltimore, MD active between 1995-2008. In 1994, singer/songwriter Michael W. Nestor formed Pupa's Window as a side project to document the recording process and produce lo-fi cassette recordings. In the mid 1990s, PW recorded music at the advent of cassette-based, lo-fi indie pop. The project had early success on college radio-charting in the CMJ New Music Report and building an avid word of mouth following on Maryland/DC/Virginia college campuses where PW cassettes were traded in the lo-fi scene. In 1998 PW stopped cassette recording to form the indie band lowell. Shortly after re-starting the project in 2002 and joining The Beechfields Record Label, Pupa's Window records began to become more orchestrated, and involve other musicians. PW was regarded as the "best-kept indie-pop songwriter secret" in Baltimore. PW draws comparison to Lou Barlow, Bill Callahan and Elliott Smith and has been described as, "a stripped-down, folky type of indie-pop with a freak factor provided by plenty of echoey production, and tape-loop tinkering." During the second iteration of PW, Michael collaborated extensively with Baltimore-based artist Private Eleanor and released three critically acclaimed records. Recording as PW contributed to The Seldon Plan's impactful role in the Baltimore indie/DIY movement experiencing a revitalization in the mid 2000s. This indie/DIY ethos had a significant impact on Michael and in 2003, he founded The Beechfields Record Label which helped to propel Baltimore-area artists into the mainstream