MOUNT SAINT ELIAS
BIOGRAPHY
Mount Saint Elias is the project of singer/songwriter Joey Coe, Chilean percussionist Luna Fuentes, and Josiah Johnson (formerly of The Head and The Heart), Matteo Lovik & KC Van der Zee. The music fuses the acoustic-based and lyric-forward approach of the folk music Coe grew up with in Kentucky with the experimental tones reflective of his adopted home of Oakland, CA. The band began around a campfire in Iowa, as Coe and vocalist Tatyana Schmid met working as adventure travel guides. The two would decide to move together to Oakland, CA with another guide, Matteo Lovik to start a band. The Chilean couch surfer crashing at their house became the fourth member and the band was up and running. The four friends gained a small but devoted following on the West Coast, gaining a reputation for delicious harmonies, whip-smart lyrics, and a high-energy live show. On a cool morning in 2018, co-founder Tatyana Schmid was killed in a bicycle accident in the hills of Oakland.