Jim Jarmusch is best known as an American filmmaker, with titles such as the Caméra d’Or winner Stranger Than Paradise, Down by Law, Broken Flowers, and Mystery Train establishing him as a cinematic force with a penchant for high drama and deadpan humor. Born in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, Jarmusch came to New York to study literature and film. While filmmaking is a passion, Jarmusch has a deep curiosity and a seemingly inexhaustible well of creativity that cannot be contained by one medium. He is also a screenwriter, a poet, a collage artist, and, as will become clear in our conversation, a voracious reader and beaver enthusiast. His musical endeavors with his band, SQÜRL, have been taking up much of his time lately.

Jarmusch and producer and musician Carter Logan formed SQÜRL in 2009 to score Jarmusch’s film The Limits of Control. They favor heavy percussion, analog synths, and distorted guitars layered into ambient textures, effecting a dreamy, hypnotic atmosphere that, aptly, feels cinematic. After creating music together for over a decade, including numerous EPs and film scores, SQÜRL has now released its first full-length record, Silver Haze. The album was produced by Randall Dunn, who has worked with heavy ambient and boundary-pushing acts including Sunn O))) and Zola Jesus. To add another layer to their wall of sound, the band brought in actor-singer Charlotte Gainsbourg, singer-poet Anika, and guitarist Marc Ribot as collaborators. The result is a mesmerizing album that is understated and moody, an immersive experience that feels like a trip into another world. It’s challenging and rewarding, an effect not dissimilar to that of watching one of Jarmusch’s movies.