Merrill Garbus started her career as tUnE-yArDs with 2009's Bird-Brains, a lo-fi DIY project recorded with little more than a cheap tape recorder, a ukulele, and her remarkably elastic, swooping voice. Released on the legendary indie 4AD, the album built anticipation for 2011's W H O K I L L, a kaleidoscopic mixture of Afrobeat percussion, electronic R&B hooks, traditional American folk tunes, and politically charged lyrics. Adding bassist Nate Brenner, as well as backup singers and horn players, Garbus developed an increasingly polyrhythmic sound for 2014's Nikki Nack.