DIVINE & DELICATE. Queer Delicacy, a newly formed music group in Eau Claire, will soon release their debut album, 44 Days. Their collaboration as artists came to life in 2024, as they each drew influences from musical backgrounds and the beauty of queerness. (Photo by Alanah Sandoval)

Something fruitful, decadent, and abundant has ripened over the course of this year and a vibrant new music group is ready to be savored by the Chippewa Valley. 44 Days, the debut collaboration from the four-person music ensemble Queer Delicacy, is set for release this summer.

The group features Larissa Webster Clifton (vocals, songwriter), Foxx Lefol (bass guitar, production), Renee Lefol (keys, vocals), and Andie Wynkoop (guitar, backing vocals).

With backgrounds ranging from orchestral performance to solo productions, each member shares a personal connection to music, often finding themselves humming melodies throughout their day-to-day lives.

The group's formation was happenstance, with each member individually finding their own friendships with one another and residing in close proximity within Eau Claire. By early summer of 2024, the four had already been experimenting on-and-off with their musical sound.

After many jam sessions, they decided to take the leap and form their own band.“The stars totally aligned,” Andie said. “There was so much musical connection, it was wonderful.”

“(The album) is about having fun, expressing ourselves, and connecting to music and our queerness."

QUEER DELICACY

ON THEIR DEBUT ALBUM, 44 DAYS

The group described those initial jam sessions as an explosion of curiosity, acceptance, and queer joy, Renee said. The flow between different genres, musical tones, and inspirations from life combined together to form a rhythm that felt naturally timed to their life’s circumstances.

“The music that we were writing — or the silly stuff we were coming up — with was all about our queerness and how important it is to love each other and be in community with each other,” Renee said.

The group’s name, Queer Delicacy, embodies this truth. After demanding days at their jobs — and sometimes generally feeling unable to fully express themselves in other spaces — their once-a-week music practices became a sanctuary where they all found safety.

“Jamming together, that was a delicacy — a little treat after such a hard week,” the group said.

Conversely, they each expressed an appreciation for the Eau Claire arts community's acceptance of intersectional life experiences, including their own.

Andie said queer identities can find a safe space in town, citing several examples from the past year alone. The natural beauty of the Chippewa Valley's landscapes offers another chance to embrace their queerness, they added.

“Being queer is a natural thing,” Andie said. “To just simply express oneself always ties me back to nature.”

From left to right, Foxx, Larissa, Renee, and Andie, pictured above. (Photo by Alanah Sandoval)

When asked what genre speaks to their sound the most, the answer was met with a fluidity that echoes the values of Queer Delicacy. Like gender, Queer Delicacy’s genre will always be open to fluctuations — from Foxx and Renee's gritty, heavier influences to Andie's soft emotional breadth and Larissa's jazz and R&B influences.

“Each of our styles definitely bring something different to the group,” Andie said. “Like how (for) someone that’s non-binary — their gender and their expression will fluctuate — I feel like our band is genre non-binary.”

Their debut album, 44 Days, features seven original tracks, penned by Larissa with input from the three other group members. The album's title marks a pivotal moment for the group; as Larissa made the decision to relocate from Eau Claire to Milwaukee, embarking on a new life chapter.

In January, Larissa shared this significant life change with the members of Queer Delicacy. The news propelled the group to pursue a long-held personal goal of Larissa's: making an album.

“By the time I told them, we had about 44 weeks to meet up consistently — one day a week — and get it done,” Larissa said.

In the months that followed, the Foxx invested in new audio production equipment for the group, and together, they completed the initial recordings with Larissa’s vocals leading up to their big move. More than anything, the group created opportunities to relish the time they had together.

By the end of August, 44 Days will be available to stream on the group's Bandcamp. A music video for "Such is Life," their seventh track, will be released in the same month. Foxx recorded the video themself, incorporating elements of Eau Claire’s natural landscapes and themes of “play” from their recording process, they said.

“I think we spent more time playing outside than we did playing music through this whole process,” the group shared. “(The album) is about having fun, expressing ourselves, and connecting to music and our queerness — it's beautiful.”

The group's name — Queer Delicacy — embodies the themes of self expression and authenticity present in the musicians creative work and everyday life. (Photo by Alanah Sandoval)

The group noted this would be their one-and-only planned album released as a group, though they hinted a return is not entirely out of the question. Friends of the quad and eager listeners can only hope for another helping of Queer Delicacy.

Stay updated on Queer Delicacy's upcoming album by following them on Bandcamp or their Instagram account (@queerdelicacy).