Driveway Ceiling introduce a newspaper man with a story worth following on Death Of The Walden Newspaper Co., a debut that brings psychedelic pop, eccentric characters, and homemade ingenuity together across 15 songs. Originally released digitally in 2023, the album makes its first appearance on vinyl and special edition CD through Independent Project Records.

Originally from Trumbull, Connecticut, the four musicians now live in different parts of the country. For this record, they gathered at a house in Pennsylvania, where even a Batman towel pressed into service on the snare drum became part of the recording setup. That resourcefulness suits a band whose ambitions reach well beyond the usual guitars, bass, and drums. Their music draws connections between the Beatles and the Kinks, the independent pop experiments of Apples in Stereo and Elf Power, and touches of Tropicalia and art rock.

At the center of the album’s loosely connected narrative is Mr. Walden, a fictional newspaper proprietor modeled after the old media barons. His working life, frustrations, and potential for redemption give the record a recurring character, with spoken passages helping connect its musical episodes. The song “Mr. Walden” brings that character down to earth through the everyday burdens of running a paper and wondering whether anyone still cares enough to read it.

Principal songwriters and singers Liam Mottolese and Colin Walsh bring distinct approaches to the project, sharing space within its larger story. There’s humor in the band’s own description of its chemistry: despite the inevitable Lennon and McCartney comparisons, all four members would prefer to be Ringo.

The physical editions extend the fictional world into something listeners can unfold. Each numbered copy includes an eight-page, tabloid-sized newspaper containing lyrics and additional material. For an album built around a newspaper company, giving the songs their own printed edition is a particularly fitting finishing touch.