Ida

New York-based group Ida are known for their intimate arrangements and quietly intense songwriting, drawing from influences ranging from indie rock, folk, and R&B to chamber pop and minimalism. Formed in 1992 by the core duo of singers/guitarists Daniel Littleton and Elizabeth Mitchell, they debuted in 1994 with the stripped-down Tales of Brave Ida, then took on drummer Michael Littleton for 1996's I Know About You. Third songwriter Karla Schickele came on board by the time Ten Small Paces appeared in 1997. Though a major-label stint didn't pan out, they continued releasing well-received independent label efforts such as 2000's Will You Find Me and 2005's Heart Like a River. After collaborating with Greenwich Village folk legend Michael Hurley for 2009's Ida Con Snock, Ida went on hiatus, while Mitchell concentrated on her successful solo career as a children's folk singer. Ida resumed performing in 2023, and Will You Find Me was given an expansive 25th anniversary reissue in 2025. Littleton emerged in 1985 as a member of the Annapolis, Maryland-based punk group the Hated; after their 1989 demise, he continued in a series of bands including Three Shades of Dirty, Choke, and Slack, which also featured future Tsunami frontwoman Jenny Toomey. Mitchell, meanwhile, began performing as one half of an acoustic duo with singer/songwriter (and fellow Brown University alum) Lisa Loeb. Both Mitchell and Littleton later played on Loeb's breakthrough hit "Stay," which became a smash hit during the same year as Ida's debut. After signing to Toomey's Simple Machines label, Ida introduced their sound in 1994 with Tales of Brave Ida, a luminous collection of languid, minimalist pop songs. Following the addition of Littleton's brother Michael (formerly of Baltimore's Hassassins) on drums, they returned in 1996 with the stunning I Know About You. The addition of Beekeeper bassist Karla Schickele preceded 1997's brilliant Ten Small Paces, and that same lineup resurfaced a year later with an EP, Losing True. While still a member of Ida, Dan Littleton also played in Liquorice with Toomey and His Name Is Alive's Trey Many; additionally, he and Mitchell were wed in late 1999, shortly after brother Michael's exit from the group. Mitchell's first children's music album, You Are My Flower, was self-released by the band's Last Affair Records the same year. Following an ill-fated major label stay at Capitol, as well as the limited concert release Live at Carnegie Hall as part of Insound's Tour Support Series, Ida finally released the full-length Will You Find Me on the Tiger Style imprint in 2000. A year later, the group returned with The Braille Night, recorded during the same sessions as the previous album. The remix album Shhh.... was issued in 2002, and Angel Hall, a live recording also including songs by His Name Is Alive, Low, and Secret Stars, appeared in 2003. Littleton and Mitchell released an electro-pop album under the name Nanang Tatang, titled Muki, and Mitchell issued a children's album with Loeb titled Catch the Moon that year. After the Tiger Style label folded, Ida signed with Polyvinyl and issued Heart Like a River, their first full album recorded with longtime collaborator Warren Defever (His Name Is Alive), in 2005. Mitchell became Smithsonian Folkways' first children's music signee of the 21st century, and issued You Are My Little Bird in 2006. Ida relocated to Woodstock, New York and returned in 2008 with Lovers Prayers and the EP My Fair, My Dark, both of which featured appearances by drummer Levon Helm of the Band. Ida Con Snock, a collaboration with eccentric folkie Michael Hurley, was issued by Gnomonsong in 2009. Ida became inactive, though Littleton continued to play on Mitchell's children's music recordings, including 2010's Sunny Day and 2013's Turn Turn Turn (with Dan Zanes). Ida reunited for Numero Group's Numero Twenty show in Los Angeles in 2023. The label then began issuing digital EPs of rarities, remixes, and demos from throughout the band's career. Ida and Tsunami toured together in 2025, and Numero reissued Will You Find Me for its 25th anniversary, in both a four-LP edition and an even further expanded five-CD package. ~ Jason Ankeny & Paul Simpson, Rovi