Sloan Walters Scott Hall John Mulhern Jef Wright Mark Erickson Gospel Claws is an indie rock band based out of Tempe, Arizona.

After leaving Dear and the Headlights in 2007, Gospel Claws lead-singer and guitarist Joel Marquard returned to his job as a delivery-man for FedEx.

That same year, he began collaborating with his friend Sloan Walters, drawing from the catalog of music that he had written over time outside of Dear and the Headlights.

Recognizing the name on the package, but not finding him at home, Marquard left a message which eventually led to Hilsabeck joining the band.

Brandon Nolta at Boise Weekly enjoyed the record's "new-retro vibe" and said that it was "well worth your currency, no matter how inscrutable [the band's] name.

One critic raved that, "combining indie rock, folk and a bit of soul to produce their own distinctive sound," Gospel Claws' "musical ingenuity separates them from the crowd.

[11] Their expanding success allowed Gospel Claws to open for such acts as Wild Nothing, Cotton Jones, No Age, Plants and Animals, and Portugal.

[13] For Gospel Claws' second LP, small indie-label Common Wall Media could only agree to provide a little more than half of the record's funding.