ARIANNA NEVAREZ
Staff Writer
After performing in 2025 in the Amphitheater, Bandits on the Run will return to the stage for a concert centered on their newly released album Rough Magic at 3 p.m. Sunday in the Amp.
Adrian Blake Enscoe, Sydney Shepherd and Regina Strayhorn make up the musical trio from the Brooklyn-Queens border. Shepherd described the group as “a collective of three songwriters coming together to support each other.”
Their sophomore project, Rough Magic, is their first full-length release in almost ten years, following their 2017 debut, The Criminal Record. Shepherd said the album was created while they were visiting a friend who lived in the Catskill Mountains. She said the trio turned the living room into a studio and the closet into a vocal booth, making the creation feel “homemade” and special.
“Our story, our hearts, and our spirits are woven through this album,” Regina Strayhorn said in an interview with Atwood Magazine. “We hope that this album is a reminder that something can be made from nothing, a chance encounter can become a greatest hope and there is always a curve coming down the road. We hope this record keeps people curious. We hope it’s a balm and a light and a friend and, at times, a great damn thing to dance to.”
Throughout the album, the trio switches singing responsibilities based on who the head writer of the song was, according to Shepherd. She said this uncommon band dynamic has been central to the trio since they started creating music.
“We’re really lucky that it’s been so collaborative,” Shepherd said. “There’s definitely a lot of artistic friction and differences about things, but [arguments over who’s lead on a song] is not a point of contention ever.”
To describe the band’s community, Shepherd said Chautauquans should listen to “Love Pass Through” because it highlights the support they share for one another and how far they have come as a band. On the other hand, she said “Tilted Universe” is a song that emulates the “vibe” of the band.
“Our shows are usually very joyful and fun and a little irreverent,” Shepherd said. “[‘Tilted Universe’] is the more anthemic one, and we always try to throw in a few super fun, upbeat songs like that.”
The trio is also in the business of writing musicals. As they dive into the musical world, Bandits on the Run will perform an original score throughout the week in Chautauqua Theater Company’s third and final New Play Workshop of the 2026 Summer Season, an adaptation of William Shakespeare’s As You Like It, which runs Thursday–Saturday in Bratton Theater.
Bandits on the Run will also perform a late-night set at 10 p.m. Wednesday at Roe Green Theater Center.
Being part of the group has influenced each member both personally and professionally, and they consider each other their best friends, according to an interview with The Michigan Daily.
“It’s really beautiful to share your life with a group of people that you’re so close-knit with and that you have a shared endeavor,” Enscoe said in the interview with The Michigan Daily.
