- Austin-rooted indie duo Tele Novella has signed with Ground Control Touring (GCT) for live music and touring representation across all territories excluding Europe and the UK.
- Agent Alisa Preisler serves as his primary agent.
- The duo, made up of Natalie Ribbons (formerly of Agent Ribbons) and Jason Chronis (of Voxtrot), were previously without formal agency representation.
- GCT has been on an active indie signing streak in 2026, recently adding mage tears and Jejune to its roster.
Tele Novella, the Lockhart, Texas-based duo of Natalie Ribbons and Jason Chronis, has signed with Ground Control Touring (GCT) for worldwide live music and touring representation, excluding Europe and the UK. Agent Alisa Preisler will lead the account.
The signing marks the band’s first formal agency relationship. Previously independent, Tele Novella built their profile through national touring and a critically acclaimed run of records on Kill Rock Stars: 2016’s House of Souls, 2021’s Merlynn Belle, and their most genre-spanning release to date, 2023’s Poet’s Tooth.
The duo is currently in the middle of a busy 2026, supporting Solya on a spring US run and booked for Pickathon in Happy Valley, Oregon this August.
Ribbons, a former member of Agent Ribbons, and Chronis, known for his time with Voxtrot, have been self-directed throughout Tele Novella’s decade-long run, making this agency signing a meaningful infrastructure step.
GCT, founded by Eric Dimenstein and Jim Romeo, has been aggressively expanding its indie-leaning roster in 2026. The agency recently signed mage tears and Jejune, a clear pattern of the agency prioritizing critically respected, community-rooted artists with strong touring potential.
Takeaways
Tele Novella quietly grinding for a decade (no major agent, no management machinery) and landing at GCT is the kind of move that signals a real shift in trajectory.
Alisa Preisler doesn’t sign artists who aren’t ready to tour seriously, and GCT doesn’t take on legacy-building indie acts without a clear plan to grow them.
For a band whose last three records have each expanded their artistic range while building a devoted following, this feels like the right infrastructure at the right time.
The Europe/UK exclusion is also worth watching. It leaves the door open for a separate European agency deal, and given how well this kind of atmospheric, psych-tinged Americana travels abroad, that territory could be a major growth opportunity.
With Europe/UK excluded from the deal, who steps in for that territory, and could a European agency signing be next? Could formal booking representation finally open the door to higher-profile festival slots that Tele Novella’s catalog has long warranted? With both members carrying active side projects, how does a worldwide booking deal shape the pace and scope of future Tele Novella touring?
