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Stellastarr*
(Self-Titled)
label: RCA
released: 09.23.03
our score: 3.0 out of 5.0
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The
interesting thing about Stellastarr* is that you'll hear oodles
of influences brandied about whenever you get caught in a discussion
- or reading a review of their debut. So, I'll get the majority
of this out of the way from the beginning in a simple, unordered
list of 80s post-punk new-wavers and shoegazers you might find
hints of in this record:
- The
Cure
- The
Pixies
- Television
- Talking
Heads
- Joy
Division
- Modern
English
I
could probably continue the list for quite a bit longer, but if
you have at least a reasonable knowledge of your music history,
you've already got the picture.
Thankfully,
Stellastarr*'s debut comes off as much more than a bunch
of new wave influence, making it another of those essential albums
for anyone into the modern New York scene. While lead vocalist/guitarist
Shawn Christensen and vocalist/bassist Amanda Tannen do
seem to quite enjoy the back-and-forth banter made so historic
by Frank Black and Kim Deal in The Pixies's heyday, Stellastarr*
find themselves more at home with their recent genre revivalists
like Interpol, Hot Hot Heat and The Stills (yeah, the last two
are Canadian bands... why it's still referred to as the New York
sound is starting to disturb me) than their influential counterparts.
There's
been quite a bit of a hype machine in motion for Stellastarr*
so far, but the barrage is only beginning as they're set to start
hitting radio soon. And if songs like the Pixie-esque "Jenny"
or the dancey "Coco" end up hitting a few nonbelievers'
eardrums, the hype machine will be able to move to autopilot as
word-of-mouth takes over.
05-Jan-2003
5:18 PM
If you
liked Stellstarr*...
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| Tracklist:
1.
In the Walls
2. Jenny
3. A Million Reasons
4. My Coco
5. No Weather
6. Moongirl
7. Somewhere Across Forever
8. Homeland
9. Untitled
10. Pulp Song
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