Brooklyn-based rock quartet stellastarr* has heard critics link
its music to everything remotely related to new-wave, from the
Pixies to Talking Heads to The Cure and almost anything in between.
But does anyone ever really confuse The Cure with the Pixies? How
can one band be compared to multiple bands that have each crafted
entirely unique sounds?
Lead vocalist Shawn Christensen agrees that some of the
comparisons seem far-fetched at times but appreciates the caliber
of the bands against which stellastarr* is often weighed.
“It’s a good thing,” said Christensen.
“It reflects the fact that we’ve made an album that
draws upon a lot of different tempos and different sounds and
different moods, and perhaps that’s why we get all these
comparisons. But generally it’s fine by me.”
In fact, it is precisely its diversity of sound and mood that
sets stellastarr* apart from the huge influx of indie garage rock
bands such as Interpol, Hot Hot Heat, or The Faint. The band has
found a way to remain enigmatic amid groups with trademark
sounds.
“I would imagine that no one really knows what to expect
from our second record, whereas with (other bands) you kind of know
the sound you’re going to be getting for the next
record,” said Christensen. “With us, we get interested
in certain realms of music at certain times and mix it all
together. We kind of want to be a little more
unpredictable.”
Clearly stellastarr* took an unpredictable route in promoting
its self-titled first album. Instead of immediately releasing a
single for mass radio airplay, the band members chose to tour for
five months to ensure that listeners would get to know them as a
complete package ““ not just as “the band that plays
“˜My Coco.'” Because of this decision, they
essentially doubled or tripled their fan base by the time they
chose to release a single.
But stellastarr* has not merely rested on its laurels since
touring and receiving critical acclaim for its album.
“I’m really afraid of being unproductive,”
said Christensen. “That really scares me.”
All four band members have graduated with arts-related bachelors
degrees and frequently integrate their talents within the band,
from designing album covers to T-shirts. Although creating its own
designs demonstrates how stellastarr*’s level of involvement
in marketing itself exceeds that of most other bands, Christensen
still believes the band can make an even greater impact with its
art.
“There was a time when we were still sort of finding
ourselves and we were concentrating on music and the touring and
the business side,” said Christensen. “So for the
second record we might make more of a statement toward the arts. I
don’t think we’ve done what we can really do
yet.”
With that kind of visually artistic talent, some might question
why the members of stellastarr* chose to pursue music. But
Christensen explained that music really found them, and expressed
confidence in stellastarr*’s progression and future as a
band.
“It’s not really something that you choose,
it’s something that you can’t count on and then it kind
of chooses us,” said Christensen. “It’s a really
finicky business. Anything can happen at any moment. “¦ You
just have to write the best music that you think you can write
““ that’s all you can really do.”