Menu
Recent Articles
Links
Sponsors
Stellastarr Biography
Stellastarr* are a New York band who don’t seem too concerned about being cool. Drummer Arthur Kremer takes the stage topless, with a large asterisk duct-taped to his right nipple. Singer Shawn Christensen turns up to a MTV taping in a winged
collar shirt fit for Mr. Roper from Three’s Company. Blonde bassist Amanda Tannen can occasionally be seen smiling onstage.
Then there’s the music. It rocks hard, sure, veering closer to the polished workmanship of their buddies Interpol than the Strokes’ shabby chic. Playing the “name the influence” game is a lot harder. You might hear snatches of Duran Duran in their punk/funk rhythms, and the twisted guitar interplay may make you think of U2. But Christensen’s drill-sergeant bark is harder to peg. So really, why worry?
Christensen, Kremer and Tannen first met at Brooklyn’s Pratt Institute of the Arts, playing in “joke band” Ghistor. Having grown up with ‘50s rock ‘n’ roll, Christensen was getting a crash course in the Pixies and Sebadoh and learning guitar via the Bob Dylan songbook. He took acting classes and was in a Priceline commercial. Kremer majored in graphic design and got an on-screen role in a Rick Schroeder TV movie. Tannen preferred her cello to bass.
After graduation, the trio found themselves playing together again, with the addition of guitarist Michael Jurin. Stellastarr*'s self-titled debut is infectious pop-rock framed around the women in Christensen’s life - the ones who lit up his world (“My Coco”), the ones who hurt his friends (“Jenny”), and even one who’s an alien (the epic “Moongirl”). Uncool maybe, but the album’s sleek effervescence and their live intensity could make Stellastarr* the band most likely to cross over from subterranean New York to the masses.
