Considering that stellastarr* began as three young artists studying at the prestigious Pratt Institute in New York, it’s no surprise that the quartet’s nearly four-year hiatus found the members occupied by largely non-musical pursuits.
When the members finally reconvened, they brought their creatively recharged batteries to their writing sessions and then tested their newly crafted songs in front of audiences at intermittent shows. Early last year, stellastarr* went into the studio with the songs that generated the best live response and continued to shape and shine the material until the group emerged with its excellent third album, the just-released Civilized.
Like its predecessors, Civilized teems with the energetic New Wave/Britpop clockwork swing of the ’80s (think XTC/Gang of Four/Echo and the Bunnymen) mutated with contemporary, fist-pumping Pop/Punk anthemics (think the Strokes/Killers).
They play with Wild Light at the 20th Century Theater. Get show details and Sound Advice here.
