Marmoset
Secretly Canadian Records
Marmoset is comprised of four men from the quaint village of Indianapolis with an ear for melody and a bit of an inclination toward the dark side. They make pop music with a forked tail and a dirty grin. Reviewers try to nail them down by bringing up Guided by Voices, Half Japanese, Sebadoh, Felt, Modern Lovers, Syd Barrett, and a dozen other names, and sometimes those comparisons can work, but Marmoset's songs, short and simple though they seem, transcend such easy comparisons. Marmoset is an interesting case: they possess a self-effacing fuzziness that feels very much in keeping with '90s American indie rock, a nihilistic bleakness that recalls older, often European artists, and a healthy streak of quirkiness in common with some of pop music's most distinguished eccentrics.
The songs "Blooms" and "Forever We Ignite" are from the Today It's You, their first full-length, which came out in 1999. The hiddenforbidden EP appeared that same year, bringing with it "Chinese Checkers." The brilliant, bizarre, highly ambiguous Record in Red appeared two years later, humming through different pop influences like bicycle spokes flashing in the sunlight, while maintaining a highly original perspective. The relaxed, almost dreamy ditty "Torn Cup, Fly Up Above," the The Pixiesish "Frendamine," and the ambivalent, whispery "The Tuesday Horn" all appear on that album.
last updated:
10/15/01
Similar Artists:
Syd Barrett, Felt, Swirlies, The Feelies, Modern Lovers, Guided by Voices, Half Japanese, The Pixies, June Panic, Swearing At Motorists
Other Suggestions:
Built To Spill,
Sebadoh,
Pavement,
The Grifters,
Superchunk,
Archers of Loaf,
The Silver Jews,
Beat Happening,
Versus,
Jad Fair and Jason Willett,
Boredoms,
Wesley Willis,
God Is My Co-Pilot,
Danielson Famile,
Yoko Ono,
Lou Barlow,
The Busy Signals,
Desaparecidos,
764-Hero,
Swervedriver,
Wolf Colonel,
Vinyl Star,
The Crabs,
Mecca Normal,
Tra La La,
All Natural Lemon and Lime Flavors,
Lenola,
Mike G,
Mary Timony,
Jad Fair and Daniel Johnston,
Deerhoof,
P.E.E.,
Superdrag,
Strapping Fieldhands,
J Mascis and The Fog,
The Glands,
Death Cab For Cutie,
Hefner,
Yuji Oniki,
Centro-Matic,
East River Pipe,
AM/FM,
A-Set,
Minmae,
The Contrail,
Snuff,
Ashley Stove,
The Wee Turtles,
Jack Drag,
Sunset Valley,
John Stuart Mill,
The Cubby Creatures,
The Reindeer Section,
Quasi,
The And/Ors,
Further,
Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks,
The Fearless Freep,
Kleenexgirlwonder,
The Breeders,
The Styrenes,
The Soft Boys,
Luna,
Calibos,
The Embarrassment,
Yo La Tengo,
The Simple Ones,
Muler,
Burning Airlines,
Tyro,
Weston,
Spoon,
Rectangle,
Happy Pills,
Mclusky,
Imperial Teen,
The Beatings,
The Legendary Pink Dots
