Dead Stars
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Dead Stars

New York City, New York, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2009 | INDIE

New York City, New York, United States | INDIE
Established on Jan, 2009
Band Alternative Indie

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This band has not uploaded any videos
This band has not uploaded any videos

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"New Music Michael"

Dead Stars, have just released a new EP called “The Wasted EP”, a follow-up to their debut album “Break The Tide”. The Brooklyn trio were founded just three years ago, and have quickly constructed a sound not unlike Dinosaur Jr., who they are often compared with, complete with driving drums and fuzzy guitars. The five tracks on the EP quickly whisk you away on a rock journey that would be impressive for a band that’s been around for a decade, never mind three short years.

Stream the opening and title track from the EP below, “Wasted”. You can purchase the EP (and their album) from their bandcamp site, or iTunes. - New Music Michael


"Reviewsic"

Brooklyn band Dead Stars have been catching their breath from all the hubbub of SXSW and the late April release of their newest effort, The Wasted EP. Put out digitally on April 26th, the record will also soon be seeing a vinyl release, giving listeners plenty of options for taking in the fuzzed out -sound these guys make.
Formed by cousins Jeff and Jaye Moore in 2008 along with their good friend John Watterberg, the trio quickly fell into their niche with a Dinosaur Jr.-esque fuzziness to what are otherwise tried and true rock rhythms. Dead Stars and The Wasted EP are a little taste of what certain crowds (you know, the ones who weren’t busy listening to Ace of Base) will remember fondly as the sound of the early 90’s, rich with deep, throaty vocals and broad strums of fuzzy guitar. Reviewsic favorites off this 5-track release include the spiraling guitar of “Killing Time” and the surprisingly upbeat melody of title track “Wasted”.
The EP can be found on Bandcamp and iTunes and collectors should keep an ear to the ground for the announcement of the record’s vinyl release sometime in the near future.

The men behind the music recently indulged us in a little email interview- read on to learn more about Dead Stars, The Wasted EP, and what bands are in their “Top 25 Most Played” list on iTunes.

What’s the back-story on how the band came to be what it is today?

John: Jaye and I had been friends for awhile when at a mutual friend’s birthday party, he told me that he and Jeff were in need of a bass player. I looked at him incredulously and reminded him I played bass in an old band he never came to see. I met Jeff, we clicked. We jammed, we clicked. We formed Dead Stars, it clicked.

What are your top three musical influences?

Jeff: I’d have to say Dinosaur Jr., My Bloody Valentine and Nirvana.

Jaye: Neil Young, the Beatles, The Rolling Stones.

If we peeked at your iTunes right now, what would be the first 3 names in your “Top 25 Most Played” list?

Jeff: Yuck, Failure, and Queens of the Stone Age.

John: Weezer, Jesus Christ Superstar, Violent Soho.

Jaye: Band of Skulls, Best Coast, new J Mascis.

If you could work with one person in the music industry (musician, label, producer etc), who would it be and why?

Jeff: J Mascis. Because his guitar playing is amazing and I also think he’s hilarious.

John: Dave Grohl. He seems to be the only person equally as prolific as he is enjoying the hell out of himself!

Lately we’ve been on this kick of revisiting bands we didn’t pay as much attention to in the past and wondering, “Why didn’t I listen to this 10 years ago?”- If you could go back in time and push 3 bands/records on your younger self, who/what would they be and why?

John: Old Sex Pistols, for all the raw anarchy that I wrote off as contrived. Teenage Fanclub, because the only song I knew for years was the one on the DGC Rarities record. And Jay-Z, because it wasn’t until I worked with a real fan that I realized what a profound artist he was.

Jaye: Townes Van Zant – I didn’t know who he was and then saw the documentary on him. Brain Jones Town Massacre – I guess I just didn’t get them back then.

Tell us about The Wasted EP- What was the writing/recording process like for you? Where did the title come from? How would you describe it to someone who has never heard Dead Stars before?

Jeff: We actually started recording the 5 songs on the EP last summer in our practice room on this 24 track recorder we have. After we finished, we really didn’t like a lot of the sounds we got. So we decided to call up our friend Shannon Ferguson, who also did our first record ‘Break the Tide’, and went back into the studio with him. Everything was recorded to 2” tape and we’re really happy with the way it turned out. We usually describe the band as Psychedelic Indie Grunge.

John: The title would be a play on words with the title track, while also suggesting we wasted the opportunity to record a proper EP.

How would you compare yourselves as musicians at this point as opposed to when you first began playing together?

John: When we first began, it was a process of just fitting appropriate pieces together that we could all agree on. Now it feels as if we occupy a hive-mind of mutual intuition that almost circumvents the need for verbal communication.

Jaye: We are much better and tighter.

What are the best and worst band moments so far in your time as Dead Stars?

Jeff: The worst moment was when I went out to get the van before a show and it was gone, with all of our gear inside. It was towed because we owed something like $900 in parking tickets. That really sucked. We ended up having to play the show acoustically, so it turned out ok, but it was definitely a low point.

John: Best: SXSW 2011. Worst: SXSW 2011.

Jaye: Best: Playing on the Greenpeace boat twice was pretty fun. Worst: I broke my arm last summer and couldn’t play for 6 weeks.

What are your plans - Reviewsic


"Latest Disgrace"

Less than a year since releasing their criminally overlooked debut, Break the Tide, Brooklyn’s Dead Stars (first profiled here on this site) are back with the five-song Wasted EP. But while the record maintains much of its predecessor’s ’90s alt rock feel — fuzzed-out guitars rage and boil, slacker vocals weave through discordant walls of artful pop-noise — gone is the group’s tendency to meander through more open-ended space rock territory. The songs here are more deliberate and immediate, more focused on melody and hooks than on sonic experimentation. Should you take that to mean that Wasted is any less engaging? Absolutely not. On the contrary, there is a striking efficiency to these tunes, a driving, no-nonsense intensity that is thrilling. These guys have business to attend to, namely, crafting wildly infectious, high-energy rock anthems, and they don’t waste any notes getting it done.

Dead Stars - Wasted

The Wasted EP is officially out today and can be downloaded for a measly five bucks through iTunes. You can check out the cover art and tracklist below. Also, if you’re fortunate enough to live anywhere Brooklyn you can catch Dead Stars live when they play at Lone Wolf on Saturday, May 14th. Falcons and Fountains are also scheduled to perform. - Latest Disgrace


"The Wounded Jukebox - Dead Stars"

Brooklyn band Dead Stars list grunge as a genre they might fit into. But the bands I’m reminded of when hearing the trio’s latest output The Wasted EP are more straightforward garage, post-punk or old-fashioned alt-rock bands. Listening to the two tracks we feature here, I hear groups like Smashing Pumpkins, The Hold Steady, Foo Fighters or, to a lesser extent, Silversun Pickups.

Cousins Jeff and Jaye Moore team up with longtime friend John Watterberg to craft the fuzziest of catchy guitar hooks and pulsing percussion, all of which provides a way to take a trip back into recent rock history. The minute-long guitar intro of “The Same” is a headbanger’s dream: it’s loud, supercharged and infectious. The formula isn’t complicated — guitar hook and drums with some nice vocal work — but it doesn’t make Dead Stars’ work any less impressive.

With “Wasted,” I think it was the vocals that initially brought The Hold Steady to mind. Again, it’s just introducing a really solid guitar riff and then building on top of that tasty lick before coming back to it. On a gut level, I find these two songs to be somewhat irresistible. Maybe it’s the reminder of youthful angst and simpler days. - The Wounded Jukebox


"Berkeley Place"

Brooklyn’s Dead Stars have this one song on their new EP called “The Same” that starts with a long, relentless, sledgehammer riff that made my head explode. The band’s energy, hunger, and passion blew my shit up. No other way to say it. This is hook rock at its finest. It’ll make you think of The Foo Fighters, Meat Puppets, Dinosaur Jr. . . . That whole slew of Seattle riff rockers.

You need to hear this now. Now, dammit! - Berkeley Place


"Now Hear This: Dead Stars"

NOW HEAR THIS: Dead Stars
By
Moe Castro
Published: October 27, 2010 Posted In: Features, Now Hear This Tags:Break the Tide, Dead Stars

Dead Stars
It would be easy to dismiss Brooklyn trio Dead Stars as another ’90s throwback picking at the bones of the past. After all, the band does strike many of the familiar touchstones—the hypnotic fuzzed-out guitars, the discordant wails of feedback, the tongue-in-cheek, world-weary slacker vibe. And, yet, spend just a few moments listening to the textured space rock psychedelia of “Break the Tide” or the propulsive pop thrust of the sprightly “The Party’s Over” and you’ll discover a band capable of delivering dynamic songs that are energetic, confident and, above all, catchy. For all their love of thundering riffs and their unabashed grunge era co-opting, Dead Stars’ music begins and ends with solid, honest to god, stick-in-your-head hooks.

Formed in 2008, the band currently has a single self-released record to their name, but it’s an excellent one. The nine-song Break the Tide manages to conjure everything from Built to Spill and Dinosaur Jr.’s snarling pop-noise to the spaced-out odysseys of Failure and Hum. It is available now through iTunes, Amazon MP3 and several other digital distributors. If you like what hear above, I highly recommend that you pick this record up because it flat-out rips. The cover art and track list can be found below.

Dead Stars - Break the Tide
Break the Tide Track List:
01. Break the Tide
02. Fade Away
03. The Party’s Over
04. What It It
05. Slow Motion
06. The Ride
07. The Light
08. Stupid Town
09. The Black Swan



- Latest Disgrace


"Amplifier Magazine review"

DEAD STARS
BREAK THE TIDE

INDEPENDENT (2009)

The self-released debut by this Brooklyn trio is a pleasant, guitar-driven set of tunes that brings to mind the days of mid-’90s alternative rock. There is nothing fancy about the songs on Break the Tide (indie-rock this is not), and the musical ideas are not exactly revolutionary. However, what Dead Stars has created is an instrumentally driven collection of working class rock and roll with a keen melodic sense, a la Superdrag circa Regretfully Yours. The licks are straightforward yet powerful, the songs upbeat and catchy, and ultimately the been-there-done-that feeling will bleed away and Break the Tide will have you humming along.

--Frank Valish [September 28, 2009]
- Amplifier Magazine


"75 or Less Review"

Dead Stars - Break the Tide (self released) Brooklyn's Dead Stars have some immediately familiar sounds even on the first listen—Pixies' loud-soft-loud trademark, Built to Spill, Pavement and Hum when they decide to unleash the wall of guitars. Anyone claiming to be a fan of those bands should get this album today. Heavily Dinosaur Jr. influenced and, while the vocals have nothing in common, "Stupid Town" has a guitar solo that is hard to believe was not played by J. Mascis himself (this is a compliment). The band should provide him with his share of royalties regardless. - mark - 75 or Less


"The Fire Note"

This Brooklyn band is currently flying below the radar but their debut Break The Tide may eventually change some of that with its loud textured guitars and full blown out rock songs, which instantly brings to mind alt icon Dinosaur Jr. It is not that the Dead Stars bring anything new or innovative to the table but rather their focus on solid song structures, moving rhythms and intricate guitar play makes Break The Tide a worthy listen. The band succeeds in taking a very 90's rock approach and making it current with their energy and forward lyrics. This creates a perfect balance for the Dead Stars that should be capable of pulling in a new crowd while attracting those of us still cranking out the fuzzy rock from our past! -Reviewed by Christopher Anthony - The Fire Note


"A band to check out: Dead Stars"

Brooklyn trio Dead Stars, a constellation of J’s, Jeff (Guitar, Vocals), Jay (Drums), and John (Bass), introduce themselves to the music scene with their full-length release “Break the Tide.” Several tracks - “The Party’s Over,” “What It Is,” and “The Black Swan” - embody influences from noise pop (if that's how you call Dinosaur Jr,) grunge, folk, and psychedelia, while the title track “Break the Tide” breaks into heavy chords before settling into smooth arpeggios relaxing into a familiar reflective rock cadence. - Meijin Bruttomesso


- The Deli Magazine


"When The Levee Breaks"

The Grunge Revival is not a rumor: whether that’s good or bad depends on your particular inclinations, but it really doesn’t matter because it’s completely out of your hands, sugar: Dead Stars, who wear their Dinosaur Jr. influence on their torn sleeves and throw melodic “punch you in the gut” sound, are playing at The Charleston in Williamsburg this fine Thursday evening, along with the extremely 1992 sounding Violent Soho from Brisbane, Australia. Get some Hush Puppies from the punk rock southern food stall Honeychiles upstairs and then go down to the basement and wade in the bonecrush sound. While this is not exactly a scene that’s going to be an ongoing focus of this blog, I think…you ought to know (if I may quote another song of the era…) See what I did there?


- garagepunknyc.com


Discography

'I Get By' 2012  Self Released

'High Gain' 2013  Uninhabitable Mansion Records

Photos

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Bio

www.facebook.com/deadstarsmusic

Band Members