marsupial

Embracing the seven-year itch, local rock band Marsupial scratches the surface of new material, some of it courtesy of two new members, on their latest disc, “Curtains.” The band unveils the album at a CD release party Saturday night at Westville Pub on Haywood Road.

Members Brad Mehder and Chris Carter spoke about the band’s new release.

Hold the jam

“Seven years ago when we started, I can see us fitting into that ‘jam band’ category sure, but now we’ve really focused on writing songs and not so much of the improv,” said bassist Mehder. “I actually don’t know how to describe us because if I say one thing, it feels like I’m leaving something else out.”

“I think each of us has unique tastes but we all meet somewhere in 1970s rock,” said new member, drummer Carter. “I think that period is common ground for all of us.”

Flash forward

Band members credit the years and their like minds with seasoning their sound as they have played mostly in the Southeast since their inception.

“We’ve stuck to this region for reasons of money and gas, and we all still have jobs,”Mehder said. “There’s so many good clubs around, and lately we’ve tried to get into listening rooms and were trying to stay out of the bars. It’s a tossup sometimes between better money or those who come out to listen to music.”

A kick in the drums

“The new guys (Carter and guitarist Forrest Smith) are writers in their own right, and their new songs have brought new energy to the band,” Mehder said.

“I feel very lucky to be playing with these guys,” Carter said. “I had always liked the band, and I thought it would be fun to be part of something like this. I’m very excited to do some of my original stuff, but the person who has the best musical idea we just go with it.”

Double duty

The band’s sound engineer, J Ferris, recorded “Curtains,” and Mehder said the band already has another album ready to go. “We love recording. It’s such a different process. Then we get to put them out there and celebrate the finish, when everything is done and you get feedback from everyone else.”

Amy Jones writes about music for the Citizen-Times. E-mail her at ajontheair@

hotmail. - Take 5

"On Day 2 Marsupial woke up a sleepy Saturday crowd with their brand of guitar driven rock, and it was great!. It didn’t take long into their set for bodies to appear from all of the nooks and crannies of the Civic Center. Everyone in the building soon wanted to be a part of the Marsupial experience.

From the opener, “The Tide” to the set closer, “Truth Hits Everybody,” the obviously loyal Marsupial fans and festival goers got a dose of the type of rock that lifts you, spins you around, smacks you in the back of the head, then picks you up again, all without leaving you with a headache or any bruising. A short walk through the crowd found people hooping, dancing, hand banging, fists pounding in the air, and smiles on everyone’s faces. It would be no surprise to hear Marsupial on the radio drawing fans from multiple genres."

- Chris Adams, Honest Tune Magazine (Jul 11, 2008)
- Honest Tune Magazine

April 23, 2006
By Dave Terpeny

There was once a time, before punk’s three chords beat the hell out of it, that epic jazz and classical time changes were combined with soaring rock melodies to create extravagant and powerful “progressive” rock compositions. King Crimson, Genesis, Pink Floyd, Yes, Jethro Tull and others spearheaded this movement in England in the early 70’s, easily the genre’s heyday.
The metal scene of the late 80’s was recognized as having resurrected the form somewhat with bands like Queensryche and their epic concept album Operation Mindcrime, the Rimsky-Korsakov lightning of Flotsam & Jetsam, Dream Theater’s musical novels and, more recently, Spock’s Beard and the so-called “emo” hard rock of Coheed & Cambria among others.
What has not been given enough props is the part that the “jam” scene has played in the maintenance and growth of this still thriving influence. Aside from the obvious and mutual attraction between Deadheads and Floyd’s trips, the improvisation inherent in the music coming out of the “jam” scene, the obvious progressive elements in much of Phish’ music (ever hear the” Gamehenge Time Factory”?) and the more recent meteoric rise of the prog-rocking Umphrey’s McGee all lend themselves to the cross-pollenization of the genres.
Asheville’s MarsupiaL continues this tradition with their latest release, the concept album Moby Fleck.
Described by guitarist Ian Reardon as being “based on the internal conflict of a shy, overweight, shut-in computer programmer named Moby Fleck,” the album is supported by a recent Asheville Area Arts Council 2005-2006 Regional Artist Project Grant.
“We’re all pretty excited,” confirmed Reardon. “This money will be a big help with the promotion of our new album.”
While supported by the grant, the album is fueled by MarsupiaL’s unique take on genres. “We pretty much do a lot of different things,” said Reardon. “We’ll go from a heavy rock song to a heavy metal type of thing to a jazz-fusion song to a bluesy whatever type of riff.”
And damn if he ain’t right. Channelling everyone from Flotsam Jetsam in the riff-heavy “Commence, Your Time is Up” to Phish with the funky “Thieves in Green” and Pink Floyd on the subdued and bluesy “Broken Song” MarsupiaL creates a combination of hook-laden rock and roll to tightly composed yet loosely flowing jams like the 14+ minutes of the title track and the 10+ minute long soulful “Less Than A Speck” that closes the album.
But live is where these guys really shine.
“We are definitely a live band,'’ Reardon said. “We love to do studio stuff, but when it comes down to it, we gel better when we’re playing off of each other and looking at each other.”
For the sake of accuracy I have to admit I’ve never seen them live but the (sadly only) one show they have uploaded to Archive.org proves them man is telling the truth. The songs that expand your mind on disc possess your synaptic functions entirely when being interpreted live. From the opening jam of the lush “Why Are These Pillows Following Ye,” off of their debut dancing about architecture, through to the hour-long, 5 song second set MarsupiaL sets the music blazing. Time signatures change and combine with a stunning rapidity, solos flare and die and songs become moving targets.
“Live, it’s a really rich experience,” Reardon continued. “We’re a band for the ADD crowd — if you don’t like what you hear right now, wait 5 minutes, because it’s like the weather in the mountains; it’s going to change.”
And so has MarsupiaL. While dancing about architecture was certainly no slouch (we commented in November 2004 that it was an “amazingly tight and complete package”), Moby Fleck shows an increase of musical maturity that is a pleasure to hear. - Kynd Music

This easy-going quartet from North Carolina has built a regional following with its improv-heavy mix of progressive rock, jazz and jam-band music. With its third album, Curtains, MarsupiaL – the kind of band that opens for the likes of Gov’t Mule and Ulu and gets press in Relix magazine – proves that jam music needn’t be self-absorbed noodling. Sure, some of the songs here surpass the seven-minute mark. But with songwriting duties split between three of the band’s four members, there’s plenty of diversity, and much of the improvisation appears to have been left on the stage.

Vocalists Ian Reardon (who also plays guitar) and Chris Carter (the drummer, too) wander into Dave Matthews territory a few times and occasionally rely on a slightly off-putting falsetto, but nether offense is enough to diminish MarsupiaL’s overall chops. Just listen to “The Chameleon,” a dreamy acoustic piece that evolves into what could become a soaring festival anthem. The two singers harmonize smoothly on “So Far Away,” and the too-short instrumental workout “Swamp Cats” reveals MarsupiaL’s aggressive edge.

It’s worth noting that MarsupiaL includes “live and studio engineer” J. Ferris in the band’s lineup list and group photos – an admirable gesture, considering Ferris makes this independently released album sound better than some major-label titles.

Track Listing:
1) We’re Paralyzed
2) Feet on the Wire
3) Curtains
4) Surrender to the World
5) Swamp Cats
6) The Chameleon
7) The Truth Is A Lighthouse
So Far Away
9) Ticking Away
10) Jackalope
11) You’ll See the Light

Added: May 23rd 2008
Reviewer: Michael Popke
Score:
Related Link: Official Marsupial Web Site
Hits: 109
Language: english - Sea Of Tranquility

Marsupial describes itself as an “electrogroovin’ psychofusion rock band”. The band operates as a tight-knit family and has a common philosophy of crossing all available musical boundaries. In the past five years this quartet has created a buzz around the southeast U.S. with an eclectic musical vision that melds an improv-heavy mix of jazz-rock and progressive rock with a superior melodic content. There’s an ‘80s Grateful Dead vibe mixed with a little Steely Dan. The band’s self-released CD, Dancing About Architecture, contains some infectious grooves and flowing improvisations, especially the two long cuts, “Now” and the sprawling live track “Why Are These Pillows Following Ye,” a 14-minute journey of funky, spunky fluid jamming. While the band’s songs have a tendency to be one-dimensional in terms of texture, this is still an outfit with much promise. - Relix Magazine

Marsupial describes itself as an “electrogroovin’ psychofusion rock band”. The band operates as a tight-knit family and has a common philosophy of crossing all available musical boundaries. In the past five years this quartet has created a buzz around the southeast U.S. with an eclectic musical vision that melds an improv-heavy mix of jazz-rock and progressive rock with a superior melodic content. There’s an ‘80s Grateful Dead vibe mixed with a little Steely Dan. The band’s self-released CD, Dancing About Architecture, contains some infectious grooves and flowing improvisations, especially the two long cuts, “Now” and the sprawling live track “Why Are These Pillows Following Ye,” a 14-minute journey of funky, spunky fluid jamming. While the band’s songs have a tendency to be one-dimensional in terms of texture, this is still an outfit with much promise. - Relix Magazine

Marsupial
Dancing About Architecture
Independent

Marsupial was born in the Southeast from the foundations of Discfunctional Family Entertainment, a recording and production company founded by Marsupial engineer J Ferris. Since that inception in 1999, this group of five has been creating one hell of a buzz throughout their region. It’s easy to see why.

With an airy old-school texture, progressive melodies and one fine sense of mellow grooving, Marsupial’s Dancing About Architecture is at all times an ecstatic listen, reminiscent (so I’ve been told) of a few good hits among friends. In the best tradition of improvisational rock it expands your mind, makes you happy and gets you moving.

This spirit, in its myriad forms, is especially evident in songs like the Pink Floyd-esque “Standing In Motion” and the two epics of the CD, “Now” and the live recording of “Why Are Those Pillows Following Ye.”

“Now” has a Steely Dan tinge to the riffs, a well-crafted chorus and bridge ala any Jerry tune and some great seamless jamming that pulls in funk, jazz and the aforementioned progressive elements. It creates a seemingly endless trip that is both blissful and danceable.

The other epic tune, at over 14 minutes, was recorded live at the Slagle Farm in North Carolina. Aside from having a great title (“Why Are Those Pillows Following Ye”) it is an oceanic jam, flowing between popping bass lines, Roger Water vocals and liquid guitar licks, all tied neatly together by wonderfully subtle and understated percussion.

All in all, Marsupial is a fantastically tight and complete package. I would hope and expect that soon they will be creating a buzz nationally. - By Dave Terpeny, KyndMusic Editor

Marsupial
Dancing About Architecture
Independent

Marsupial was born in the Southeast from the foundations of Discfunctional Family Entertainment, a recording and production company founded by Marsupial engineer J Ferris. Since that inception in 1999, this group of five has been creating one hell of a buzz throughout their region. It’s easy to see why.

With an airy old-school texture, progressive melodies and one fine sense of mellow grooving, Marsupial’s Dancing About Architecture is at all times an ecstatic listen, reminiscent (so I’ve been told) of a few good hits among friends. In the best tradition of improvisational rock it expands your mind, makes you happy and gets you moving.

This spirit, in its myriad forms, is especially evident in songs like the Pink Floyd-esque “Standing In Motion” and the two epics of the CD, “Now” and the live recording of “Why Are Those Pillows Following Ye.”

“Now” has a Steely Dan tinge to the riffs, a well-crafted chorus and bridge ala any Jerry tune and some great seamless jamming that pulls in funk, jazz and the aforementioned progressive elements. It creates a seemingly endless trip that is both blissful and danceable.

The other epic tune, at over 14 minutes, was recorded live at the Slagle Farm in North Carolina. Aside from having a great title (“Why Are Those Pillows Following Ye”) it is an oceanic jam, flowing between popping bass lines, Roger Water vocals and liquid guitar licks, all tied neatly together by wonderfully subtle and understated percussion.

All in all, Marsupial is a fantastically tight and complete package. I would hope and expect that soon they will be creating a buzz nationally. - By Dave Terpeny, KyndMusic Editor