Pleasant the meaner.

Trying to set the band apart has been the mission of Mika Tarkela, vocals/guitar, for the better part of the last year. Growing tired of feeling like he was following in the footsteps of great indie rock innovators, he set out to find something unique. With the departure of the original bass player and drummer after the release of Pleasant the meaner's last full length, 2003's "...of ashes", Mika saw his opportunity. "The time was right and I had a couple of ideas that I wanted to play around with," says the enigmatic leader, "Nik [Ahlstam - guitar] and I tryed a couple of different things at shows, hoping something would stick." What eventually did stick was something interesting indeed. "What we did for one show is take the snare drum away from the drummer and not have a bass player. The reaction was unbelievable." Having found a sound to work with, the band has started to work on new material in ernest. "We want to get out there. I think we hit on something and we're excited to share what we have." After they finish work on an EP they started earlier this summer, they are going to play non-stop shows and tour, capping off the year with another trip to the studio to begin work on their second full length. "I'm excited about music again. I can't wait to see what the future holds." Neither can we.