Stewart
New York City, New York, United States | SELF
Music
Press
Stewart’s appropriately titled album, “Kicks” kicks ass. The Brooklyn pop-punk band showcases their many talents in a span of nine tracks. Lead off single, “Dance With Me” asks listeners to “take a chance…and dance with me” something you’ll gladly find yourself doing to the energetic, fun-filled track. Tracks like “Consider Me Gone,” “Goodbye” and “Aloof” can easily play alongside any of the current top 40 hits on today’s charts. With their clever lyrics and references to pop culture it’s easy to predict that these guys (guitarist John White & drummer Kevin Cerovich) and gal (vocalist Andrea Tarka) will become this year’s breakthrough act. - Sinister Girlz
Goddammit. I am slightly ashamed that I find Stewart’s Kicks so damned catchy. Simple riffs, simpler drum beats, fairly low-end production values and the misnomer of a man-name with a lady singer– any of these have the possibility to irritate me to no end, yet I find myself listening to it long after was necessary to write this review. Simple? Yeah. Catchy? Hell yeah.
Clocking in at just under 27 minutes across 9 tracks, they have obviously discovered the DNA of writing pop songs designed to catch the attention of the audience. While Andrea Tarka’s vocal work and songwriting definitely show an emotional investment in the songs, they are not emo-crybaby songs. Think more in the vein of Weezer, old Get Up Kids and maybe even some Nada Surf. The LP (BARELY an LP, by the way, Stewart!) ends with a super minimalistic (root notes and vocals) and then a “dance remix” of “Who We Are,” the catchiest of all the jams, bringing in some synths for good measure.
-Jonathan Yost - Racket Magazine
It has been said that a band’s character should be judged not when they are performing under the best circumstances, but the worst. This sentiment may apply to Stewart’s most recent Philadelphia appearance at World Café Live. The bubblegum-coated ferocity of their power pop found itself in a “local artists showcase” at the uber-white-upper-middle-class dinner theater venue. To the band’s credit, they delivered their infectiously riotous anthems of heartache and heartbreak as if they were downstairs at the Khyber or any other punk club as middle-aged people looked on, seated behind their plates of over-priced, faux gourmet bar food.
The Brooklyn outfit recently released their third LP, Kicks, 2010’s catchiest release thus far. While their sound has been softened and sugar-coated (as aforementioned), compared to their earlier hard-driving punk tunes, they also manage to incorporate the sound of 90s alt rock angst, both in the vain of The Breeders (“Same to You”) and Liz Phair (“Gone”).
Proudly embracing their newfound popiness, the group’s set this past Wednesday was comprised of 7 of the 8 tracks on Kicks (leaving out “Aloof,” despite the brilliant line “You’re harder to read than Proust”). While the album’s opening track, “Dance With Me” proved to be an impossibly unrealistic request to such an audience, the band never let their sound or their spirit be subdued by the setting. With my current vote for “Album of the Year,” I hope that the band wasn’t put-off of the City of Brotherly love by the circumstances. The city certainly has numerous dive bars, church basements, and houses in West and South Philly that would love to house their delightfully raucous sounds.
-Izzy Cihak - Origivation Magazine
Featured on L Magazine's short list between "TV On The Radio" and "Beck".
"Stewart: A NYC pop band with a huge weakness for bands like Weezer, Nada Surf and Fountains of Wayne." - The L Magazine, NYC
Finally female vocals in the punk genre. That earns you plenty of points with no further effort. The fact that they are well delivered adds to this rave review.
The instrumental delivery is nice and tight. Very professional sounding. I won't be surprised if this song is for sale (as opposed to being available for download for free) and I will be surprised if I don't find myself buying it.
I wanna rush through the next review to go and download all your songs. Now! - Garageband.com
My new pals are inspiring and brilliant. Play on dear friends, play on . . . - Myspace.com
Stewart is an explosion of joy when you least expect it; a wall of challenge when you raise your eyes from the table, holding. The cartoon amidst a throng of reliables calling for your everlasting support; the thing that pulls you away from the ordinary, that demands you watch, that demands that you bring love with your sullen ears, that you bring an unmatched heart to the plate to dechipher what they want you to believe are completely legitimate claims to the workings of the heart, and not just any heart, the heart that longs and seeks and asks questions that demand to be answered, to be shown, to be welcomed, to be asleep, in caring arms.
Stewart asks you to believe it is out there. And Stewart delivers. - Joseph O'Leary, former front man of NYC cult band
The style that you present is awesome. The vocals are awesome and very clean, not just thrown into the song, the tones of the guitars are very nicely mixed, the drums also very nicely mixed and consistant. And the breaks in the music and cover of the vocals made me just want to hear more and more.
Thank you. - Garageband.com
Their songs are fun, kickass punk/pop/alternative rock that deal with heavy subjects but with an upbeat, aggressive energy that is absolutely INFECTIOUS. - Myspace.com
They are a fun band to see live. Stewart- lot of fun. - Nefarious Bovine Radio
"Stuck In My Head" won "Best Female Vocals" and "Best Melody" for the punk genre in a weekly Garageband.com contest. - Garageband.com
Discography
Kicks (LP), 2010
Dance With Me: The Skullboy Sampler (EP), 2009
Part IV: A New Hope (LP), 2008
Existing at Extremes (EP), 2007
Jawbreaker (LP), 2007
Revenge of the Akrats (EP), 2004
"Dark Side," "Falling Stars," "Stuck in My Head" and "You'll Never Know" played on Nefarious Bovine Radio.
"Try So Hard" and "This Happens" played on WPUB, Pace University's college radio station, as well as live versions of "Consider Me Gone" and "Not That Bad."
"Stuck in My Head" appeared on "The Castle of Angels Benefit Concert" CD and the "Symmetry Sound Sampler #3".
Photos
Bio
Tales of sordid relationships, friends turning against friends and broken promises aren't typical fodder for fun and energetic pop rock songs, but STEWART's Andrea Tarka isn't your typical songwriter. Acupuncturist by day, Tarka is as enthusiastic as her music suggests, proving that even the most difficult subject matter is no match for a sunny disposition.
“I never wanted to do this for a living,” jokes Tarka, and the path leading her to this point hasn’t been the most direct route. Although she sang and played guitar in high school, for both the school choir and her own band, in college, she began her career as a puppeteer at the University of Connecticut. Although she enjoyed the profession, she discovered that it wasn’t right for her and it was that, coupled with the untimely death of her boyfriend, which sent Tarka to Los Angeles where she discovered acupuncture. She later moved to New York City to continue her studies and had her sights set on forming a band.
Stewart officially started in 2005 at a party in Bushwick when Tarka met the painfully shy, but extremely talented, lead guitarist John White. She found that the Arkansas-raised guitarist had amazing chops, and the two have been playing music together ever since. Rounding out the group is drummer and songwriter Kevin Cerovich, who joined Stewart in August 2009. Cerovich is a seasoned jazz musician, having won the 2007 International Trombone Association’s jazz competition. Originally from Kansas, he has been living in New York City since 2008 and has since become a fixture in the East Village/Williamsburg indie scene as well as the jazz scene. He has toured Europe extensively, even once sharing the stage with Sting at a benefit concert in Italy.
Though the band has had some stops and starts along the way, Stewart has kept busy since its inception. The group produced a full-length album, Jawbreaker, as well as an EP, Existing at Extremes, in 2007. In 2008, the band released Part iV: A New Hope, a 17 song full-length containing auto-biographical, retro-rock tunes, reminiscent of Green Day, Tilt and Paramore. Tarka calls it “the first real representation of Stewart as a professional band.” Artwork for the album was provided by Marvel/Dark Horse comics illustrator Jacob Chabot and in 2009, the band produced “The Skullboy Sampler,” a soundtrack for Chabot’s original comic, “The Mighty Skullboy Army.” Originally Skullboy’s theme song, “Dance With Me” was recently released as a downloadable track on the Rock Band Network for the Xbox 360.
Stewart plays extensively around New York, Brooklyn and surrounding cities, including shows at CBGB and The Continental before the legendary venues closed their doors, as well as Knitting Factory, Arlene's Grocery, Luna Lounge and many more. L Magazine called them "A NYC pop band with a huge weakness for bands like Weezer, Nada Surf and Fountains of Wayne." They’ve been featured twice as part of the CMJ Music Marathon (in 2007 and 2009) and have self-booked a couple of tours in the Northeast and Midwest, one of which featured a stop in Cincinnati to perform at the Chick Rockfest.
Stewart’s energy shows no signs of dissipating. The band is looking to release a new full-length album, Kicks, in June 2010, and plans to play shows this summer in support of the album.
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