Let’s get this out of the way: stellastarr*is a weird name–and
yes the asterisk is a part of it. Drummer Arthur Kremer said that
vocalist/guitarist Shawn Christensen came up with the name from his
past, but Kremer did not disclose anything else.

Just like the name, stellastarr* is a weird band, too. Their
sound is reminiscent of early ’80s new-wave bands like the Talking
Heads or Television, except that stellastarr* has much more of a
rock edge than an experimental one. Still, the strange guitar
effects and Chistensen’s squawking vocals might turn off some music
fans at first, but one needs only to see them live to change
that.

I got to see the band play live about a week ago in Columbus,
Ohio, and it was quite amazing.

They were opening for Phantom Planet, so most of the crowd were
teenagers and drunk 20-somethings that had nothing better to
do–something that happens a lot in Columbus. It is doubtful that
one third of the crowd had even heard of stellastarr*. After they
were done, though, everyone knew who stellastarr* was. Numbers such
as “Somewhere Across Forever,” “No Weather” and “My Coco” had
people up and dancing in the crowded venue. Even compared to their
self titled debut album, the band had more energy and power. It is
a band that must be seen live.

In an interview before the show, Kremer discussed the band’s
rise from the overflowing New York rock scene. The members met each
other while attending the Pratt Institute in New York City.

“Shawn and [bassist Amanda Tannen] were in a band, and they kept
kind of going through drummers, and I was a friend of theirs and
hung around, and I never felt that any of the drummers captured the
sound that I felt need to be captured,” Kremer said.

The band got their big break at last year’s South by Southwest
Music Conference, where the bandgot major label attention, as well
as the attention of one Carson Daly. Now signed to RCA Records, and
having played on Daly’s late-night show Last Call, Kremer said
their experience at SXSW a few weeks was very different.

“Back then, we were real hungry and felt like we had to prove
ourselves, like kill or be killed,” Kremer said. “Now, we sort of
just rolled in, and people already know us, and expected things
from us. It was a different vibe.” He went on to say that a tour of
the United Kingdom after the first SXSW shows also helped.

“When we first went over, NME was really hot on us. The British
press really stepped on it,” he said.

Even though the band just released their album last fall, Kremer
said they are already working on material for their next
record.

“We have about four or five serious songs, but we have parts of
like 30,” he said.

Kremer said that coming up with ideas is never a problem for the
band, just finding the time to fine tune everything.

“For us, we will write a song in a week, others could take like
six months, on and off.”

Be sure to catch stellastarr* when they play at the Gargoyle on
April 17 with the Killers. Admission is $10 for non-Washington
University students, and the show starts at 9 p.m.