Estradasphere was an American experimental band that originated in Santa Cruz, California, during the late 1990s. The band, which in its last incarnation was based in Seattle, consisted of six multi-instrumentalists from a variety of musical backgrounds trained in disciplines ranging from

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

and jazz to heavy metal. In November 2007, members of Estradasphere started touring with

Amanda Palmer Amanda MacKinnon Gaiman Palmer (born April 30, 1976) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and performance artist who is the lead vocalist, pianist, and lyricist of the duo The Dresden Dolls. She performs as a solo artist and was also a ...

of The Dresden Dolls, as well as helping to produce her debut solo album '' Who Killed Amanda Palmer''. The band is on a "''permanent hiatus''" since 2010.

Music

Estradasphere were influenced by many different artists from many different subgenres, such as jazz,

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

, techno,

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

, heavy metal, New Age, Latin,

Balkan The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

, Greek and gypsy. They were influenced by artists such as The Beach Boys and Secret Chiefs 3, and have been compared to

Mr. Bungle Mr. Bungle is an American experimental rock band formed in Eureka, California in 1985. Having gone through many incarnations throughout their career, the band is best known for music created during their most experimental era. During this time, ...

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by wikt:nonconformity, nonconformity, Free improvisation, free-form improvisation, sound experimen ...

and

John Zorn John Zorn (born September 2, 1953) is an American composer, conductor, saxophonist, arranger and producer who "deliberately resists category". Zorn's avant-garde and experimental approaches to composition and improvisation are inclusive of jaz ...

. Similarly to Mr. Bungle and Secret Chiefs 3, the band mixes several genres in its songs. The band was a self-proclaimed inventor of bizarre genres such as "Bulgarian Surf", "Romanian Gypsy-Metal", and "Spaghetti Eastern" and sounded like "Psychedelic-Sci-fi", "Gypsy-Metal-Jazz" and "Epic-Cinema-Thon", according to its MySpace. In 1997, members of the group released an

avant-garde metal Avant-garde metal (also known as avant-metal, experimental metal, and experimental) is a subgenre of heavy metal music loosely defined by use of experimentation and innovative, avant-garde elements, including non-standard and unconventional soun ...

album called ''Koolaide Moustache in Jonestown'' under the name Don Salsa.

Band members

Members

According to www.estradasphere.com: *

Tim Smolens Estradasphere was an American experimental band that originated in Santa Cruz, California, during the late 1990s. The band, which in its last incarnation was based in Seattle, consisted of six multi-instrumentalists from a variety of musical back ...

standup bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...

, electric bass, vocals, audio production/engineering *

Timb Harris Timba Harris (born September 21, 1977) is a violinist, violist, trumpet player, and composer. He is an active touring and recording member of Trey Spruance's Secret Chiefs 3, a founding member of the band Estradasphere, and one half of the elect ...

- violin, trumpet,

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

, guitar, vocals *

Jason Schimmel Jason Schimmel (born June 30, 1978) is an American composer, guitarist, musician, recording engineer and producer from Los Angeles, California. He is a founding member of the bands Estradasphere, Red Fiction (formerly known as Atomic Ape), and Ora ...

- guitar,

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

, vocals *Lee Smith -

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

Kevin Kmetz Estradasphere was an American experimental band that originated in Santa Cruz, California, during the late 1990s. The band, which in its last incarnation was based in Seattle, consisted of six multi-instrumentalists from a variety of musical back ...

tsugaru shamisen or refers to both the Japanese genre of music originating from Tsugaru Peninsula in present-day Aomori Prefecture and the instrument it is performed with. It is performed throughout Japan, though associations with the Tsugaru remain strong ...

, guitar,

Adam Stacey Estradasphere was an American Experimental music, experimental band that originated in Santa Cruz, California, during the late 1990s. The band, which in its last incarnation was based in Seattle, consisted of six multi-instrumentalists from a var ...

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed ...

, vocals

Former members

* David Murray -

John Whooley John Whooley, now John Whoolilurie, is a California-based musician best known for playing the saxophone and other instruments with the band Estradasphere. In addition to performing, he also composed much of the band's music until he left the band ...

- saxophone,

, vocals

Discography

Notes

External links

Estradasphere's official websiteEstradasphere
MySpace
The End Records
- website of Estradasphere's current record label.
Web of Mimicry
- website for Estradasphere's former record label.
Obnoxious Listeners: Estradasphere
{{Authority control American experimental musical groups Musical groups from California Web of Mimicry artists