Astrobrite is an American

shoegazing Shoegaze (originally called shoegazing and sometimes conflated with "dream pop") is a subgenre of indie and alternative rock characterized by its ethereal mixture of obscured vocals, guitar distortion and effects, feedback, and overwhelming volu ...

project by Scott Cortez (

lovesliescrushing Lovesliescrushing (stylized lovesliescrushing) is an American Ambient music, ambient and Shoegazing, shoegaze band from East Lansing, Michigan, United States, formed in 1991. The two primary members of the band are Scott Cortez (guitars, loops, tr ...

) which has included: Melissa Arpin-Duimstra, Andrew Prinz (

Mahogany Mahogany is a straight-grained, reddish-brown timber of three tropical hardwood species of the genus ''Swietenia'', indigenous to the AmericasBridgewater, Samuel (2012). ''A Natural History of Belize: Inside the Maya Forest''. Austin: Unive ...

), Odell Nails ( Majesty Crush), Rob Smith (

Paik Paik is a post-rock/space rock band, originally from Toledo, United States, currently living in Detroit, Michigan, United States, that includes Rob Smith and Ryan Pritts. Bassist Ali Clegg left the band in 2005, and has since been replaced by S ...

and Deep Red), Doug Walker (Xebec), Narasaki (

Coaltar of the Deepers Coaltar of the Deepers are an alternative rock band from Japan. They formed in May 1991. Although primarily influenced by shoegaze and post-rock sound, their sound incorporates musical elements as diverse as thrash metal, electronica, neo-acoust ...

), Jason Baron, Andrew Marrah (

Airiel Airiel is an American shoegaze band from Chicago, Illinois, United States. Bandleader Jeremy Wrenn described Airiel's music by saying, "It's loud, it’s pretty and you can dance to it". History Airiel was formed as Airiel Project One in 1997, ...

and New Canyons), Laura Callier (Gel Set), Sophie Brochu (Fauvely), as well as other members. Astrobrite began in 1993 as a solo project and, in 1995, the band expanded in order to tour. Astrobrite went on an initial hiatus in 1997 and Scott Cortez moved to

Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and according ...

for six months. Early in 1998, he relocated to Chicago.

Career

In 2001, Astrobrite's first album ''Crush'' was released, composed of material from the 95-97 period. Adam Cooper ( Alison's Halo) mastered and mixed ''Crush'' and ''8 Candy EP''. Later in 2001, Scott Cortez flew to Tokyo, Japan to play the Seven Winters shoegaze festival. The trip fostered relationships with the Japanese shoegazer community and enabled a return to Japan to record a studio version of "Crush", entitled "Supercrush", the recording featured (Narasaki) of

, Melt Banana (Watchman), and (Tak) Dive. In 2004 Astrobrite was signed to Vinyl Junkie Records in Japan and released "Pinkshinyultrablast". From 2004 to 2008, in addition to recording Astrobrite material, Cortez was recording and performing with STAR. On April 17, 2007, a new studio album ''Whitenoise Superstar'' (stylised as ''whitenoisesuperstar'') was released under Vinyl Junkie. It was mastered by Narasaki and it features Japanese singer Yukari Tanaka (from Hartfield) in several tracks. Musically, the album adds some atmospheric drum and bass elements to its composition. On August 27, 2008, Astrobrite released ''One Hit Wonder'', a compilation album comprising previously unreleased songs and b-sides, with a more lo-fi recording. 2011 saw the vinyl reissue of ''Crush'' on BLVD records, this prompted Cortez to consider performing as Astrobrite again. Breaking another hiatus after nine years, Astrobrite played several live shows in the summer of 2012, including the Part time Punks Shoegaze fest in Los Angeles and the Beautiful Noise festival in 2013. ''Boombox Supernova'', was released on November 1, 2011, a compilation album of unreleased songs with ambient influences from 1994-1998. Next year, on August 14, 2012, a studio album titled ''All The Stars Will Fall'' (stylised in all lowercase) was released. The third and last track, "Wandering Birds (Blind)" and "Till The Stars Fall From The Sky" respectively, feature vocals from Japanese singer Linden (Purple Bloom). In October 2014, Astrobrite became a three-piece group when Sophie Brochu (guitar, vocals), and Sarah Sterling (drums) joined the band. In 2015 ''Deluxer'' was released by Vinyl Junkie and Astrobrite did a small tour of

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

in support of the release. The album features vocals from singer Sophie Nagelberg. Astrobrite dedicated the album to Danny Lackey.

Discography

EPs

* ''Candy Swirl EP'' (1994) cassette * ''Cherryflavor EP'' (1995) cassette * ''Futuramic EP'' (1996) cassette * ''Smile EP'' (1997) cassette * ''Everything'' (1997) cassette * ''Sugar Blast'' (1999) cd-r * ''8 Candy EP'' (2001) cd * ''Noriko EP'' (2002) download

Albums

* ''Crush'' (2001) * ''Superdupercrush'' (2002; Wavertone cd-r; alternate version of Super Crush) * ''Pinkshinyultrablast'' (2002; Wavertone cd-r; alternate version of 2005 release) * ''Super Crush'' (2002) * ''Pinkshinyultrablast'' (2005) * ''Whitenoise Superstar'' (2007) * ''One Hit Wonder'' (2008) * ''Crush'' (2010; BLVD 001 vinyl reissue of first album) * ''Boombox Supernova'' (2011) * ''All the stars will fall'' (2012) * ''Deluxer'' (2015)

Singles

* ''Slowpoke/Overdriver'' (1996; clear vinyl) * ''Suckerpunch/Peach fuzz'' (1996; blue translucent vinyl) * ''Jingle Bells'' (2001, digital self-released) * ''Her Beautiful Skin/My Forgotten Valentine'' (2011, digital self-released) * ''I Am Endless Sky'' (2013, digital self-released, tribute to Danny Lackey)

References

External links

Astrobrite MySpace Page

Astrobrite Bandcamp Page

Strangeways Radio Shoegaze Spotlight on Astrobrite

Vinyl Junkie Home Page (current label)
{{Authority control American shoegaze musical groups Noise pop musical groups Rock music supergroups Musical groups established in 1994 1994 establishments in the United States