Bardo Pond are an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

band formed in 1991, and who are currently signed to London-based label Fire Records. The current members are Michael Gibbons (guitar), John Gibbons (guitar), Isobel Sollenberger (flute and vocals), Clint Takeda (bass guitar) and Jason Kourkounis (drums). Bardo Pond's music is often classified as space rock, acid rock,

post-rock Post-rock is a form of experimental rock characterized by a focus on exploring textures and timbre over traditional rock song structures, chords, or riffs. Post-rock artists are often instrumental, typically combining rock instrumentation with ...

, shoegazing, noise or

. Some Bardo Pond album titles have been derived from the names of esoteric

psychedelic Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary states of consciousness (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips").Pollan, Michael (2018). ''How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of ...

substances. Their sound has been likened to

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...

, Spacemen 3 and My Bloody Valentine amongst others. Allmusic describes Bardo Pond as having "lengthy, deliberate sound explorations filled with all the hallmarks of modern-day space rock: droning guitars, thick distortion, feedback, reverb, and washes of white noise." Bardo Pond are a taper-friendly band who encourage fans to make recordings of their shows.

Early years

According to guitarist Michael Gibbons, the band members came together post-university: "...we were basically just out of college, actually, and we just got really interested in free music, and that’s where it started. And we were artists too number of the band are visual artists So were just started playing free improvised sounds – it was really just kind of that love of making noise and sounds that got us together. Basically we didn’t really learn how to play songs until after about four years, and that’s when things started clicking, and we actually made up songs. But it’s still the same thing”. Joining with guitarist Clint Takeda, they began jamming, and Takeda gave the trio the name Bardo Pond, from the Tibetan Book of the Dead. At the same time, school chums Sollenberger and Sentz joined the group. The group released the first of several self-distributed

cassettes Cassette may refer to: Technology * Cassette tape (or ''musicassette'', ''audio cassette'', ''cassette tape'', or ''tape''), a worldwide standard for analog audio recording and playback ** Cassette single (or "Cassingle"), a music single in the ...

, ''Shone Like a Ton'', in 1992, before releasing ''Bufo Alvarius'' on

Drunken Fish Records Alcohol intoxication, also known as alcohol poisoning, commonly described as drunkenness or inebriation, is the negative behavior and physical effects caused by a recent consumption of alcohol. In addition to the toxicity of ethanol, the main ps ...

in 1995. Their next record, 1996's ''Amanita'', marked the band's transition to Matador Records and international distribution.

Side projects

The members of Bardo Pond also operate a number of side projects. 500 mg is Michael Gibbons' solo project. Alasehir is a psychedelic/stoner rock trio featuring Michael Gibbons, John Gibbons and Jason Kourkounis. Alumbrados produces psychedelic folk/drone music and consists of Michael Gibbons, John Gibbons, Michael Zanghi and Aaron Igler. Prairie Dog Flesh is more improvisational and rearranges the members of Bardo Pond with Takeda on vocals.

Hash Jar Tempo Hash Jar Tempo is a collaborative musical project between the members of Philadelphia-based psychedelic rock, psychedelic band Bardo Pond and Experimental music, experimental guitarist and composer Roy Montgomery. The band was founded in March 19 ...

is a collaboration between Bardo Pond and

Roy Montgomery Roy Montgomery (born 1959) is a composer, guitarist and lecturer from Christchurch, New Zealand. Montgomery's mostly instrumental solo works have elements of post-rock, lo-fi, folk and avant-garde experimentation. His signature sound might be d ...

. A pun on Ash Ra Tempel, this project resulted from two "marathon jam/recording sessions" between the two parties and produced two albums: '' Well Oiled'' (released in 1997, recorded in 1995) and ''

Under Glass ''Under Glass'' is the second Album#Studio album, studio album by Hash Jar Tempo, released on March 23, 1999 by Drunken Fish Records. Track listing Personnel Adapted from the ''Under Glass'' liner notes. ;Hash Jar Tempo * Joe Culver ...

'' (released in 1999, recorded in 1998). LSD Pond is a collaboration between Bardo Pond and Japanese psychedelic rock band

LSD March LSD March is a Japanese psychedelic rock group, hailing from the city of Himeji, led by singer and guitarist Shinsuke Michishita. The group is named after a track by krautrock group Guru Guru. Michishita has also played with Magura Mozart and Doo ...

. A self-titled album was released in 2008 and contains two discs with live recordings of two nights of jamming. Moon Phantoms is a collaboration between Bardo Pond and Japanese psychedelic rock band Suishou No Fune. Their self-titled album was released in 2009. Third Troll features Michael and John Gibbons (guitars), Sollenberger (flute), and includes Kevin Moist (saxophone) and Aaron Igler (synths). Baikal conducts free form psych experiments. The band consists of John Gibbons, Michael Gibbons, Clint Takeda and Jason Kourkonis. They have released a self-titled album on Important Records. Vapour Theories is a duo of Michael and John Gibbons. They have released three albums: 'Decant' (self-released), 'Joint Chiefs' (The Lotus Sound), and 'Celestial Scuzz' (Fire Records). Jason Kourkounis participated as drummer 72 in the

Boredoms Boredoms () (later known as V∞redoms) is a rock band from Osaka, Japan formed in 1986. The band's sound is often referred to as noise rock, or sometimes Japanoise (Japan’s noise music scene), though their more recent records have moved towar ...

77 Boadrum ''77 Boa Drum'' is a live album by Japanese experimental music group Boredoms, recorded on July 7, 2007, at the Empire–Fulton Ferry section of Brooklyn Bridge Park in Brooklyn, New York City, New York. It was released on two CDs, plus a 20-mi ...

performance which occurred on July 7, 2007, at the Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park in Brooklyn,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. He is also currently in Hot Snakes and

The Night Marchers The Night Marchers are an American alternative rock band formed in 2007 in San Diego, California, United States. The band is composed of singer/guitarist John Reis, guitarist Gar Wood, bassist Tommy Kitsos, and drummer Jason Kourkounis. Reis, Wo ...

, and previously played drums for The Delta 72,

The Burning Brides ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in ...

, and

Mule (band) Mule was an American punk blues band from Michigan, active in the early 1990s. Formed from the ashes of Wig and Laughing Hyenas, their music incorporated elements of hardcore punk, blues-rock, and country music. History Mule formed in Ann ...

Discography

Studio albums

*''

Bufo Alvarius The Colorado River toad (''Incilius alvarius''), formerly known as the Sonoran Desert toad, is found in northern Mexico and the southwestern United States. It exudes toxins from glands within its skin that have psychoactive properties. Descri ...

'' (

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...

) *'' Amanita'' (

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

- Matador Records) *'' Lapsed'' (

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...

- Matador Records) *'' Set and Setting'' (

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

- Matador Records) *'' Dilate'' (

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

- Matador Records) *'' On the Ellipse'' (

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

- ATP Recordings) *'' Ticket Crystals'' (

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

- ATP Recordings) *'' Bardo Pond'' (

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

- Fire Records) *'' Peace On Venus'' (

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

- Fire Records) *''Refulgo'' (

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

- Three Lobed Recordings) *''Under the Pines'' (

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

- Fire Records)

Collaborative album

*''Acid Guru Pond'' (

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

- Fire Records), with Acid Mothers Temple and Guru Guru

Compilations

*'' A Tribute to Spacemen 3'' (1998- Rocket Girl) *'' Everything Is Ending Here: A Tribute To Pavement'' (2003- Homesleep) *''

Batholith A batholith () is a large mass of intrusive igneous rock (also called plutonic rock), larger than in area, that forms from cooled magma deep in Earth's crust. Batholiths are almost always made mostly of felsic or intermediate rock types, such ...

'' (

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

Three Lobed Recordings 3 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 3, three, or III may also refer to: * AD 3, the third year of the AD era * 3 BC, the third year before the AD era * March, the third month Books * ''Three of Them'' (Russian: ', literally, "three"), a 1901 n ...

) *''

Peri In Persian mythology, peris (singular: peri; from fa, پَری, translit=parī, , plural , ; borrowed in European languages through ota, پَری, translit=peri) are exquisite, winged spirits renowned for their beauty. Peris were later ado ...

'' (

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

) *'' Shone Like A Ton'' (

)

EPs

*''

Big Laughing Jym Big or BIG may refer to: * Big, of great size or degree Film and television * ''Big'' (film), a 1988 fantasy-comedy film starring Tom Hanks * ''Big!'', a Discovery Channel television show * ''Richard Hammond's Big'', a television show present ...

'' (

) – (Compulsiv) *'' Slab'' 10" (

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

–

) *''

U.S. Tour, Spring 2001 The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

'' split with Mogwai (

– Matador Records) *'' Purposeful Availment'' (

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

–

) *'' Tigris/Euphrates'' split 12" with

Subarachnoid Space In anatomy, the meninges (, ''singular:'' meninx ( or ), ) are the three membranes that envelop the brain and spinal cord. In mammals, the meninges are the dura mater, the arachnoid mater, and the pia mater. Cerebrospinal fluid is located in th ...

(

– Camera Obscura) *'' Bog '' split 12" with Buck Paco (

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

–

Black September Records Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

) *'' Adrop'' - ''Modern Containment EP series'' (

–

) *'' Yntra'' (

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

) – (

Latitudes In geography, latitude is a coordinate that specifies the north– south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from –90° at the south pole to 90° at the north pol ...

) *''

Rise Above It All ''Marvel's Spider-Man'' is an American animated television series based on the ''Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko ...

'' (

) – ( Fire Records) *'' Looking For Another Place'' (

) – ( Fire Records) *'' Is There a Heaven?'' (

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

) – ( Fire Records)

Split album

*''Parallelogram'' (

- Three Lobed Recordings, with Yo La Tengo)

Volume series

In October 2000, Bardo Pond self-released the first volume in a highly limited series of CD-R jam sessions. The tracks in the ''Volume'' series are more improvisational and experimental than the band's studio work. *'' Vol. 1'' (

– self released) *'' Vol. 2'' (

– self released) *'' Vol. 3'' (

– self released) *'' Vol. 4'' (

– self released) *'' Vol. 5'' (

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

– self released) *'' Vol. 6'' (

– self released) *'' Selections, Vols. I-IV'' (

– ATP Recordings) *'' Vol. 7'' (

– self released) *'' Vol. 8'' (

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

– Fire Records)

References

External links

Bardo Pond WebpageBardo Pond page at ATP RecordingsBardo Pond collection
at the Internet Archive's live music archive
Viva Radio's 77 Boadrum Site Profile
of Jason Kourkounis ( Flash)
Terrascope : interview (2001) (pdf)Bardo Pond page at Fire Records
{{Authority control American post-rock groups Musical groups from Pennsylvania Musical groups from Philadelphia Neo-psychedelia groups American psychedelic rock music groups American space rock musical groups Musical groups established in 1991 American noise rock music groups Shoegazing musical groups Drunken Fish Records artists 1991 establishments in Pennsylvania Fire Records (UK) artists ATP Recordings artists