Zune.net | Stars of Track and Field - Artist Profile Page

Jason Bell – Guitar/Vocals
Kevin Calaba – Vocals/Guitar/Keyboards
Daniel Orvik – Drums/Samples/Programming

When Stars of Track and Field found themselves without a bassist a couple of years ago, the Portland, Ore.-based band didn’t follow the typical steps to find a replacement. No wanted ads were placed; no attempts were made to recruit from other bands and nobody within the group switched instruments. Instead, the band opted for the path less traveled: they went digital. “Our initial motivation was twofold; a chance to stretch our boundaries and break from the conventional rock format, and avoid the frustration of rehearsing bass player after bass player,” says Jason Bell.

Stars of Track and Field had become an entirely different band, one that keenly opted to straddle the divide of vintage analog and cutting-edge digital. “We could finally embrace all of our influences,” says Kevin Calaba, “and add the colors of Aphex Twin and early Pink Floyd to a palette that already included the Beatles and My Bloody Valentine.”

Fueled by their newly found “digital chemistry,” the band feverishly began developing new songs for their debut EP, You Came Here for Sunset Last Year. Five-hour practice sessions consisted of two-and-a-half hours of silence and self-imposed isolation; rehearsals were largely spent with all members’ headphones on, experimenting with sounds and textures, only to later share their finds.

Recorded and produced by Tony Lash (Dandy Warhols, Elliott Smith) and Jeff Saltzman (Stephen Malkmus) for a mere $2,500, You Came Here for Sunset Last Year was released in June 2005 and garnered significant radio attention throughout the Pacific Northwest, which included commercial airplay. The public responded, and the band went on to sell several thousand copies of the release via live shows and local stores.

After a brief stint on the Southern California-based indie label Sidecho Records, the band signed to Wind-up Records. Returning to the studio with Lash and Saltzman, the team created Centuries Before Love and War, the band’s first full-length album. An ambitious debut, the album displays the band’s dichotomous formula, successfully mining elements from across rock’s history while simultaneously embracing the digital technology of the future.

Preview and download Centuries Before Love and War on Zune Marketplace today.

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