Scarling
Scarling. is an art-rock band from Los Angeles, whose music contains elements of noise, shoegazing, psychedelic rock, and gothic rock. They have been active since 2002, and have released two full length albums.
History
Scarling. was formed by singer Jessicka Fodera (known simply as Jessicka) after the dissolution of her band, Jack Off Jill. She and guitarist Christian Hejnal began rehearsing and recording in a San Fernando Valley performance space; after the pair had written a number of songs together, they began a search for additional band members and eventually cemented the lineup of Fodera, Hejnal, drummer Garey Snider, bassist Kyle Lime, and second guitarist Rickey Lime.
Scarling.'s first single, "Band Aid Covers the Bullet Hole", was produced by Chris Vrenna and released on March 19 2003 on the Sympathy For The Record Industry label. Its cover featured an illustration called "Wound 39" by artist Mark Ryden. In April 2004 Scarling. released their first album, the seven-song, thirty-three-minute Sweet Heart Dealer , which again utilized the team of Ryden and Vrenna. Both Vrenna and Ryden had previously contributed production and artwork, respectively, to Jack Off Jill's 2000 album Clear Hearts Grey Flowers.
The band's sound is influenced by My Bloody Valentine, Loop, Lush, Pixies, Sonic Youth, and The Cure, as well as by the 1990s riot grrl scene that had also inspired Jack Off Jill.
In Autumn 2004, Scarling. was invited to join the lineup of the Robert Smith-curated Curiosa Festival, performing on select West Coast dates alongside Interpol, The Rapture, Mogwai, Cursive, The Cooper Temple Clause, Head Automatica, and their own idols The Cure. Smith described the band's music as "dark, desperate, chaotic, gorgeous pop music, the sound of the end of the world". Three weeks before Scarling. joined the Curiosa tour, longtime drummer Garey Snider was fired and replaced by current drummer Beth Gordon. Sweet Heart Dealer was nominated for the 2004 Shortlist Music Prize by Robert Smith.
After a series of 7" singles on Sympathy, Scarling. announced in early 2005 that their second album, So Long, Scarecrow, would appear later that year; it was preceded by the single "We Are the Music Makers", and was released on August 23 2005. So Long, Scarecrow was produced by Rob Campanella, formerly of The Brian Jonestown Massacre, at his studio, Committee to Keep Music Evil Headquarters. The album features the band's new bass player, Derik Snell. Scarling's music has been featured on Showtime's The L Word television series.
Discography
Albums
- Sweet Heart Dealer (Sympathy for the Record Industry, 2004):
- "The Last Day I Was Happy" — "Band Aid Covers the Bullet Hole" — "Crispin Glover" — "Alexander the Burn Victim" — "Baby Dracula" — "Black Horse Riding Star" — "Can't (Halloween Valentine)"
- So Long, Scarecrow (Sympathy for the Record Industry, 2005):
- "Hello London" — "City Noise" — "Broken Record" — "(Northbound on) Cahuenga" — "Teenage Party Letdown" — "Bummer" — "Manorexic" — "In the Pretend World" — "Stapled to the Mattress" — "Like a Killer" — "Caribou and Cake" — "We Are the Music Makers" — "So Long, Scarecrow"
Singles/EPs
- "Band Aid Covers the Bullet Hole" (7", Sympathy for the Record Industry, 2003):
- "Band Aid Covers the Bullet Hole" — "H/C"
- "Band Aid Covers the Bullet Hole" (CD, Sympathy for the Record Industry, 2003):
- "Band Aid Covers the Bullet Hole" — "H/C" — "Creep"
- "Crispin Glover" (7", Sympathy for the Record Industry, 2004):
- "Crispin Glover" — "Love Becomes a Ghost"
- "Crispin Glover" (7", Sympathy for the Record Industry, 2004):
- "Crispin Glover" — "Art of Pretension"
- Scarling. / The Willowz (split 7", Sympathy for the Record Industry, 2005)
- "We Are the Music Makers" (Scarling.) — "Break Me Down" (The Willowz)