Mazes were an English

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

band Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary * Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania * Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, ...

, formed in Manchester in 2009. The band consisted of Jack Cooper on vocals and guitar, Conan Roberts on bass and Neil Robinson on drums.

History

Mazes was initially a recording project for

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...

-born singer-songwriter Jack Cooper, following the split of

The Beep Seals The Beep Seals were an English psychedelic music, psychedelic indie rock musical ensemble, band from Manchester. Career The Beep Seals were formed in 2006 by former Alfie (band), Alfie guitarist Ian Smith, Jack Cooper (English musician), Jack ...

which he co-fronted with former Alfie guitarist Ian Smith (and originated as a live backing band for Jim Noir). He recruited Jay Sikora and Jarin Tabata in 2009 to tour. The band released two 7" singles with

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

's Sex Is Disgusting Records. Neil Robinson soon joined as a permanent drummer alongside Conan Roberts on bass. A 30-song tape cassette called ''IBB Tape'' released on Robert's own label Italian Beach Babes, and a 7" single released on Jack Cooper's label Suffering Jukebox (Cenetaph/Go-Betweens), caught the eye of Brighton's Fatcat Records and the band signed with them towards the end of 2010. The band's debut

album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

was recorded in a studio based in a boat on the River Thames and was released in April 2011. The band's sound was often likened to American bands such as Pavement and

Sebadoh Sebadoh () is an American indie rock band formed in 1986 in Northampton, Massachusetts, by Eric Gaffney and Lou Barlow, with multi-instrumentalist Jason Loewenstein completing the line-up in 1989. Barlow co-created Sebadoh as an outlet for his ...

, as well as Flying Nun bands such as

The Clean The Clean was a New Zealand indie rock band formed in Dunedin in 1978. They have been described as the most influential band to come from the Flying Nun label, which recorded many artists associated with the "Dunedin sound", and one of the fir ...

. The band played 2011's SXSW Music Festival and toured the United States twice with

White Denim White Denim is an American rock band from Austin, Texas, United States. Their music is influenced by dub, psychedelic rock, blues, punk rock, progressive rock, soul, jazz, experimental rock with home-based recording, jamming approach, intense ...

and Sebadoh. Mazes' second album, ''Ores & Minerals'', was released in February 2013 to positive reviews. Their third album, ''Wooden Aquarium'', released on 16 September 2014. Following the release of the album, frontman Jack Cooper formed

Ultimate Painting Ultimate Painting were an English alternative rock band, formed in London in 2014. The band was composed of co-frontmen Jack Cooper and James Hoare, with a revolving cast of rhythm sections. The band were named after a painting made by the D ...

which he co-fronted with

Veronica Falls Veronica Falls were a British indie pop band that formed in London in 2009. The band consisted of Roxanne Clifford and James Hoare, both on vocals and guitar, Marion Herbain on bass guitar and Patrick Doyle on drums and backing vocals. The memb ...

member Jack Hoare. Drummer Neil Robinson toured with the band and appeared on some of their studio recordings. Bassist Conan Roberts went into video and film production, working for the likes of MTV and Disney.

References

External links

Mazes page at FatCat Records
{{Authority control English indie rock groups Musical groups established in 2009 FatCat Records artists