Upsilon Acrux is an American

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Init ...

band from

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

formed in 1998.

History

Upsilon Acrux first appeared on record on a 1998 compilation entitled ''Trummerflora 2''. Soon after they contributed a song to a compilation entitled ''Before the Pirates Came''. They went from a 4 piece to a 3 piece before releasing 2002's ''Last Train Out''. They expanded to a five-piece, including two drummers for ''Volucris Avis Dirae-Arum'' in 2004. By 2005 they had done away with the dual-drummer setup, and signed with

Cuneiform Records Cuneiform Records is a record label in Silver Spring, Maryland. Founded in 1984, the label releases an mixture of musical styles, all with a Rock in Opposition aesthetic, including progressive jazz, jazz fusion, the Canterbury scene, and electr ...

later in the year. 2007 saw the release of their first album for Cuneiform, ''Galapagos Momentum''. They released their sixth full-length album, entitled ''Radian Futura'', on May 19, 2009. In 2015, on April 14, they released a new album called ''Sun Square Dialect''.

Releases

''Galapagos Momentum''

The lineup of Applehans, Kiersnowski (the King), Lai and Miller (Ice) performed for two years, recording ''Galapagos Momentum'' in 2006. Before the recording was pressed, a new incarnation was assembled with Cobb (McEnroe, Bart Garfunkel), Lai, Meszler (Mezz, Meszloforte), Moeggenberg (Moeggen) and Sataman (Martron, Marty-Party) in March 2007. This new lineup promoted ''Galapagos'' throughout the U.S. in summer 2007. The album was critically acclaimed, earning a number 2 position on Organ Magazine's end of the year album list. The group would share stages with

The Locust The Locust was an American hardcore punk band from San Diego, California, known for their mix of grindcore aggression and new wave experimentation. The band has been noted for their use of insect costumes when performing live. History Prio ...

, Qui,

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Polar Goldie Cats Polar may refer to: Geography Polar may refer to: * Geographical pole, either of two fixed points on the surface of a rotating body or planet, at 90 degrees from the equator, based on the axis around which a body rotates *Polar climate, the cli ...

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HEALTH Health, according to the World Health Organization, is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".World Health Organization. (2006)''Constitution of the World Health Organiza ...

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, and

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. On November 17, 2007, Upsilon Acrux played the Barking Tuna Fest in

Kalamazoo, MI Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in the southwest region of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Kalamazoo County. At the 2010 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 74,262. Kalamazoo is the major city of the Kalamazoo-Portage Metropolit ...

Mission of Burma Mission of Burma was an American post-punk band from Boston, Massachusetts. The group formed in 1979 with Roger Miller on guitar, Clint Conley on bass, Peter Prescott on drums, and Martin Swope contributing audiotape manipulation and acting as ...

followed.

''Radian Futura''

In December 2007, Upsilon began work on their magnum opus, "Transparent Seas (Radio Edit)". On June 6, 2008, the song was premiered at Cafe Mariposa in Echo Park, CA. ''Radian Futura'' was released on CD by

Cuneiform Cuneiform is a logo- syllabic script that was used to write several languages of the Ancient Middle East. The script was in active use from the early Bronze Age until the beginning of the Common Era. It is named for the characteristic wedg ...

and in September 2009 on vinyl by

Thin Wrist Recordings Thin may refer to: * a lean body shape. ''(See also: emaciation, underweight)'' * ''Thin'' (film), a 2006 HBO documentary about eating disorders * Paper Thin (disambiguation), referring to multiple songs * Thin (web server), a Ruby web-server ...

. Upsilon promoted the album nationally and on a month-long jaunt in Europe, autumn 2009. The album was met with critical acclaim, and the band shared stages with

Yowie Yowie is one of several names for an Australian folklore entity that is reputed to live in the Outback. The creature has its roots in Aboriginal oral history. In parts of Queensland, they are known as ''quinkin'' (or as a type of quinkin), a ...

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, Zs,

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Peter Brötzmann Peter Brötzmann (born 6 March 1941) is a German saxophonist and clarinetist. Biography Early life Brötzmann was born in Remscheid, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. He studied painting in Wuppertal and was involved with the Fluxus movement ...

Honey Ride Me a Goat Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...

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Adebisi Shank Adebisi Shank were a three-piece instrumental rock trio from Wexford, Ireland consisting of guitarist Lar Kaye, bass guitarist Vincent McCreith and drummer Michael Roe. The band was signed to Richter Collective in Ireland, before the record lab ...

, and

Peter Kolovos Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

. On September 18, 2009, Upsilon performed for a crowd of over 400 at the Gertje Fest 5 at the Landbouwebelang in

Maastricht Maastricht ( , , ; li, Mestreech ; french: Maestricht ; es, Mastrique ) is a city and a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital and largest city of the province of Limburg. Maastricht is located on both sides of the ...

. Upon the group's return from its European tour, Upsilon Acrux performed a 70-minute set at

The Smell The Smell is an all-ages, alcohol and drug-free, punk rock and experimental music venue in Downtown Los Angeles, California. The Smell, notable for its DIY ethic, is home to many of the area's avant-garde performers and artists. The venue is ...

. The concert was professionally mixed and recorded.

Personnel

Paul Lai has remained with the group since its inception. ;Current lineup (2010–present) *

Paul Lai Paul may refer to: * Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chr ...

– guitar *Noah Guevara – guitar *Patrick Shiroishi- Rhodes/sax *Mark Kimbrell – drums *Dylan Fujioka – drums ;Founding members *

– guitar, Moog *Cameron Presley – guitars, Moog *Tommy Cutler – bass, vocals ;Former Members *

Chris Meszler Chris is a short form of various names including Christopher, Christian, Christina, Christine, and Christos. Chris is also used as a name in its own right, however it is not as common. People with the given name *Chris Abani (born 1966), Nige ...

– drums *

David Moeggenberg David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

– guitar *Phil Cobb – Moog *

Marty Sataman Marty may refer to: Names * Marty (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters, also includes stage names * Marty (surname), a list of people Places in the United States * Marty, California, a former settlement * Marty, Min ...

– bass *Jesse (Klecker) Applehans – drums *Eric Kiersnowski – bass *

Nick Lejejs Nick may refer to: * Nick (given name) * A Glossary of cricket terms#nick, cricket term for a slight deviation of the ball off the edge of the bat * British slang for being arrested * British slang for a police station * British slang for stealin ...

– Moog *

Brady Miller Brady may refer to: People * Brady (surname) * Brady (given name) * Brady (nickname) * Brady Boone, a ring name of American professional wrestler Dean Peters (1958–1998) Places in the United States * Brady, Montana, a census-designated plac ...

– guitar *Josh Quon – bass *Muir Tennerstet – bass *Derek Bruns – drums ;Guest musicians *

Devin Sarno Devin Sarno (born in Glendale, California in 1966) began CRIB in early 1990 as a solo bass sound project focusing on improvised subsonics. Over the course of a decade (and over a dozen recordings) his music evolved from high volume feedback exp ...

– bass (''Last Pirates of Upsilon'') *

Bobb Bruno Best Coast is an American rock duo formed in Los Angeles, California in 2009. The band consists of songwriter, guitarist and vocalist Bethany Cosentino and guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Bobb Bruno. Cosentino, a former child actress, began w ...

– bass (''Last Pirates of Upsilon'', ''Last Train Out'') * Glen (Galaxy) Galloway – baritone sax (''In the Acrux of the Upsilon King'') *

- drums, drum programming (''Radian Futura'') *Mike Armstrong – saxophone (''Radian Futura'', ''White LP'') *

– guitar (''White LP'') *

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

– harmonica (''Last Pirates of Upsilon'')

Discography

* 1999 ''In the Acrux of the Upsilon King'' ( Accretions Records) * 1999 ''The Last Pirates of Upsilon'' (

Win Records Win or WIN may refer to: * A victory Arts and entertainment Film * ''Win!'', a 2016 American film Literature * ''Win'' (Coben novel), a 2121 novel by Harlan Coben * WIN (pacifist magazine), published by the War Resisters League * WIN (wrestli ...

) * 2002 ''Last Train Out'' ( Hactivist Records) * 2004 ''Volucris Avis Dirae-Arum'' (

Planaria Recordings ''Planaria'' is a genus of planarians in the family Planariidae. When an individual is cut into pieces, each piece has the ability to regenerate into a fully formed individual. Description Currently the genus ''Planaria'' is defined as fres ...

CD /

Epicene Records Epicenity is the lack of gender distinction, often reducing the emphasis on the masculine to allow the feminine. It includes androgyny – having both masculine and feminine characteristics. The adjective ''gender-neutral'' may describe epiceni ...

vinyl) * 2006 ''Last Train Out'' (

Daft Alliance The Dutch-American Friendship Treaty (also known as DAFT or Dutch American Residency Treaty) is an agreement between the United States and the Netherlands signed into law at The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipa ...

vinyl reissue) * 2007 ''Galapagos Momentum'' (

) * 2009 ''Radian Futura'' (

) * 2009 ''White LP'' (split w/

Honey Ride Me A Goat Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...

) (

Kitchen Dweller Records A kitchen is a room or part of a room used for cooking and food preparation in a dwelling or in a commercial establishment. A modern middle-class residential kitchen is typically equipped with a stove, a sink with hot and cold running water ...

) * 2015 ''Sun Square Dialect'' (

New Atlantis Records New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

)

References

{{Authority control Musical groups from Los Angeles Cuneiform Records artists Progressive rock musical groups from California