Darla is proud to offer Matchless Years the fifth new record from Aarktica – the experimental drone rock ensemble lead by Jon DeRosa. In the summer of 2007 DeRosa moved to Southern California. On Matchless Years he bids farewell to his NYC home with a collection of reverb-soaked anthems filled with the emotive melancholia that has endeared Aarktica to indie rockers and shoegazers around the world. With lyrics drawn directly from DeRosa's own film noir life in the city, Matchless Years embraces the spirit of brethren Jesus & Mary Chain, Spiritualized, The Magnetic Fields, and even progresses a bit toward "dark disco". Jon meshes 1950's vocal pop sensibilities with Aarktica's trademark, atmospheric guitar sound. Moody aural heroin never sounded so comfortable. Produced by Charles Newman (Magnetic Fields/Stephin Merritt), Matchless Years is by far Aarktica's strongest and most accessible work to date and is sure to gain new Aarktica fans.
Personnel: Jon DeRosa - vocals, guitars, bass, pump organ, glockenspiel, harmonium, gamelan bells. Aaron Spectre (Drumcorps) - drum programs, Chris Carrico (ex-Crucifer) - electric guitar, Charles Newman (Magnetic Fields, Stephin Merritt producer)- organ, keyboard, Mike Pride - drums, percussion, Seth Misterka - alto saxophone, James Duncan – trumpet, Gretta Cohn (ex-Bright Eyes/Cursive)- cello, Kendall Jane Meade (Mascott) - backing vocals, Ernie Adzentoivich - electric & upright bass. Produced by Charles Newman.
“Aarktica is cold, pure, and almost inescapably tranquil.” –PITCHFORK
“Aarktica (multi-instrumentalist Jon DeRosa with a handful of guest musicians) performs where edges aren't defined, depths aren't charted, and space, in that moment, is infinite.” –POPMATTERS
“…even at its worst …this is fascinating”. –COKE MACHINE GLOW
“DeRosa is a truly tremendous artist pushing the envelope of a unique genre.” –DELUSIONS OF ADEQUACY
1. Seventy Jane, 2. I Name You Sleep, 3. Intro to Arms, 4. Arms, 5. Summer Tabla Dub, 6. Happiness Boys, 7. Matchless, 8. Rooftop Films
