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Guerilla Toss

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Neon no-wave that turned genuinely poppy without losing any of the nervous energy — DIY-scene veterans reborn as day-glo dance-punk evangelists.

Guerilla Toss started in 2011 as an instrumental duo formed by drummer Peter Negroponte and Andy Allen, playing a mix of free jazz and punk in Boston's DIY and noise scene. Vocalist Kassie Carlson joined the next year, replacing Allen after her hardcore band, Western Syndrome, shared a bill with the group at a house show. Guitarist Arian Shafiee rounded out the core lineup as the band built a following on Boston's house-show circuit, including gigs at Gay Gardens, before the move to New York.

The early records were abrasive and confrontational, closer to no wave and noise rock, with lurching rhythms and shouted, free-associative vocals. Releases from this period include the tape Jeffrey Johnson on Feeding Tube Records, an EP called GTOSS on Tzadik, the label run by composer John Zorn, and a split LP with noise-rock band the Sediment Club. The 2013 debut LP, Gay Disco, released on NNA Tapes, marked the first appearance of disco and funk in the mix.

Over successive releases the sound moved toward something more melodic and rhythmic, drawing on mutant disco, post-punk and synth-driven art pop while keeping the jittery playing and unusual song structures. Guerilla Toss opened for Boston post-punk band Mission of Burma in 2015, the year they signed to DFA Records, the label co-founded by James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem. Their first release for DFA, the EP Flood Dosed, appeared that October.

The album Eraser Stargazer followed in 2016, recorded that winter in Livingston Manor, New York; later releases have appeared on Sub Pop. Rolling Stone named Guerilla Toss one of ten great modern punk bands, and Henry Rollins has called them one of the best bands of the new century. Live, the band favors bright colour, heavy percussion and a strong dance pulse.

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