Ozma (band)

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Ozma
Ryen Slegr, Star Wick, Daniel Brummel, Patrick Edwards, Jose Galvez
Origin	Pasadena, California
Country	United States
Years active	1995–2004, 2006–present
Genres	Rock
Labels	Kung-Fu Records (2001–2004) Currently unsigned
Members	Ryen Slegr Daniel Brummel Jose Galvez Star Wick Kenn Shane
Past members	Katherine Kieckhefer (1996–1998) Patrick Edwards (1995–2004)

Ozma is a rock band from Pasadena, California. The band's sound is a mix of new-wave–influenced power pop and rock with pleasant Casio-driven melodies and heavy guitar riffs. The complexity of Ozma's songs grew considerably during the band's initial nine-year history, and after their split in 2004 they announced their reformation in early 2006.

1 History
2 Discography
- 2.1 Studio Albums
- 2.2 Singles
3 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Early Years

Ozma was formed in 1995 by Daniel Brummel (vocals/bass), Ryen Slegr (vocals/guitar), Patrick Edwards (drums) and Jose Galvez (guitar/vocals), when Brummel was introduced to the others by Galvez, whom he had met on the internet while looking for a band to join. In 1996, the as-yet-unnamed band were joined by Katherine Kieckhefer on keyboards, before deciding on the name "Ozma" (taken from the L. Frank Baum books) in 1997, and in 1998 were joined by Star Wick, who replaced the departing Kieckhefer. In early 1999, they released Songs of Inaudible Trucks and Cars, a collection of demos and live tracks, released on home-made CD-Rs and later republished in slightly different form as Songs of Audible Trucks and Cars by mp3.com. They then released what was considered their first album "proper", Rock and Roll Part Three, on 1st January 2000. This consisted of "a few thousand" (estimated by Brummel) self-made pressings on their own Tornado Records label.

Ozma's first real break, however, came in 2001, when they were selected to tour with Weezer. In preparation for their spring tour, Weezer asked fans to vote for an opening act on their web site, and Ozma was selected along with the Kansas City-based Get Up Kids.

Early in 2001, the band also self-released The Doubble Donkey Disc (later reissued on Kung Fu Records). With this release, Ozma experimented with the traditional Russian balalaika and the flute to create a sound they called "Russian coldfusion". The disc was split into two imaginary "concept EPs", the first five songs (including the Russian folk song "Korobeiniki", more famously the Tetris theme) revolved around Russian themes, while the second half created a more "dance party" atmosphere.

[edit] Kung Fu years

Later in 2001, partly as a result of the exposure gained from touring with Weezer, Ozma were signed by Kung Fu Records, who over the next two years put out remastered and enhanced versions of Rock and Roll Part Three and The Doubble Donkey Disc, before the third album, Spending Time On The Borderline, was released in 2003. This record saw Ozma "mature" their sound and expand their musical outlook, moving away—at times significantly—from the keyboard-driven, often videogame-themed geek rock of the earlier albums. During this period of 2001-2004, Ozma toured the US numerous times, with such well-known acts as Nada Surf, Superdrag, Piebald, and Rilo Kiley.

[edit] Split

Ozma disbanded on July 23, 2004. In a message posted on the official Ozma website, Ryen Slegr cited deteriorating relationships between band members which affected the "creative and professional facets of the band to the extent that no one [felt] like continuing…"

Daniel Brummel moved to New York City to pursue a more folk-heavy style and finally finish his long-awaited solo album. The record, Speak Easy, was independently released in 2005. Ryen Slegr and Jose Galvez, meanwhile, formed a new, poppier sounding band called Yes Dear, with ex-members of Arlo and Teen Heroes.

[edit] Irregardless

On December 3rd, 2005, the former members of Ozma, minus drummer Patrick Edwards, played the Troubadour in Hollywood—billed as Irregardless—opening for The Wrens. The short set included five songs from Ozma's albums as well as "D Song" (introduced as a "new one" but in fact a song from the Spending Time era that, although previously played live, had never been officially released). This sparked feverish rumours among Ozma's fanbase about a possible future reunion, particularly with the news that Brummel had moved back to Southern California.

[edit] Reunion

Sure enough, in early 2006, Ozma announced that the band had reunited—again without Edwards—to play new shows, new songs, and put out new records. On January 9, 2006, the band posted the following message on their MySpace page :

WE: Star Wick, Ryen Slegr, Jose Galvez, and Daniel Brummel, do hereby declare our full and true intention to reform, reunite, and otherwise reanimate the rock group OZMA. Manning the drum kit for this incarnation of OZMA will be Kenn Shane, formerly of Addison. After rehearsing and working on new material since September 2005, we will play our first reunited concert on Sunday, March 12th 2006 at the Knitting Factory in Hollywood, CA. Tickets to this concert will be made available on January 14th, 2006. Announcements regarding future OZMA releases and tours will henceforth be made at our official website OzmaOnline.com.

The band have since showcased some new songs at various shows, in addition to playing unreleased songs dating from after the release of Spending Time..., but have yet to announce plans for the release of new material; their contract with Kung Fu has expired, and so they are currently unsigned. In September 2006, the band uploaded two demos of new songs they have recorded to their MySpace page. The songs, entitled Straight Flush and Barriers, were recorded over the summer of 2006 along with two other songs.

During July and August of 2006 the band opened for The Rentals on the Return Tour, with Slegr filling in on guitar for them. During the tour, they rotated many new songs through their setlist. In September, the band announced that they would be touring the nation again in October, along with the band hellogoodbye.

Currently Ozma has some new material posted on their myspace account. New material on the site includes "Fight the Darkness", "Into Light" and "I Wonder".

[edit] Discography

[edit] Studio Albums

Rock and Roll Part Three
(2000, reissued 2001)

The Doubble Donkey Disc
(2001, reissued 2002)

Spending Time on the Borderline
(2003)

[edit] Singles

Year	Title	Notes
1998	"Lorraine" b/w "Los Angeles"	Self-released cassette single of Ozma's earliest recordings.
2001	"Domino Effect" b/w "Apple Trees"	Promotional radio-only single released by Kung Fu Records, never commercially available.
2002	"Korobeiniki"	UK 7" single, b/w "The Business of Getting Down". Only 1,000 copies produced, by small UK label Falsetto Records who procured the rights for a one-off release.