Album Notes

Poetiks music is dark-pop with roots in folk songwriting. Moments of psychedelic display and simple rock motifs surround sing-songy lyrics with undertones of critical social dismay that's coated with lyrical idealism. Marina Lazzara was once in a band called Blue Gum Art. One day, the members branched off in order to spread the Revolution to Imagine Creative Days. So Marina played solo for awhile, and Tammy & Linda formed their awesome band, Excuses for Skipping. Marina's solo project was electric-literary folk that she created with her poetry, her Stratocaster, a Big Muff pedal and her powerful purple flange. She wrote lots 'o songs, even recorded a solo album with Ernesto Diaz-Infante on Pax Recordings entitled "Wind on the Firecracker of the Building Next Door." www.cdbaby.com/cd/lazzara In the early years of Blue Gum Art, Marina's poet friend, Raven, viola'd on a couple tunes, and Marina & Raven had a creative history of poetry, street theatre and friendship (see Processed World Magazine, Shaping San Francisco). So Raven & Marina started playing together again. Raven on viola, Marina on guitar and sometimes the Scottish princess, Angie McLaughlin, would sing with them, and they called themselves The Nice Asses, 'cause in fact, they really did all have pretty nice asses. The Nice Asses were mellow and airy with touchy harmonies and minimal song structure. (Someday you'll find an MP3 or two of them on this site.) About that time, Marina was asked to do a gig with a full band. She was jamming in a project called Illuminated Backpacks with drummer, Claudia Lehan (Do or Die) and bassist/singer/guitarist, Antonette Goroch. Marina was also singing in Antonette's band, Liesl's Wet Dress, where she met Poetik's bass player, Roberto Zimmerman, also currently a member of the SF band, Elementary. So...to make this long story longer, a band of sorts formed. They needed a name, and although it's been used before in many different ways for many other music projects, she called it Poetiks, 'cause she has a Master of Arts in Poetics from the New College of California, and she needed to do something with that thing. (See Poetics, Poetix, Waxing Poetics, Dead Poetics, etc....) All of the above mentioned musicians as well as other amazing SF artists play on the Poetiks recording, Gypsy Thrift, which was recorded in the fall of '04 at Rodent Records Studios by Eric Haas & Elton Ridge. Other musicians on these recordings are Jessica Rowland (Spork, Soundchaser, Barbie Explosion), China Tamblyn (Kirby Grips), Elton Ridge (Chantigs) & Eric Haas (Midnight Bombers). This CD is coming out on Pax Recordings and will be available this summer. And now. There is this band called Poetiks. It is currently a trio. They're evolving and writing new songs (which is good) and gigging and practicing (even better!) and doing what musicians do. They are: Claudia Lehan, Roberto Zimmerman & Marina Lazzara. Thanks for checking out our music!! Please also check out some of our other projects as well as our Friends' projects: This The Rabbles Smile God Loves You Elementary The Brothers Zimm Excuses for Skipping The Barbie Explosion Freedom Rock The Dazzling Strangers The Nashama Alma Band www.paxrecordings.com www.rodentrecords.com BIO: poet/guitarist/singer-songwriter Marina Lazzara was born and raised in Easton, Pennsylvania where the Lehigh River falls into the Delaware. After attending college, bartending and lying around the Atlantic shoreline for five years in Virginia, she moved to San Francisco and graduated from the New College of California with a Masters of Arts in Poetics and published a book of poems entitled The Backdrop Line. Her appreciation for music began as a toddler when her mother encouraged her and her sisters to sing in bed before falling asleep, and her two older sisters & cousins taught her guitar, drumming and songwriting. From there on, she spent most of her teenage years playing guitar and dru