The Mae Shi

Los Angeles' noise rock outfit the Mae Shi features Ezra Buchla, Brad Breeck, and Tim and Jeff Byron. The bandmembers were longtime friends before starting the Mae Shi, with Buchla and Jeff Byron's friendship dating back to their high school days. With influences spanning no wave and classical legends like the Ex and Erik Satie, the band aimed to bring a wide array of sounds and approaches to its music. After playing their first gigs in early 2003, the Mae Shi issued their debut EP that summer, which they gave to people in exchange for mixtapes or CDs. When they began recording tracks for their first album that fall and into winter 2004, the band used the flow and unpredictablilty of mixes and play lists as an inspiration, along with the ambitious and varied production techniques of hip-hop albums. The result, 2004's Terrorbird (named after a two-million-year-old flightless, predatory bird that reached heights of nine feet), was a sprawling, digitally processed affair that cost approximately 130 dollars to make. A little more than a year later, the Mae Shi returned with Heartbeeps -- which, like Terrorbird, was released by 5 Rue Christine -- and embarked on their most ambitious tours of Europe and the U.S. that summer and fall. The band expected to release a DVD by the end of 2005. ~ Heather Phares, All Music Guide