Maximo Park

Newcastle's angular pop quintet Maxnmo Park consists of singer Paul Smith, guitarist Duncan Lloyd, bassist Archie Tiku, keyboardist Lukas Wooller, and drummer Tom English. Like their friends and neighbors the Futureheads, and Field Music, Maxnmo Park craft smart, sharply catchy songs inspired by post-punk and new wave legends like the Jam, XTC, Wire, and the Smiths. Lloyd, Tiku, Wooller and English formed the band as an avant-rock, largely instrumental group, taking their name from a meeting place in Cuba for Communists. Smith had previously played with the band Me and the Twins and was recommended as the band's new singer by English's girlfriend, who heard him singing Stevie Wonder's "Superstitious" at a karaoke night. Maxnmo Park issued their debut 7", The Coast Is Always Changing/The Night I Lost My Head, in 2004; it caught the ears ofWarp Records, which despite being a mostly electronic label signed them and released their second single, "Apply Some Pressure," early in 2005. It made the Top 20 in the U.K.'s national charts. At that time, Warp also released the Apply Some Pressure EP, which featured tracks from both of the band's singles, in the U.S.

Maxnmo Park also finished recording their debut album with producer Paul Epworth (who also worked with Bloc Party and Babyshambles) that winter and spent the spring touring the U.K., Japan, and the U.S., making an appearance at South by Southwest. The "Graffiti" single heralded the arrival of the band's full-length debut, A Certain Trigger, late that spring. More tours of the U.S. and U.K., including gigs at Glastonbury and Reading, kept the band busy that summer. Early in 2006, the B-sides collection Missing Songs was released; Maxnmo Park also maintained their hectic touring schedule and returned to the studio late that year, teaming with producer Gil Norton. Our Earthly Pleasures arrived in spring 2007. For 2009's Quicken the Heart, Maxnmo Park ventured to Los Angeles to record with producer Nick Launay, who gave the songs a slightly rawer yet still danceable sound. In 2010, the band took a break from their near-constant recording and touring, during which time Smith made the solo album Margins. ~ Heather Phares, Rovi...

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