Pajama Avenue

Zelienople is a trio from Chicago that formed in 1998 after several fruitless attempts of being constructive members of various rock bands. Matt Christensen, Mike Weis and Brian Harding split their time between a makeshift bedroom studio and a rehearsal space in Rogers Park, putting together 4-track and 8-track recordings -- heavy on the drones and loops and light on the rock. The experience eventually sprouted Western Automatic (Christensen's electronic project) and Zelienople as a full-fledged band. Matt plays bass, some guitar, manipulates sequencers, synthesizers, and pedals, and sings. Brian plays keyboards, synthesizers, and clarinet, and Mike is the drummer. Drawing upon the drone-based music legacy of '60s American minimalism, '70s ambient rock, '80s space rock, and '90s techno, Zelienople committed hours of songs to tape, creating their own style of recording with sessions taking place in their practice space, bedrooms, kitchens, and bathrooms.