Juno (band)

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Juno is an American indie rock band formed in Seattle in 1995. Juno released their debut album This Is the Way It Goes & Goes & Goes on DeSoto Records March 30, 1999. Their second album A Future Lived in Past Tense was released May 8, 2001. The band was critically acclaimed by various local and national music journals and has toured throughout the US, Europe and Japan.

What separates Juno from other rock bands of its time is first and foremost a wall of intense sound built by 3 guitar players (Gabe Carter, Jason Guyer and Arlie Carstens). The guitarists are able to layer their parts into cohesive arrangements (much like the members of an orchestra) and thanks to careful sound engineering, the listener is able to distinguish each guitarist throughout the songs, no matter how loud or distorted the parts are. Add to that Greg Ferguson's restless drum fills, textures of cymbals, touches of odd meters and creative snare/kick drum patterns that often respond or parallel the riffs played by the guitarsts (great examples of that are heard at the beginning of "Help Is On The Way" or throughout "When I Was In" or "Killing It In a Quiet Way"). Each of the band's two albums offers a variety of moods, volumes and emotional landscapes - depth meets breadth.

The band is now officially defunct. They had played with and auditioned a few different bassists (including Nick Harmer of Death Cab for Cutie), but ultimately decided that they were going in different directions artistically. According to a post made to the Juno web site by lead singer Arlie Carstens the break up was amicable. Currently some of the former members are working on Ghost Wars, a recording project led by Carstens and Eric Fisher. Three pieces of their music can be found on MySpace. (more about Ghost Wars in Carstens' interview http://www.thestranger.com/lineout/2006/07/ghost_wars.php)

Juno has re-united to play two shows in Seattle on 9 and 10 December 2006 for KEXP's annual Yule Benefit. A video recording of both concerts is currently being produced.