Sense and sensitivity: Jarvik 7 are Matthew "Mat" Bowman, guitar and vocals; Bill Myers, bass; Dennis Wenrich, guitar; and Brian Conger, drums.
Early days: Best friends Bowman and Myers formed Jarvik 7 in Tampa in 1995 with breaks and lineup changes but have been going strong for the past two years.
Through the blast darkly: You could call Jarvik 7 makers of rainy-day headphone music or soundtrack composers of apocalyptic love stories. "I personally like darker music," said Myers, who admits to being inspired by tragedy. He says he composed one song after hearing about a Zamboni worker who died from seizures after no one came to help him.
Guitar heroes: Bowman's brother, Rick, joined for a spell in the late '90s, pioneering the band's signature use of spooky and spacey effects pedals. Brad Richardson, of the ambient duo Isobella, left amicably this year and gets hearty props for his ethereal imprint. The current guitarists keep it surreal. There are no synths or keyboards. The result: music that's both rough and pretty in parts.
Honorary fifth member: Mark Thompson, the "video guy," is an award-winning filmmaker who flies down from New York to apply grainy family movie footage and other images during performances. Thompson can't make it to the next Tampa show, but his videos will be shown.
Audio meets visual: "Mark has a love of space images and pretty abstract images," said Bowman, "which we have an affinity for, as well. He always has said that the music seems perfect for the visual art that he does, and we agree. … Now we can't imagine doing a set without Mark's images."
Even more heartfelt: Myers named the band for the first artificial heart implanted in humans. "I hated it at first," Bowman said. "But I warmed to it later." Adds Myers: "It's a name that stuck with me since childhood. I thought it sounded sci-fi."
Now with words: Until recently, the band has been mainly instrumental. Bowman, who's admittedly reserved, has gotten more comfortable with singing, and the band is performing more tunes with vocals. "I like the music to tell the story," he said, "not the lyrics."
Recording plans: They're teaming up with James Bess, Bowman's bandmate in the Dumbwaiters, to record a new full-length, due sometime in early 2009.
Quality over quantity: In the band's decade-plus tenure, they've completed less than a dozen songs. Says Myers: "We're selective almost to our detriment."
See, hear them: 9 p.m. Dec. 25 with Hankshaw, Davey Von Bohlen and King of Spain (see Page 25 for details). $8. New World Brewery, Ybor City. (813) 248-4969.
News
