Pants

Get this video and more at MySpace.comPANTS is a progressive guitar-pop band from Sydney, Australia who have come up through the ranks to amass a loyal fan base in Sydney's competitive music scene. Their first CD, General Malarky marks the much-anticipated arrival of a band able to marry its diverse influences and create songs with intelligent lyrics, big choruses and enormous musical sensibility.Shane Maronese, lead vocalist, picked up a guitar and started songwriting at the age of 14 during the heady days of the Oz Rock era. He was heavily influenced by the likes of Midnight Oil, Crowded House and Hunters and Collectors. Shane's classical training saw him set for a career in musical theatre but bass player, Paul Prammer, realised that Shane was infinitely more corruptible and persuaded him that his true destiny lay as Rock God, Superstar rather than the lead in Jesus Christ Superstar.Paul Prammer admits to originally picking up the bass guitar in high school because 'everyone else wanted to play lead guitar'. Paul has embraced all styles of music from punk and swing to pop and hard rock. He brings his enthusiasm for thumping tempos in and around the melodies of every PANTS song.Shane and Paul played in a number of Sydney bands over the years earning critical acclaim from the music press. "Killer songs laden with hooks, excellent melodies and real energy. It's pop but it's not twee, a yardstick for intelligent guitar-based pop ... Besides being an excellent songwriter, Shane is a fine vocalist ..." Stuart Coupe, On The Street.Pants acquired lead guitarist David McCarroll in 1999. David's fondness for punk and any other form of music likely to cause spontaneous internal bleeding is unleashed in a welter of ferocious rhythm guitar interspersed with blistering, to-the-point solos. Combine this with an affinity for the atmospheric/ambient sounds of Brian Eno and Andy Summers and their ilk and you have pop that jumps from first to fifth gear taking the listener on a hell of an enjoyable ride, mercifully free of the usual boring guitar-hero histrionics.Remix and electronic music extraordinaire bside beat the rumpumpums with firm sticks on General Malarky. Check out his myspace at bsidemusicaustralia Unlike other groups united by a common love of say the Beach Boys (fine as they were), you have three guys who love ELO, Queen, Phil Spector, English New Wave, Frank Zappa, The Clash, Steely Dan, Abba, the list is probably endless. With a united lineup however, the reckless abandon all fell into place, coalescing their diverse influences into a glorious musical baking fest. The band kick-started their first year as runners-up in the 2MMM band comp and had Cynic of the Year played as demo of the week in the same year. As Michael Smith of Drum Media noted "There's no denying that this band has that big, classic, power pop sound."General Malarky is an album as much born of the band members' diverse tastes in music, as it is of their mutual love of harmony and melody. From the fist-pumping, anthemic chorus of their first single Smile! to the sweet harmonies of The Boy With His Foot In His Mouth; from the swoony strains of Sleepy to the invective snarl of Dead Cat in Villawood, General Malarky is an impressive debut from a band that defines intelligent guitar-based pop.Says Shane Maronese. "Through sheer dogged persistence and the wonders of affordable modern technology PANTS have managed to pull off our grand vision of producing our own album. With a whole lot of gumption and a distinct lack of compromise I feel we've crafted a diverse mix, rich in energy, melody, harmony, satire and sentiment. Our sensibilities are definitely on our sleeves with this album. General Marlarky has been great fun to make and we can't wait to unleash it on the unsuspecting world!"