ARCTIC

Genre: Alt-Rock

Vancouver, BC

Sample Track: Through The Spaces

ARCTIC was formed out of frontman Marcus Martin’s desire to never, ever be in another band again.

After a childhood spent on the land in the isolated Northwest Territories of Canada, the guitarist travelled to the metropolis of Toronto and became involved in projects ranging from jazz to metal to rap. After dealing with the roller-coaster frustrations of band politics, he went solo, and headed west to Vancouver to write his own music. He began performing using a looping device that would allow him to record, modify, loop and layer his acoustic guitar performance into a haunting moodiness evocative of a cold Northern landscape. With a rich, unique sound of his own that was already gaining an audience, he had no need for backing musicians.

But strong music always attracts interest, and as time went on, others expressed a desire to join the project. Following two solo cross-Canada tours as ARCTIC, Martin was invited to open for a CD release party. On a whim, he put a trio together for the show. The full band version of ARCTIC was instantly picked up by a local promoter, and began to perform regularly around Vancouver. Despite his initial wariness, Martin found that adding band members added new dimensions and possibilities to his music – and by working with colleagues who were equally inspired by his music and vision, the band’s spirit became collaborative instead of confrontational.

Kirsten Starcher, already involved in the production of ARCTIC’s second EP, Today Brought Me Here, became the band’s bassist, keyboardist, and backing singer. In 2007 they were joined by Todd Biffard on drums, whose creative blend of acoustic and electronic percussion would round out the trio’s spacey sound.

Always seeking contrast, ARCTIC is still sometimes a solo project, sometimes a full band, never exactly the same from one show to the next. In either form it combines diverse influences in unexpected ways: progressive rock, jazz, industrial rock merge with ambient textures and acoustic singer/songwriter melodies to create something fresh, unconventional and intriguing.

Discography