Reptar

With a sound that's as exuberant as it is infectious, Athens, Georgia dance-rock quartet Reptar have been scuffing up dancefloors since they formed in 2008. Featuring the talents of Andrew McFarland, Ryan Engelberger, Graham Ulicny, and William Kennedy, the band brings danceable electronic rock into the modern era with a sound that evokes the classic synth-drenched funk of Prince and densely layered dance-pop of bands like Passion Pit. The band toured for a couple years, delivering buzzworthy performances at showcases like South by Southwest, before bringing the party to the masses with its debut EP, Oblangle Fizz Y'all, in 2011. Reptar joined forces with producer Ben Allen (Animal Collective, Deerhunter, Washed Out) for their full-length debut, Body Faucet, which arrived the following May on Vagrant. The band toured and recorded on and off for the following two years. Ulicny and Kennedy's electronic side project released the eponymous album L()()K in 2013, and McFarland and Engelberger released Blown Breeze, Grown Grass and We Are Part of the Earth with their Athens-based indie folk band, Semicircle, in 2014. In early 2015, Reptar signed to indie rock label Joyful Noise Recordings. Recorded and co-produced by Andy LeMaster (Conor Oberst, Drive-By Truckers), their sophomore LP, the more crackling Lurid Glow, was released that spring. ~ Gregory Heaney & Marcy Donelson