Biography
Jetstream Pony channels a hazy strain of noise pop through the ethereal musings of vocalist Beth Arzy, whose earlier work with Aberdeen and the stylistically kindred Luxembourg Signal laid its groundwork. After a string of well-received shorter releases, the group unveiled its self-titled debut full-length in 2020.
A California native who had already participated in several noteworthy indie-pop outfits reaching back to the 1990s—among them Aberdeen and Trembling Blue Stars—Arzy launched Jetstream Pony while living in England alongside guitarist Shaun Charman, known for stints in the Wedding Present and the Popguns. The pair had previously crossed paths in the Fireworks. Taking the band’s name from a retired racing greyhound, the two laid down its earliest tracks, “Like You Less” and “Had Enough,” using only an iPad. Those recordings surfaced as a 7-inch on the German imprint Kleine Untergrund Schallplatten, drawing notice from various indie-music blogs and securing airplay on BBC 6 Music. Bassist Kerry Boettcher, once Charman’s bandmate in Turbocat, joined next, and further praise greeted the 2018 release of the buoyant Self-Destruct Reality EP, again on Kleine Untergrund Schallplatten and featuring drummer Sarah Boyle. Shifting Charman to the drum kit, the band issued another 7-inch, “I Close My Eyes” backed with “It’ll Take More Than a Friday,” in late 2019, then toured alongside the Wedding Present before installing Hannes Müller as its permanent drummer.
On the resulting quartet’s first album, Jetstream Pony, the sound grew consistently richer and more dreamlike. The record appeared in May 2020 through Kleine Untergrund Schallplatten in Germany and Shelflife Records in the United States.
A California native who had already participated in several noteworthy indie-pop outfits reaching back to the 1990s—among them Aberdeen and Trembling Blue Stars—Arzy launched Jetstream Pony while living in England alongside guitarist Shaun Charman, known for stints in the Wedding Present and the Popguns. The pair had previously crossed paths in the Fireworks. Taking the band’s name from a retired racing greyhound, the two laid down its earliest tracks, “Like You Less” and “Had Enough,” using only an iPad. Those recordings surfaced as a 7-inch on the German imprint Kleine Untergrund Schallplatten, drawing notice from various indie-music blogs and securing airplay on BBC 6 Music. Bassist Kerry Boettcher, once Charman’s bandmate in Turbocat, joined next, and further praise greeted the 2018 release of the buoyant Self-Destruct Reality EP, again on Kleine Untergrund Schallplatten and featuring drummer Sarah Boyle. Shifting Charman to the drum kit, the band issued another 7-inch, “I Close My Eyes” backed with “It’ll Take More Than a Friday,” in late 2019, then toured alongside the Wedding Present before installing Hannes Müller as its permanent drummer.
On the resulting quartet’s first album, Jetstream Pony, the sound grew consistently richer and more dreamlike. The record appeared in May 2020 through Kleine Untergrund Schallplatten in Germany and Shelflife Records in the United States.