Lemuria

Buffalo's Lemuria, a trio recognized for their '90s-inspired sound, surfaced in the mid-'00s with literate indie-rock anthems that fused melodic punk hooks and emo moodiness. The group showcased lead-singer/guitarist Sheena Ozzella while issuing several well-received EPs, cultivating a devoted audience through relentless touring, and then delivered their 2008 debut Get Better on Asian Man Records. Later efforts such as 2011's Pebbles and 2013's The Distance Is So Big kept pulling from sources ranging from Fleetwood Mac to Polvo.

Sheena Ozzella and Alex Kerns, already acquainted for multiple years—including a period when they dated—launched Lemuria in fall 2004 in Buffalo, New York. They drew from acts including the Lemonheads, Superchunk, Jawbreaker, and Hüsker Dü while shaping their punky, melodic indie rock. With Ozzella handling guitar, Kerns on drums, and Adam Vernick on bass, the three divided vocal duties although Ozzella fronted most tracks; the band promptly tracked several demos. Vernick departed soon afterward, exiting amid work on the first EP. Bassist Jason Draper, formerly of the local hardcore group StillxIll alongside Kerns and Vernick, replaced him in 2005, after which the self-titled four-song EP surfaced that year through Kerns' label Art of the Underground.

Further 7" and split releases appeared across subsequent years, among them a split with New York-based Frame, another with Portland's Kind of Like Spitting titled Your Living Room's All Over Me, and a 2007 outing alongside New Jersey pop-punkers the Ergs!. Germany's Yo Yo Records gathered most of the band's prior demos and 7" material, assembled them, and issued the result as The First Collection.

Lemuria's debut full-length Get Better arrived via Asian Man Records in February 2008 and earned considerable acclaim. During the same stretch multiple personnel shifts brought Max Gregor in on bass. The band then joined Bridge 9 Records and issued their sophomore album Pebble in early 2011. A third LP, The Distance Is So Big, followed in 2013 and featured additional keyboard work from Tony Flaminio. After heavy touring that included a 2014 slot at Chicago's Riot Fest, Lemuria resurfaced with Recreational Hate on Turbo Worldwide in 2017.