Biography
Emerging from the Elephant 6 constellation in the late 1990s, Marshmallow Coast began as the vehicle for Athens-based indie polymath Andy Gonzales, who maintained peripheral ties to both the Music Tapes and Of Montreal. Operating from Georgia’s pop nexus, Gonzales and an ever-shifting roster issued the off-kilter yet tuneful Seniors and Juniors in 1999 and Ride the Lightning in 2002 on Kindercore and Misra respectively, briefly adopted the M Coast moniker, then reclaimed the original name in 2009; the project later anchored itself at local imprint Happy Happy Birthday to Me, which released Vangelis Rides Again in 2015 and the synth-laden Memory Girl in 2018.
Gonzales first recorded under the Marshmallow Coast banner in 1996 with a self-released cassette; aside from the EP The Scent of Credibility and a split single alongside Midget & Hairs, wider attention arrived only with the 1999 Kindercore full-length Seniors and Juniors. The following year saw two additional albums surface: Timesquare, a collaboration with Julian Koster of Neutral Milk Hotel and the Music Tapes that had been tracked earlier, and Marshmallow Coasting, featuring Of Montreal’s Derek Almstead and Kevin Barnes. After signing with Misra, the group reached a creative peak with 2002’s Ride the Lightning, again bolstered by Of Montreal personnel, and the 2003 sequel Antistar, largely a Gonzales–Sara Kirkpatrick affair produced by Jason NeSmith of Casper & the Cookies.
Transitioning to Happy Happy Birthday to Me, the 2006 album Say It in Slang appeared under the M Coast alias, incorporating Almstead as co-songwriter plus keyboardist Emily Growden and drummer Carlton Owens. That configuration dissolved in 2007, prompting Gonzales to revert to Marshmallow Coast for 2009’s Phreak Phantasy. Two years later Seniors and Juniors Strikes Back combined re-recorded debut material with fresh songs. Following a four-year hiatus, the ninth album Vangelis Rides Again surfaced in 2015, emphasizing darker hues, while 2018’s Memory Girl explored sleek synth textures and 1980s new-romantic atmospheres.
Gonzales first recorded under the Marshmallow Coast banner in 1996 with a self-released cassette; aside from the EP The Scent of Credibility and a split single alongside Midget & Hairs, wider attention arrived only with the 1999 Kindercore full-length Seniors and Juniors. The following year saw two additional albums surface: Timesquare, a collaboration with Julian Koster of Neutral Milk Hotel and the Music Tapes that had been tracked earlier, and Marshmallow Coasting, featuring Of Montreal’s Derek Almstead and Kevin Barnes. After signing with Misra, the group reached a creative peak with 2002’s Ride the Lightning, again bolstered by Of Montreal personnel, and the 2003 sequel Antistar, largely a Gonzales–Sara Kirkpatrick affair produced by Jason NeSmith of Casper & the Cookies.
Transitioning to Happy Happy Birthday to Me, the 2006 album Say It in Slang appeared under the M Coast alias, incorporating Almstead as co-songwriter plus keyboardist Emily Growden and drummer Carlton Owens. That configuration dissolved in 2007, prompting Gonzales to revert to Marshmallow Coast for 2009’s Phreak Phantasy. Two years later Seniors and Juniors Strikes Back combined re-recorded debut material with fresh songs. Following a four-year hiatus, the ninth album Vangelis Rides Again surfaced in 2015, emphasizing darker hues, while 2018’s Memory Girl explored sleek synth textures and 1980s new-romantic atmospheres.
Albums
