Women

In 2007 the psychedelic-tinged noise rock quartet Women coalesced in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, around the efforts of Chris Reimer, Mike Wallace, and brothers Pat and Matt Flegel. These longtime friends merge the standard rock configuration of bass, drums, and guitars with a fluid array of samplers and drum machines, generating an aggressive sound that recalls Caribou, Velvet Underground, No Age, and Abe Vigoda. The group tracked its self-titled debut alongside Flemish Eye/Jagjaguwar labelmate Chad VanGaalen in 2008 and then launched a tour spanning North America and Europe. After the tour concluded, the band returned to Canada, rejoined VanGaalen in the studio, and completed its sophomore effort, Public Strain, which appeared in 2010. Chris Reimer died in his sleep on February 21, 2012, at the age of 26.