Zumpano

Although Zumpano hailed from Vancouver, British Columbia, and issued only a pair of albums, the indie power-pop quartet stood out for its unpretentious freshness. Blending 1960s soft-pop leanings with hard-candy guitar textures, the band helped steer Sub Pop away from its early-1990s grunge identity toward a brighter, more varied roster.

The group formed in 1992 after drummer Jason Zumpano and guitarist-keyboardist Michael Ledwidge dissolved their previous project, Glee, just as it neared a major-label contract; they labeled the earlier outfit “artistically impure.” They next brought in singer-guitarist Carl Newman and bassist Stefan Niemann, both drawn from local cover-band circles. Taking primary cues from 1960s soft-pop figures such as Brian Wilson, the Zombies, and the 5th Dimension, Zumpano deliberately diverged from prevailing grunge norms, yet, like fellow Canadians Sloan, they still laced their melodic material with occasional crunchy guitar. After briefly performing as the Wayward Boys, the musicians adopted their drummer’s surname on a whim, simply because it sounded appealing.

The newly named quartet performed several post-grunge Seattle showcases and joined Sub Pop’s roster in 1994. Their first release, the 1995 album Look What the Rookie Did, included a version of Jimmy Webb’s “Rosecrans Boulevard,” a selection that felt bold before the late-1990s soft-rock resurgence. Although commercial returns were modest, the record earned strong critical notice and endeared Zumpano to power-pop enthusiasts; one track, “The Party Rages On,” later appeared on Rhino’s 1997 Poptopia compilation. The follow-up, 1996’s Goin’ Through Changes, further highlighted the songwriting influences of Burt Bacharach and Jimmy Webb and was widely regarded as an artistic step forward. After that release the band went silent for several years without issuing any formal breakup statement.

Only when Carl Newman resurfaced in 2000 at the helm of the New Pornographers did he verify that Zumpano had quietly disbanded soon after Goin’ Through Changes. In the same year Michael Ledwidge surfaced again, this time as the lo-fi solo project Near Castlegar.