Astra

by Gregory Heaney
After San Diego's Silver Sunshine parted ways with drummer Iain Andrew Sclater in 2006, replacing him with drummer and multi-instrumentalist David Hurley, the band re-formed as Astra. With a new name and a new member, the band, also consisting of Conor Riley (guitar/organ/keyboards/vocals), Stuart Sclater (bass), Richard Vaughan (guitar/Mellotron/vocals), and Brian Ellis (guitar/Moog), further evolved its sound. This re-imagining found the band venturing even further down the paisley-drenched neo-psychedelic rabbit hole and into the realm of early-'70s prog rock. The newer sound, rich with vintage synthesizers, Mellotron, and spacy guitars, channels the sprawling prog sounds of Yes and Pink Floyd. In 2009, Astra released their epic full-length debut, The Weirding, on Rise Above Records.