Abunai!

Judging from their affinity for psychedelic pop/rock (with some improv elements thrown in as well), the Boston quartet Abunai! are major admirers of Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd. The band originally formed during the mid-'90s, when Dan Parmenter (bass), Brendan Quinn (guitar), and Joe Turner (drums) got together to jam — all of whom had previously logged time with other local groups. Shortly thereafter, multi-instrumentalist Kris Thompson (organ, synthesizer, theremin) signed on, rounding out Abunai! to a four-piece. Signed to the indie label Camera Oscura, the quartet issued a pair of albums during the latter part of the decade — 1997's Universal Mind Decoder and 1999's Mystic River Sound — which resulted in coverage in such renowned publications as Magnet, Rolling Stone, and Alternative Press, plus airplay on the BBC's John Peel show. For their third release, 2000's Round Wound, Abunai! condensed several years' worth of improv jams at their rehearsal studio into a single disc's worth of tunes. In addition to his Abunai! duties, Thompson also leads an experimental side project, the Lothars, comprised of several theremin players.