The Fairways

Rising out of the ashes of indie pop five-piece Skypark, singer/guitarist Brent Kenji assembled the Fairways in San Francisco in the late 1990s with fellow Skypark members Jen Cohen and Andrew Leavitt. After recruiting Keiko Kayamoto and Zac Stanley, they released the ten-song Is Everything All Right? album in 2000 on Paris Caramel Records. The band garnered critical acclaim for its blissful variety of indie pop, comparable to Blueboy and Holiday. Kenji's heartfelt crisp and clean vocals, and the band's precise instrumentation, impressed many in the indie pop scene. They released a split EP with fellow San Franciscans Aislers Set in 2000 on Yakamashi Records, and released the Darling, Don't You Think EP on Washington D.C.'s Matinee Records that same year. Also in 2000, they released the split-EP Permanent Vacation with Japan's Three Berry Ice Cream on Dogprint Records. Stanley left the band in 2000, and was replaced by a drummer simply named Deanna. In 2002, the Fairways settled into the studio to record the follow-up for Is Everything All Right?. ~ Stephen Cramer