The Verve Pipe's Brian Vander Ark is an anomaly in rock 'n' roll. He's tall! And that's a refreshing deviation from the diminutive, yet "larger-than-life," pop stars we tend to entertain here in the LAUNCH studios. Devoted users of this CD-ROM may recall a time early in our history when the Villains album was first released and Vander Ark joined us for a zany conversation to promote his major label debut. Now he's back, armed with stories about writing music with power pop icon Andy Partridge of XTC, touring with KISS, and smashing TV sets with his guitar. The singer-songwriter even caught the acting bug since we last spoke, and he'll soon be seen in such independent films as Roadkill and Mergers & Acquisitions. Meanwhile, his Michigan-based band's eponymous new release, produced by Michael Beinhorn (Soundgarden, Hole), reflects a denser, more adventurous Verve Pipe that drummer Donny Brown says harks back to the band's early indie release Pop Smear.
