The songs Dave Trumfio writes for the Pulsars juxtapose catchy melodies with frequently melancholy subject matter. "That's my favorite style of music: happy/sad," he confirms. The contrasts are brought out by the use of chirping synth lines, '60s- style horn parts and other studio touches. This "smorgasbord of pop styles," as Dave calls it, is an unusual mix of homemade rock and old New Wave technology that manages to achieve what even many pop titans haven't: leaning on electronics without losing the warmth and intimacy of the songs.

For years Dave (singer, guitarist, keyboardist, producer and engineer) and his drummer brother Harry soldiered on in bands that played everything from prog-rock covers to guitar noise. With the Pulsars, however- as evidenced by their eccentrically tuneful EP Submission to the Master (Almo Sounds)- the Trumfio boys can let it all hang out. "This is the first band where we weren't trying to be anything," insists Dave. "We're just gonna be who we are and play the music that we want to play."

The road leading to the formation of the Pulsars was a long one. Chicagoans Dave and Harry began making tapes in their room while in Junior High. "My dad's a dentist, and he did a lot of work on this guy who owns a music store," Dave explains. "So we went in there and barterd." With an early- model multitrack tape recorder in their posession, the brothers began their musical odyssey. "We had a band probably as early as fourth or fifth grade," notes Dave. "Harry built a drum set out of cookie tins, and one of our friends left a Sears Silvertone guitar and Hohner amp at our house, so we thought, 'Hey, let's start a band.' That was the start of our musical career."

The sounds of classic pop, especially the Fifth Dimension, were often on the family stero, but it would be a while before the Trumfios found their way back to the joys of a simple melody. Other musical influences would emerge a few years later, initially spurred by a cassette from a friend. It was a college student's mix of English post- punk and New Wave from the likes of Joy Division, New Order, the Cure, and the Bunnymen and Public Image Ltd. On a high school summer trip to England, the boys went wild in U.K. record shops, "getting into that whole scene."

After High School, Dave spent a year interning at a recording studio. Eventually he took a job there, honing his engineering chops by recording and mixing tunes for house music pioneers. He later opened his own studio, Kingsize Sound Laboratories, with partner Mike Hagler and has since recorded a number of independent rock's best and brightest, including the Mekons, Barbara Manning, Palace, Stuart Moxham, and Holiday. But despite his best efforts to stay behind the boards, Dave couldn't help embarking on another project.

"I wanted to start a pop band," he says. "I concentrated on songwriting, hooks and concise ideas." He and Harry participated in an embryonic version of the pulsars, bu the prevailing trends of indie rock worked against them: "we'd have a really good two- minute pop song written, but some of the guys couldn't deal with that- it had to be stretched out into a six- minute experimental epic." Finally, Dave told his bandmates, "I want this to be a pop band that plays pop songs and uses whatever it has in order to bring our songs across well." Several bandmates balked at this. So, Dave recounts, "Harry and I started again as the Pulsars."

Working with recorded synthesizer parts, the duo employed techniques associated with electronic music to fashion their minimalist rock. From time to time, they were joined onstage by additional players- on their forthcoming tour, Mike Hagler will be playing guitar and keyboards to flesh out intricate parts and augment the band's overall creative push- and- pull.

Dave's strong songwriting and a few surprising shows, including opening slots for Oasis and BLur, attracted immediate attention. The Pulsars were signed to Almo Sounds by A&R exec Bob Bortnick.

Dave found himself asking Almo co- founder and trumpet legend Herb Alpert to lay down a part on the title track of Submission. "I was nervous when he came in," he recalls, laughing. "But it was great telling someone that awesome that he messed up a part and had to do it again!" The self- produced EP, released Oct. 8, 1996, serves as an introduction while the Pulsars finish their album debut.

The band's name comes from Harry's fascination with astronomy. According to Harry, a pulsar is "a cool place in outer space that makes radioactive noise." Apart from the aptness of such a name for their brightly pulsing songs, the moniker "sounded really classic" to Dave, who states, "we'd already written a song called 'The Pulsars' and thought it was a good name."

Despite their electronic obsessions and fondness for sci-fi imagery, the Pulsars create infectious, down to earth melodies without too many bells and whistles. "I'm really into playing solid songs," Dave says. "And Harry likes to play straightforward drums. If you want space jams, check out Sabalon Glitz."

Reprinted from the now-defunct Billions Pulsars homepage.

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