Fischerspooner goes on U.S. 'Odyssey' this spring

Fischerspooner--a New York-based, avant-garde, electro-pop outfit led by founders Warren Fischer and Casey Spooner--backs its sophomore set with a series of U.S. shows.

Things begin with a late-April show in Florida, and the brief itinerary includes a May residency at New York City's Canal Room, where the group will play during each Thursday of the month.

May dates in Houston and Chicago are tucked between the New York shows, and four California performances are booked in early June. Details are shown below.

Released on April 5, "Odyssey" follows 2002's "#1." The new set features the single "Just Let Go."

During the recording process for "#1"--which dragged out over several years--Fischer programmed the music at his apartment and Spooner worked on lyrics alone; the two came together only when it was time to record vocals.

This time around, the two worked closely in the recording studio.

"At first it was really uncomfortable to have my process exposed," Fischer said in a statement. "I'm used to writing by myself and suddenly I was getting feedback on unfinished tracks, but I realized you get to better ideas sometimes because you get pushed."

"We both went a little crazy making the album," Spooner added. "We really had to grow as artists and to grow you have to change. Change is never easy."

Fischerspooner's roots can be traced back to a one-song performance that musician/filmmaker Fischer and lyricist/performance-artist Spooner gave in the mid '90s during a showcase at a Starbucks in New York City's East Village. For that debut performance, "Casey wore wraparound sunglasses and struck exaggerated poses as Warren dutifully pushed the button the CD player for the backing track," according to an early bio-sheet.

The outfit grew to about 20 performers--described in a 2002 press release as an "outlandish pack of dancers, vocalists and other merry pranksters … along with the costumes, glitter, confetti and chocolate sauce that are the tools of their trade."

The group's shows in support of "Odyssey" are "set to be a complete transformation from the acclaimed and controversial 'outsider pop shows' they became infamous for," according to a press release, which goes on to say that the new production "will be fully live featuring a new band and visual design."