Pony Up

Montreal's all-femme five-piece Pony Up! formed on New Year's Eve 2002. The band features bassist Lisa Smith, drummer Lindsay Wills, keyboardist Laura Wills, guitarist Sarah Moundroukas, and jill of all trades Camilla Wynne Ingr; each member handles vocal duties. After playing together for a year, Pony Up! took their mix of girl group pop and shambolic indie rock on the road, playing pizza parlors, art galleries, and actual concert venues; late in 2003, they began recording their songs. Ben Lee heard them and signed the band to his boutique label, Ten Fingers, an offshoot of Dim Mak. Pony Up! contributed the B-side to his cover of Modest Mouse's "Float On," which was released as a 7" late in 2004. Early the next year, Pony Up!'s self-titled mini-album -- which featured seven of the 11 songs they recorded in 2003 -- arrived. Their debut full-length, Make Love to the Judges with Your Eyes, was released in spring 2006.