Now with the eminent release of MarsupiaL's fourth CD, 'Genus Thylacinus', on March 24th the band is being touted as "One of the nation's brightest stars in the prog-rock scene."

MarsupiaL features Ian Reardon on guitar and vocals, Forrest Smith on guitar, Brad Mehder on bass and Chris Carter on drums and vocals. Hailing from Asheville, North Carolina, several of the members first met while attending Appalachian State University in late 2000. The group eventually relocated to Asheville and quickly became one of the most popular acts in western North Carolina.

"In addition to making a name for itself through powerful live shows, MarsupiaL is quickly earning a reputation as one of the most thoughtful recording artists in the prog-rock field, earning comparisons to national acts such as Umphrey's McGee," says the Mountain Times. "The foursome display an intuitive ability to shift gears from performing complex compositions to enter into innovative improvisational passages." The band's 2006 release 'Curtains' garnered rave reviews worldwide from critics and fans alike, and quickly became a favorite on WNCW's 'Arc Overnight' program. This follows the success of 'Moby Fleck' (2nd CD) at the station, an album that landed in the top 20 regional albums for the year 2006.

Some of Marsupial's influences range from Zappa, Genesis, King Crimson and in the progressive rock scene to jazz, symphonic, Eastern and other non-mainstream styles. "We are also big fans of bands with a large live influence like The Dead, Phish, Allman Brothers, Traffic and Umphrey's McGee," says Brad Mehder, "as well as what's going on in the Chicago underground scene that has generated bands like Tortoise and Isotope 217."

MarsupiaL's 'Genus Thylacinus', released on the band's own label marsupialmusic, will be available through CD Baby, iTunes and the band's official website. In the meantime, the group is performing selected gigs in support of the new CD release as well as writing new material for their next album.