Nice Nice

by Heather Phares Portland’s experimental duo Nice Nice feature guitarist Jason Buehler and percussionist Mark Shirazi. Though the pair began playing in the mid-‘90s, they didn’t adopt the Nice Nice moniker until 1999. From the start of their collaboration, however, their improvisations and nimble interplay defined their music on record and in their live shows. Their self-titled debut EP appeared in 2001 on the Archigramophone imprint, followed by a single on White Denim and appearances on compilations from that label and Tigerbeat6. Their first full-length, Chrome, arrived in 2003 and showcased the duo's artful mix of playing and real-time effects processing. The following year, Nice Nice released the Yesss! EP, which was an even more ambitious take on their music. Along with works for Audraglint and Audiodregs in 2005 and 2006, they issued a limited-edition series of EPs inspired by the seasons for Temporary Residence. Buehler and Shirazi also collaborated with Cex on his 2006 album Actual F**king. That year, they signed to Warp Records and spent the next few years working on their second-full length; the single One Hit, which was released late in 2009, was the first taste of this material. The single and the track “See Waves” from the Warp compilation 2010 paved the way for Actual Wow, which was scheduled for spring 2010, and aimed to capture the dynamism and exploration of Nice Nice’s concerts.