One of the few bands to emphasize the rock in post-rock, Maserati incorporate space rock, dance music, and new wave into an aptly driving sound built on their rare blend of technical prowess and refreshing wit. On early releases such as 2002's The Language of Cities, the band picked up where Tortoise, Macha, and Labradford left off, exploring the ambient, jazz, and even modern classical traditions with complex, warmly textured instrumental music. Maserati truly came into their own, though, with the addition of drummer Jerry Fuchs. His powerful yet precise style helped them expand their music on 2007's Motorik-driven Inventions for the New Season and 2010's synth-heavy Pyramid of the Sun. In the wake of Fuchs' untimely death, Maserati continued to discover new facets of their distinctive sound, whether with the dance leanings of 2012's Maserati VII or the retro-futuristic meditations of 2020's Enter the Mirror.

Maserati formed in January 2000 when guitarists Coley Dennis and Matt Cherry, bassist Steve Scarborough, and drummer Phil Horan started playing together in Athens, Georgia. By that June, they were playing shows, and that October they recorded and self-released 37:29:24, a moody blend of space rock expansiveness and scatter-bursts of Slint-like aggression. The following year, Maserati signed to Kindercore and, after extensive touring, worked with producer Andy Baker's Chase Park studio to record The Language of Cities, which the label released in August 2002. Several short-form releases followed, including 2003's Confines of Heat, a split release with the Mercury Program. Cherry left Maserati temporarily that year, with guitarist Tristan Wraight stepping in. The next year, Horan also left after a Japanese tour with Mono, a departure that sparked a year-long hiatus for the band.

Maserati reunited in 2005, with Cherry returning and drummer Jerry Fuchs -- also of !!!, the Juan MacLean and Turing Machine -- joining the fold. In Fuchs, the band gained a drummer capable of transforming Maserati into a heavier as well as more eclectic band, both in the live shows they played in the U.S. and Europe in 2006 and 2007, as well as on his recorded debut, Inventions for the New Season. Arriving in March 2007 on Temporary Residence, the album found the band bringing their prog-rock and Motorik influences to the forefront of their music. Inventions Remixes, which featured reworkings of the album's songs by Tim Goldsworthy and Justin Van Der Volgen, followed in September 2008. That year, Maserati brought on bassist Chris McNeal; while they worked on their next effort and toured, they released a split album with their like-minded friends Zombi in February 2009 and that September's odds-and-sods compilation Passages. That November, tragedy struck when Fuchs suffered a freak accident and fell to his death in an elevator shaft. Carrying on, the rest of Maserati finished the album as a tribute to Fuchs. Appearing a year after his death, November 2010's Pyramid of the Sun was a leap forward for the band, adding electronic touches and contributions from Zombi's Steve Moore to Fuchs' hypnotic rhythms. The limited-edition companion EP, Pyramid of the Moon, which featured a remix by the Field, was released at the same time.

Maserati spent 2011 touring in support of Pyramid of the Sun with Zombi's A.E. Paterra (also of Majeure) on drums. As they worked on their next album, they wrote many of its songs using an Oberheim DMX drum machine, but ultimately brought on drummer Mike Albanese to play live in the studio. The results were October 2012's Maserati VII, a blend of danceable rhythms and spacy electronic washes. After touring in Europe and Asia, Maserati reconvened in Albanese's Athens, Georgia studio to make November 2015's Rehumanizer, a leaner, more rock-oriented set. Following Dennis' move to Switzerland, the band worked on its next album there, in Athens, and remotely. Produced by Maserati, mixed by John Congleton, and featuring contributions from R.E.M.'s Bill Berry, April 2020's Enter the Mirror commemorated the band's 20th anniversary with a sleek style inspired by the massive sounds of the '80s as well as the turbulent times in which it was released. ~ Heather Phares & Daphne Carr, Rovi