Marble Valley was the solo project of longtime Pavement drummer Steve West, born December 8, 1966, in Charlottesville, VA. After attending high school with future Pavement bandmate Bob Nastanovich, he studied art at Virginia Commonwealth University before relocating to New York City and working as a Whitney Museum security guard alongside another future Pavement collaborator, frontman Stephen Malkmus. When the famed indie group dismissed drummer Gary Young in 1993, West was tapped as his replacement, making his debut the following year on the much acclaimed Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain. The first Marble Valley album, Sauckiehall Street, appeared in 1997; Sunset Sprinkler followed three years later. After a six-year break, the third full-length record, Wild Yams, was released. ~ Jason Ankeny