Boardman native plays drums for indie-rockers Dean and Britta

By Guy D’Astolfo

He met the act at a party for fashion designer Nanette LePore.

For the past two years, Boardman native Anthony LaMarca has been the drummer for Dean and Britta, the folky indie-rock act with a minimalist sound and a devoted following. It’s a situation he owes to talent, musical compatibility ... and being in the right place at the right time.

The 2005 Boardman High School graduate is a music student at the New School in New York. During the summer of 2006, he was working in the shipping department of fashion designer — and fellow Youngstown native — Nanette LePore.

He and his co-worker Obie Savage — son of Bob Savage, LePore’s husband — put together a band to play at the after-party for a LePore fashion show. Obie is also the vocalist for Youngstown band The Sweet Delights.

“Dean and Britta’s kid goes to school with Nanette’s daughter, so they were at the party,” said LaMarca in a phone interview from Brooklyn, N.Y. “Their drummer had just left to join Rufus Wainwright’s group, so they auditioned me.”

LaMarca didn’t realize how deep Dean and Britta’s fan base was when he first joined. Dean Wareham had previously founded two acclaimed bands, Galaxie 500 and Luna. The latter also included his wife, vocalist Britta Phillips.

“I hadn’t really heard of them when I auditioned,” he said. “At first, people would come up to me at shows and say, ‘You’re so lucky to get to play all those great Galaxie 500 songs and be in this group.’”

LaMarca had to give himself a crash course in his own band.

“Dean grew up in New York City, listening to the ’70s punk scene,” said LaMarca. “He had influences I never even heard of. I needed to know who he was listening to.”

Dean and Britta will be in Pittsburgh this weekend for two concerts — Friday and Saturday — at the Byham Theater as part of the Pittsburgh International Festival of Firsts. The band will debut its “13 Most Beautiful Songs for Andy Warhol’s Screen Tests.” The songs, written by Wareham and Philips, are meant as a score of sorts for a series of very short films the late pop artist made in the ’60s to profile celebrities.

Dean and Britta will also perform “13 Most Beautiful” at the Wexner Center for the Arts in Columbus on Nov. 20.

LaMarca said Wareham and Phillips do all the songwriting, but are open to his suggestions.

“It’s a group effort, but they do the writing and arranging,” he said. “If you have an idea, they’ll say, ‘Let’s see if it works.’”