Though Porter was raised in Charleston, South Carolina, "Even when I was a kid, I always had more of an understanding of British style," he says. "When I was six, my father bought me a Fender Mustang, so I've been playing guitar and writing songs since I was a little brat."

Later on, after attending two years of college, he moved to New York, where the Belltower formed during the late '80s. Though the band would soon relocate to England, their first transatlantic visit was earmarked with difficulties: "We had one-way tickets and not a whole lot of cash. We were just there to prospect, but got sent back before we ever left Heathrow." In hindsight, he admits, "The gold nail polish didn't help matters much."

But despite their initial setbacks, the Belltower were soon resident in London, where their success grew rapidly over the next three years. During the height of U.K. "dreampop" or "shoegazing" (depending on your aesthetic perspective), the band released two EPs on Ultimate, a U.K. indie label; then signed with Atlantic/EastWest to release Popdropper, an LP Porter wrote and produced.

Having to record "wherever there was a studio available," the album transported the Belltower to some intriguing locales, including the home of John Entwistle (John Entwistle Band, former Who). "When we stayed with John, he gave me the keys to his attic. There were about 250 vintage guitars up there, so I used a lot of his collection for the record."

After releasing Popdropper in 1991, the band met with increasing acclaim, as their "Outshine the Sun" single reached the number-three spot on the British Billboard charts. From there, they went on to play Reading, Amsterdam, and Paris, before returning to the States, where the Belltower eventually disbanded.

"For the next few years, I did a lot of writing and recording," says Porter, who at the same time linked up again with drummer Tommy Hamer (also ex-Belltower). Hence, the two began laying the groundwork for Astrojet, whose roster would ultimately be rounded out by bassist Jeff Berrall and guitarist Chad Murdock.

In 1997, he received a call from another former bandmate, Adam Schlesinger (Ivy, ex-Belltower), who encouraged Porter to join his current project, Fountains of Wayne. Meanwhile, Astrojet regrouped in Northampton, Massachusetts, where they have continued to rehearse for the past year. "We've been getting it together whenever we can," Porter says. "So we've been doing this for a while, but now we're taking it to another level."

By now, the chaos is dying down in Manhattan. Taxis are vacant, the gridlock has lifted, and a sense of calm descends upon the city. Astrojet, however, "is ready to blast off," Porter says of the band's forthcoming attack on New York. Currently in the process of relocating, Astrojet plans to be playing out by November.

Equally eager to get back in the studio, "I'm excited about getting in, exploring different sounds, ideas, and tones," he says. "I have so many songs I've never even played for anyone-about two-and-a-half records' worth of stuff to record." After hearing Astrojet's demo tracks, it's all pretty gorgeous stuff, frankly.

"For me, it's about trying to get it down on tape as unadulterated as possible. I think that's what all people who write songs aspire to do-get it as close as possible to the way they hear it in their heads."

While he's not set on any specific date, Porter expects to release Astrojet's first offering by early 2000. "The new millennium could be an exciting time," he says. "In fact, we may be the first band to make a triple debut album, just to get rid of these backlogged songs.

"Ultimately, it's been important to first let Astrojet grow organically as a band, rather than just getting it out there as a product. I tend to lose respect for these 'just stick your tape together,' sessiony vibes. Of course, you can never dictate how your music is going to be received. You can't control who's going to like it, who's going to get it, or who's going to like it because somebody else gets it. But now, because we've come together as a band, we feel comfortable putting it out there on a big scale."

In 1991, Porter was quoted in Melody Maker: "As long as it's demented, as long as it's saying something, it's cool to flirt with pop music." When asked if this still holds true: "Pretty much so. I still love the classic pop songs, but what really does it for me is Revolver-era Beatles, a song like 'Tomorrow Never Knows.' It's pop music, but it's a bit more eccentric.

"Actually, a friend of ours in Northampton has a project called Wank Factor 7 and Rising. They recently played a show, and I sat in with Kevin Shields on guitar (My Bloody Valentine) and J Mascis on drums (Dinosaur Jr.). It was this fun, brilliant thing with everyone building an improvisational wall of sound.

"Certainly that's what was happening with the Belltower back in the day. So, what we're doing now is more or less a continuation of that avant-garde style, but with a bit more of a pop sensibility. What Astrojet does is rock, but it's also a lot of other things as well. It's experimental, it's noisy, it's pop-it's everything all in a nutshell, really."

You can e-mail Astrojet at Astrojet@modernrock.com