Archaster was formed in the last quarter of 1996 after the band Fingernail Cocktail disbanded. Two of the members formed Mono Workshop (Richard Olaguera and Monsano Dominguez), while the other two (Francis Yu and Jeffrey Bacani) formed a band under a temporary name SWAB. Swab continued the dream pop legacy of the Fingernail Cocktails and would occasionally play Fingernail Cocktail songs along with their recruits: Jefrey Jacob – Guitar, and Simon Limbos – Bass. Francis decided to change the name of the band from Swab to Archaster after a few months of playing gigs at Club Dredd, Yosh Café, Mayrics. 

     In the early 1999, some of the members quit due to personal reasons and other interests. The band was left with only 2 members: Jefrey Jacob and Francis Yu. The two played as a duo for the gigs of Buzz Nights at Mayrics and some gigs at Yosh Café which mostly featured Death Metal Bands. Jef left the band in the late 1999 to experiment on indiepop and formed a band of his own.

     Archaster was left with Francis alone and would play gigs with a little help from friends and former members who would session for him for live performances. Archaster stopped playing gigs for a few years and experimented on home recordings. Archaster made a comeback last December 2007 and started writing new songs. Francis retained the name Archaster.

     Archaster is currently heavily influenced by Stephin Merritt’s music and songwriting style; witty lyrics, heartfelt lovesongs, and catchy melodies. Songs about sadness, failure, dreams, love, and relationships. Crossing the boundaries of darkwave and pop sensibilities.