I'll likely be posting some new stuff this weekend.
In other news, Dave Graeter informs me that Lance Hahn died last month of kidney disease. For the uninitiated, Lance was the main creative force behind CRINGER in the late '80s and J CHURCH in the '90s. If you've never heard of these bands, you're really missing out. Both were/are essential pop punk listening.
Go here for a short obit and a J CHURCH mp3.
I never saw CRINGER live, but their music is amazing--an indispensable part of that east coast LOOKOUT! RECORDS sound that GREEN DAY has since turned into a trans-national phenomenon. J CHURCH was more or less the same thing, just a little tighter, a little more intellectual--no less brilliant. I think J CHURCH should also get some kind of recognition for being as prolific as they were. As far as I know, they had a song on every compilation they were ever asked to be on in the '90s, and it's rare to find the same J CHURCH song on two different comps. Seems they always had a single or short EP coming out on some obscure indie label or other. Lance must have been writing and recording 24 hours a day. It would take a team of Ivy League record geeks quite a while to track down their entire back catalogue.
I saw J CHURCH several times in Columbus, Dayton, and Kentucky from about 1993-1996, and Lance and I corresponded briefly while I was living in Yellow Springs. My band HEIKE played with them at some warehouse show in Lexington. So although Lance and I were never friends or anything, I met him enough times to say that he was a pretty decent guy of little pretense. And most importantly, J CHURCH always put on a good show. He'll be missed.
take care
---Jones
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