Engine 88

Last updated

Engine 88
Origin San Francisco, California, U.S.
Genres Rock, indie, alternative
Years active1992–1998, 2006, 2017
LabelsShut Up & Drive, Caroline, Wingnut
MembersTom Barnes
Damon Wood
Eric Knight
Dave Hawkins
Website engine88.net

Engine 88 was an American rock band that spawned out of the San Francisco Bay Area in the 1990s.

Contents

History

Engine 88 (originally known as simply Engine) released three albums and a handful of seven-inch singles throughout the 1990s. The band featured Tom Barnes of the notable college rock band Sordid Humor as lead singer, Damon Wood of Smoking Section on guitar, Eric Knight on bass and Dave Hawkins (also of Smoking Section) on the drums.

Their first 7 inch singles release, Funny Car was put out independently on their own label, Shut Up and Drive in 1993. In 1995, their first full length LP, Clean Your Room was released on Caroline Records, defining their characteristic sound of driving guitars and rhythms counter-acted with introspective and often abstract lyrics. Clean your Room peaked at #42 on the CMJ Top 200 chart. [1]

1997's Snowman followed, to much critical acclaim. Stephen Thompson of The A.V. Club praised the album, writing that it "flat-out rocks, with 38 minutes of smart lyrics, driving guitars, and hyper-infectious choruses." He also noted that "singer Tom Barnes has a distinctively cracked lyrical style, and in an ideal world, it’d make him a star." [2]

In 1998 the group disbanded and their final full-length, Flies and Death n' Stuff was released posthumously in 1998 on Wingnut Records.

Engine 88 reunited for a performance at Bottom of the Hill in San Francisco on October 27, 2006, to celebrate the release of their friends’ book Every Day Is Saturday by photographer Peter Ellenby. [3]

At the prompting of Jawbreaker, Engine 88 agreed to reunite for an appearance at Chicago's Riot Fest on September 17, 2017. [4]

Where are they now?

Singer Tom Barnes released a CD entitled Three Day Ditties, which abandoned the louder rock sound of Engine 88, in favor of a more soft rock sound similar to that of his former project, Sordid Humor. His songs have gained a cult following and have been covered live by the band Counting Crows.

In August 2024, Barnes released Last Ride of Mercury Man to streaming formats. [5]

Guitarist Damon Wood is now a software engineer at Pandora performing in a Pretenders tribute band, Message of Love, and in an R&B cover band, Curtis Bumpy, in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Bassist Eric Knight works at UC Berkeley and trains and coaches martial arts at SBG NorCal.

Drummer, Dave Hawkins, opened a popular movie rental store, Lost Weekend Video, in San Francisco, with Christy Colcord, who previously booked European tours for many US punk bands (including Green Day), and Adam Pfahler of Jawbreaker.

Band members

Albums

TitleAlbum details
Clean Your Room

Released: June 6, 1995
Label: Caroline Records
Formats: LP, CD

Snowman

Released: January 14, 1997
Label: Caroline Records
Formats: CD

Singles

TitleSingle details
Funny Car

Released: 1993
Label: Shut Up and Drive
Formats: 7-inch

20 / She Breaks a Bottle

Released: 1994
Label: No Life Records
Formats: 7-inch

Robots Are Real – Split w/ American Sensei

Released: 1995
Label: Hep-Cat
Formats: 7-inch

Funny Car – Split w/ Sincola

Released: 1996
Label: Caroline Records
Formats: 7-inch

Seconal

Released: 1997
Label: Caroline Records
Formats: 7-inch

Manclub

Released: 1997
Label: Caroline Records
Formats: 7-inch

Samplers / Various Artists

SongCompilationFormatLabelYear
GTOVarious – Germ's Choice '94CD, Compilation911 Records1994
SpinachVarious – CMJ New Music Monthly Volume 23 July 1995CD, Compilation, PromoCollege Music Journal1995
SpinachVarious – Caroline Records' Bowling Team SamplerCD, Compilation, Promo Caroline Records 1995
MangosVarious – hu H (CD 8)CD, CompilationHuh Music Service1995
MangosVarious – Babe, You're No. 1CD, Compilation, PromoHits1995
SpinachVarious – CMJ Music Sampler – HookedCD, Compilation, PromoSony Music Publishing1995
MangosVarious – Indie-Gestion 9CD, Album, CompilationAlternative Press1995
SeconalVarious – How Low Can A Punk Get?CD, Compilation, Promo, SamplerCaroline Records1996
Funny CarVarious – Wild Promotions Compilation Volume 2CD, Compilation, Promo, SamplerWild1996
ManclubVarious – Live 105 10 Year Anniversary: 1986–1996CD, CompilationLive 1051996
SeconalVarious – Killing Cuts 1CD, Compilation, CardsleeveMetal Hammer1997
ManclubVarious – Virtually Alternative 772×CD, Compilation, PromoThe Album Network1997
BallerinaVarious – Vital Distribution At London Music WeekCD, Compilation, PromoVital1997
FireVarious – Blind Herd Of Sheep: A Compilation Of Berkeley High Bands]]CD, CompilationEl Sabado Records1999
Get OffVarious – For Callum2×CD, CompilationCatlick Records / The Cultural Society / Letterbox2007
MangosVarious – Virtually Alternative 602×CD, Compilation, PromoThe Album NetworkUnknown

References

  1. ↑ "CMJ Radio Top 150: 8.21.95" (PDF). WorldRadioHistory.com. August 21, 1995. Retrieved November 4, 2025.
  2. ↑ Thompson, Stephen (March 29, 2002). "Engine 88: Snowman". The A.V. Club. Onion, Inc. Retrieved November 4, 2025.
  3. ↑ "Video Title (if known)". YouTube. Retrieved November 4, 2025.
  4. ↑ "Video Title (if known)". YouTube. Retrieved November 4, 2025.
  5. ↑ "1000 Years". Amazon.com. Retrieved November 4, 2025.
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