Fitted

Last updated
Fitted
Years active2017–present [1]
Labels ORG Music
Members

Fitted (stylized as FITTED) is an alternative rock band featuring Mike Watt (The Minutemen, Firehose), Graham Lewis (Wire), Matthew Simms (Wire), and Bob Lee (The Black Gang). [2] [3] Graham Lewis' Wire was one of the influences for Mike Watt's Minutemen. [4] [5]

Initially formed as a one-off group for Wire's Drill festival in Los Angeles, [2] [6] the four decided to record an album. [7]

Their debut album, First Fits , was recorded from 2017 to 2018 [8] with Lewis and Watt trading lead vocals. [6] The first single was "Training Pit Bulls for the Navy". [2] James Bennett of SLUG Magazine praised the album yet found it difficult to describe saying "Every track is an adventure, and every adventure is full of more twists and turns than could ever be reasonably anticipated." [9] Chattanooga Pulse described it as "a true joy of creation with expansive, genuinely stirring rock numbers". [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wire (band)</span> English rock band

Wire are an English rock band, formed in London in October 1976 by Colin Newman, Graham Lewis, Bruce Gilbert (guitar), George Gill and Robert Grey. They were originally associated with the punk rock scene, appearing on The Roxy London WC2 album, and were instrumental to the development of post-punk, while their debut album Pink Flag was influential for hardcore punk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kira Roessler</span> American musician

Kira Roessler is an American musician who was the bass guitarist for the influential hardcore punk band Black Flag from 1983 to 1985. Since the mid-1980s, she has been a member of the rock duo Dos with her ex-husband Mike Watt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Watt</span> American musician

Michael David Watt is an American bassist, vocalist and songwriter. He co-founded and played bass guitar for the rock bands Minutemen (1980–1985), Dos (1985–present), and Firehose (1986–1994). He began a solo career with the 1994 album Ball-Hog or Tugboat?, he has since released three additional solo albums, most recently in 2010 with Hyphenated-man. He is also the frontman for the supergroup Big Walnuts Yonder (2008–present), a member of the art rock group Banyan (1997–present) and is involved with several other musical projects. From 2003 until 2013, he was the bass guitarist for The Stooges.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Firehose (band)</span> American alternative rock band

Firehose was an American alternative rock band consisting of Mike Watt, Ed Crawford, and George Hurley (drums). They were initially active from 1986 to 1994, and briefly reunited in 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">D. Boon</span> American guitarist and singer (1958–1985)

Dennes Dale Boon was an American musician, best known as the guitarist, singer and songwriter of the punk rock trio Minutemen. He was born on April 1, 1958, in San Pedro, California, and formed Minutemen in 1980 with bassist Mike Watt and drummer George Hurley. Minutemen were known for their politically-charged lyrics and energetic, fast-paced music, and they released several influential records during their career. Boon died in an automobile accident on December 22, 1985, at the age of 27. Despite his early death, Boon's contributions to punk rock and independent music have been widely-recognized. He is remembered as an important figure in the history of these genres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Hurley</span> Drummer from America

George Hurley is a drummer noted for his work with Minutemen and fIREHOSE.

<i>Pink Flag</i> 1977 studio album by Wire

Pink Flag is the debut studio album by English rock band Wire. It was released in November 1977 by Harvest Records. The album gained Wire a cult following within independent and post-punk music upon its initial release, later growing to be highly influential on many other musicians.

<i>Double Nickels on the Dime</i> 1984 album by the Minutemen

Double Nickels on the Dime is the third album by American punk trio Minutemen, released on the California independent record label SST Records in 1984. A double album containing 45 songs, Double Nickels on the Dime combines elements of punk rock, funk, country, spoken word and jazz, and references a variety of themes, from the Vietnam War and racism in America, to working-class experience and linguistics.

<i>Paranoid Time</i> 1980 EP by Minutemen

Paranoid Time is the debut EP by American hardcore punk band Minutemen. It is also the second ever release by the SST record label, founded by Black Flag's Greg Ginn and Chuck Dukowski. The album cover is a drawing by the American artist Raymond Pettibon.

Unknown Instructors are an all-star improvisational rock outfit that features the former rhythm section of Minutemen and fIREHOSE, bassist Mike Watt and drummer George Hurley; Saccharine Trust members, guitarist Joe Baiza and vocalist Jack Brewer; and vocalist/saxophonist Dan McGuire. They have been described as "an all-star reunion of alumni from the SST stable of yore" and Henry Rollins called it a dream lineup.

<i>Contemplating the Engine Room</i> 1997 studio album by Mike Watt

Contemplating the Engine Room is a punk rock opera by Minutemen veteran Mike Watt. Released in 1997, the album is a punk rock song cycle that uses navy life as an extended metaphor for both Watt's family history and his first band, the Minutemen. The album was greeted with a positive response. The cover art features a picture of Watt's father in his Navy uniform.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Graham Lewis</span> British musician

Graham Lewis is an English musician.

<i>Project Mersh</i> 1985 EP by The Minutemen

Project: Mersh is the final extended play, or EP release from the American punk rock trio Minutemen. It is their penultimate release, before D. Boon's death later that year in an auto accident.

Joe Baiza is a punk rock and jazz guitarist whom Eugene Chadbourne cites as one of the most noteworthy guitarists to emerge from the Southern California punk rock milieu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minutemen (band)</span> American punk rock band

Minutemen were an American punk rock band formed in San Pedro, California, in 1980. Composed of guitarist/vocalist D. Boon, bassist/vocalist Mike Watt, and drummer George Hurley, Minutemen recorded four albums and eight EPs before Boon's death in an automobile accident in 1985; the band broke up shortly thereafter. They were noted in the California punk community for a philosophy of "jamming econo"—a sense of thriftiness reflected in their touring and short, tight songs, and for their eclectic style, drawing on hardcore punk, funk, jazz, and other sources.

Matthew Simms is an English guitarist best known for his work with the band Wire.

<i>"Ring Spiel" Tour 95</i> 2016 live album by Mike Watt

"Ring Spiel" Tour '95 is a live album by American musician Mike Watt, documenting his first solo tour after being a member of Minutemen and fIREHOSE in the 1980s and early '90s. Ring Spiel was recorded in 1995 and released in 2016. The album material is from the tour to accompany Watt's first solo album, Ball-Hog or Tugboat?.

<i>Dos y dos</i> 2011 studio album by dos

dos y dos is an experimental indie album, the fourth by the band dos and the first release in fifteen years by the band. It is a double bass guitar side project for Mike Watt and Kira Roessler. The two were married from 1987–1994.

Jumpstarted Plowhards is an alternative rock band featuring Mike Watt and Todd Congelliere.

<i>First Fits</i> 2019 studio album by Fitted

First Fits is the debut album by alternative rock band Fitted, featuring Mike Watt, Graham Lewis (Wire), Matthew Simms (Wire), Bob Lee.

References

  1. "Release Day Picks: November 8th New Album Highlights". JamBase . November 8, 2019. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 Pearis, Bill (August 21, 2019). "FITTED, ft. Mike Watt & members of Wire, share first single from debut LP". Brooklyn Vegan . Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  3. Gentile, John (23 August 2019). "Mike Watt and members of Wire form FITTED". Punknews.org. Archived from the original on October 22, 2019. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  4. 1 2 Paik, Ernie (December 11, 2019). "New Music From FITTED, galen tipton". Chattanooga Pulse . Retrieved January 18, 2020.
  5. Manchester, Guy (April 22, 2014). "Mike Watt On… Brother Mike Shares Words of Wisdom About Punk, The Minutemen, The Stooges and much more…". Louder Than War . Retrieved March 18, 2019.
  6. 1 2 Helman, Peter (August 21, 2019). "FITTED – "Training Pit Bulls For The Navy"". Stereogum . Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  7. Watt, Mike (April 7, 2017). "I got to be in FITTED..." Facebook . Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  8. Phillips, Marc (October 23, 2019). "Fitted, First Fits - The Vinyl Anachronist". Part-Time Audiophile. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  9. Bennett, James (November 21, 2019). "Review: FITTED – First Fits". SLUG Magazine . Retrieved November 23, 2019.