Half Japanese is an American art punk band formed by brothers Jad and David Fair around 1975, sometime after the family's relocation to Uniontown, Maryland. Their original instrumentation included a small drum set, which they took turns playing; vocals; and an out-of-tune, distorted guitar. Both Fair brothers sang, although over time Jad moved into the frontman role. As of the last several releases since the 1990s, according to the album and CD credits, the band composes and plays the entirety of the music while Fair, eschewing his role as guitarist from earlier albums, plays almost no guitar but is responsible for the vocals and lyrics, which typically divide into either "love songs or monster songs." The band, still a vital "art punk" unit, has released six albums since 2014 with the same personnel that recorded Hot in 1993. Their last three releases, Why Not?, Invincible and Crazy Hearts have all received four-star reviews from the U.K. magazine, Record Collector, while New Yorker also praised the 2021 release, Crazy Hearts. The band members are John Sluggett (guitar), Gilles-Vincent Rieder (drums), Jason Willett (bass), Mick Hobbs (guitar), and Jad Fair.
Teenage Fanclub are a Scottish alternative rock band formed in Bellshill near Glasgow in 1989. The group were founded by Norman Blake, Raymond McGinley and Gerard Love, all of whom shared lead vocals and songwriting duties until Love's departure in 2018. As of 2019, the band's lineup consists of Blake, McGinley, Francis Macdonald, Dave McGowan and Euros Childs.
The Pastels are an indie rock group from Glasgow formed in 1981. They were a key act of the Scottish and British independent music scenes of the 1980s, and are specifically credited for the development of an independent and confident music scene in Glasgow. The group has had a number of members, but currently consists of Stephen McRobbie, Katrina Mitchell, Tom Crossley, John Hogarty, Alison Mitchell and Suse Bear.
Mitchell Blake Easter is a musician, songwriter, and record producer. Frequently associated with the jangle pop style of guitar music, he is known as producer of R.E.M.'s early albums from 1981 through 1984, and as frontman of the 1980s band Let's Active.
Black Tambourine was an American indie pop band and one of the earliest Slumberland groups of the early 1990s. Formed in Silver Spring, Maryland, the band comprised vocalist Pam Berry and instrumentalists Archie Moore, Brian Nelson and Mike Schulman. Along with Tiger Trap, Lois, Honeybunch, Tullycraft, and Beat Happening, they are considered to be one of the most influential bands of the American twee pop movement.
The Tyde are an American indie rock group. Tracing their roots to early 1990s LA indie band Further, formed by Darren Rademaker and brother Brent. The Tyde cite Felt, the Beach Boys and the Byrds as major influences. They are not to be confused with band from the Iowa in the late 1960s called the TYDE, known for songs such as "Psychedelic Pill" and "Lost".
Eugene Kelly is a Scottish musician who is a member of the group The Vaselines, a founding member of the now disbanded Eugenius and has had a number of solo releases.
Jad Fair is an American singer, guitarist, graphic artist, and founding member of lo-fi alternative rock group Half Japanese.
Parasol Records is an American independent record label based in Urbana, Illinois. The label was founded by Geoff Merritt as an outgrowth of the catalog Parasol Mail Order. The Parasol Records banner also includes the smaller labels associated with it, including Mud, Spur, Hidden Agenda and Galaxy Gramophone. The majority of Parasol's releases have been indie pop CD and 7" vinyl singles. Artists signed to Parasol Records include: 16 Tons, The 1900s, 7% Solution, Absinthe Blind, Acid House Kings, The Action, AK-Momo, Mark V. Bacino, Bikeride, Brian Leach, Bruno, Matt, Budgie Jacket, Busytoby, C-Clamp, Doleful Lions, Elsinore, Honcho Overload, Hot Glue Gun, Lanterna, The Moon Seven Times, Neilson Hubbard, Hum, Jack & the Beanstalk, Jenifer Jackson, Ryan Groff, Sugarbuzz and others.
Get Smart! is a three-piece post-punk band formed in Lawrence, Kansas, in 1980 consisting of Marcus Koch, Lisa Wertman Crowe and Frank Loose. The band released 2 studio albums along with some singles and EPs over a 10-year career. The band re-united in 2020.
Gumball was an American rock band formed in New York City in 1991. The original lineup consisted of Don Fleming, Eric Vermillion, and Jay Spiegel (drums). In 1992, a fourth member was added, Malcolm Riviera who had previously played with Fleming and Spiegel in the Velvet Monkeys.
Eugenius was an indie rock band from Glasgow, Scotland that existed from 1990–1998, centred on former Vaselines singer/guitarist Eugene Kelly and featuring members of BMX Bandits and Teenage Fanclub.
Donald Gene Fleming is an American musician and producer. Besides fronting a number of his own bands, Fleming has produced Sonic Youth, Screaming Trees, Teenage Fanclub and Hole.
Jim McGuinn, born James Slusarek, is an American radio personality. He served as program director of the now defunct Y100 100.3FM (1997–2005) and its predecessor, WDRE in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1995–97), both of which changed formats after being bought by Radio One. McGuinn also served as Program Director for KPNT (1994–95), St. Louis, and WEQX (1990–94), Manchester, Vermont, beginning his career in commercial radio as a DJ at WWRX (1988–90), Providence, following time at his college radio station, WPGU (1984–88), Champaign, Illinois.
Glass Records was a British independent record label which operated from 1981 to 1990, and was resurrected in 2015.
Honeybunch is an indie pop band from Providence, Rhode island formed in 1987 by future Velvet Crush member Jeffrey Underhill, releasing a string of records before splitting up in 1995. The band reformed in 2003.
Walkingseeds were an English alternative rock band, formed in 1986 in Liverpool.
The Subway Organization was a British independent record label founded in 1985 in Bristol by Martin Whitehead.
The Badgeman were a four-piece indie rock band from Salisbury, Wiltshire formed in 1988, although music journalist Pete Frame claims in his book Rockin Around Britain that the band hailed from Melksham. The band has been variously categorised as Alternative rock, shoegazing, indie rock, psychedelic rock, and post punk. The band released two albums on Paperhouse Records, and appeared on two compilation releases, along with artists such as Nirvana, Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth, Echo and The Bunnymen, and The Wedding Present.
Teenage Symphonies to God is the second album by the American power pop band Velvet Crush, released in 1994. The title of the album is a reference to Brian Wilson's description of the music he was creating for Smile. Teenage Symphonies to God had sold around 20,000 copies by the end of the 1990s.
