Horace Pinker
Encyclopedia
Horace Pinker is an American punk rock
band formed in 1991 in Tempe, Arizona
and currently based in Chicago, Illinois. They play an energetic, melodic form of pop-punk
, filled with catchy hooks and political lyrics, and are staunch supporters of independent music. Horace Pinker has played in more than 19 countries all over the world from Europe to Brazil to Australia, and continues to play punk rock clubs, halls, and basements for an all-ages crowd. They have played some of the biggest festivals on the European circuit, including the Dynamo Open Air in the Netherlands, Popkomm in Germany and Belgium’s Groezrock. Although some are quick to point out that they never achieved commercial success over the years or sell-out tours like so many of their peers, HP continues to defy the trends and release records with thoughtful lyrics and powerful music that cannot be pinned down to a simple category or genre.
Since their formation in Arizona, they have toured North America with Agent Orange, Jawbreaker, All Systems Go and have shared the stage with the likes of Green Day, Face To Face, Blink 182, The Offspring, and Jimmy Eat World (just to name a few). They have appeared on over 30 compilations around the world, 12 EP's (including a split with Face To Face and a EP on Fat Wreck Chords), plus the top-selling DVD video compilations Cinema Beer Nuts (Hopeless) and Punk Broadcast System (Coldfront). They have also appeared on television shows such as "Homicide: Life on the Streets" (NBC), "Orleans" (CBS) and "Party of Five" (FOX) and Comedy Central’s Roast of William Shatner.
They have toured the world relentlessly for the releases of Power Tools (Earwax/Justice), Burn Tempe To The Ground (Onefoot), Pop Culture Failure (Jump Up!/Victory), Copper Regret (Coldfront), Red-Eyed Regular (OffTime/Cargo), and 2005’s Texas One Ten on Thick Records. The album built on the critically acclaimed EP Copper Regret and their third full-length Pop Culture Failure, and featured the bands’ commitment to combine their trademark pop hooks with the buzz of a two-guitar attack.
Reviews of their most recent material have focused on HP’s “energetic style of punk that can be ear-grabbing at moments but genuinely aggressive and heartfelt at others”, “the band's classic, slightly-heavier-than-most pop-punk sound has persevered, and is stronger than ever”, “very smart music…that effortlessly eludes categorization by blurring the lines between a good half-dozen or so different genres” and “I recommend HP for anyone looking for a slightly heavier approach to pop-punk done the real way.”
2007 saw the release of “Carnival Nostalgia: 2000-2006” (Enemy One) in Brazil, a 20-track release that features select songs from their last four releases in addition to unreleased material from various studio sessions. The album was followed by a Brazilian tour in August/September as part of the Vans ZonaPunk Tour.
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band formed in 1991 in Tempe, Arizona
Tempe, Arizona
Tempe is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, USA, with the Census Bureau reporting a 2010 population of 161,719. The city is named after the Vale of Tempe in Greece. Tempe is located in the East Valley section of metropolitan Phoenix; it is bordered by Phoenix and Guadalupe on the west, Scottsdale...
and currently based in Chicago, Illinois. They play an energetic, melodic form of pop-punk
Pop punk
Pop punk is a fusion music genre that combines elements of punk rock with pop music, to varying degrees. Allmusic describes the genre as a strand of alternative rock, which typically merges pop melodies with speedy punk tempos, chord changes and loud guitars...
, filled with catchy hooks and political lyrics, and are staunch supporters of independent music. Horace Pinker has played in more than 19 countries all over the world from Europe to Brazil to Australia, and continues to play punk rock clubs, halls, and basements for an all-ages crowd. They have played some of the biggest festivals on the European circuit, including the Dynamo Open Air in the Netherlands, Popkomm in Germany and Belgium’s Groezrock. Although some are quick to point out that they never achieved commercial success over the years or sell-out tours like so many of their peers, HP continues to defy the trends and release records with thoughtful lyrics and powerful music that cannot be pinned down to a simple category or genre.
Since their formation in Arizona, they have toured North America with Agent Orange, Jawbreaker, All Systems Go and have shared the stage with the likes of Green Day, Face To Face, Blink 182, The Offspring, and Jimmy Eat World (just to name a few). They have appeared on over 30 compilations around the world, 12 EP's (including a split with Face To Face and a EP on Fat Wreck Chords), plus the top-selling DVD video compilations Cinema Beer Nuts (Hopeless) and Punk Broadcast System (Coldfront). They have also appeared on television shows such as "Homicide: Life on the Streets" (NBC), "Orleans" (CBS) and "Party of Five" (FOX) and Comedy Central’s Roast of William Shatner.
They have toured the world relentlessly for the releases of Power Tools (Earwax/Justice), Burn Tempe To The Ground (Onefoot), Pop Culture Failure (Jump Up!/Victory), Copper Regret (Coldfront), Red-Eyed Regular (OffTime/Cargo), and 2005’s Texas One Ten on Thick Records. The album built on the critically acclaimed EP Copper Regret and their third full-length Pop Culture Failure, and featured the bands’ commitment to combine their trademark pop hooks with the buzz of a two-guitar attack.
Reviews of their most recent material have focused on HP’s “energetic style of punk that can be ear-grabbing at moments but genuinely aggressive and heartfelt at others”, “the band's classic, slightly-heavier-than-most pop-punk sound has persevered, and is stronger than ever”, “very smart music…that effortlessly eludes categorization by blurring the lines between a good half-dozen or so different genres” and “I recommend HP for anyone looking for a slightly heavier approach to pop-punk done the real way.”
2007 saw the release of “Carnival Nostalgia: 2000-2006” (Enemy One) in Brazil, a 20-track release that features select songs from their last four releases in addition to unreleased material from various studio sessions. The album was followed by a Brazilian tour in August/September as part of the Vans ZonaPunk Tour.
Line up
- Current Members
- Greg Mytych - bass, vocals
- Bryan Jones - drums (founding member)
- Scott Eastman - guitar, vocals (founding member)
- Former Members
- Bill Ramsey - drums (founding member)
- Miguel Barron - bass (Deminer, Armchair Martian)
- Matt Arluck - guitar (Deminer, Sweet Cobra)
- Chris Bauermeister - bass (JawbreakerJawbreaker (band)Jawbreaker was an American punk rock band active from 1986 to 1996 and considered one of the most influential acts of the early-1990s emo movement...
) - Jesse Everhart - guitar
- Jonathan Richardson - guitar/bass (Early Day MinersEarly Day MinersEarly Day Miners are a band from southern Indiana, United States who released records on the Bloomington, Indiana based label Secretly Canadian. In September 2009 the band had released seven full-length records....
) - Gregg Dessen - bass
- Karl Eifrig - bass (Lynyrd's Innards, Mexican Cheerleader)
- Don Meehleis - guitar, vocals
- Jeff Dean - guitar (The Bomb, All Eyes West, Noise By Numbers)
Discography
- Full-lengths & EPs
- Powertools (1994, Earwax/Justice)
- Burn Tempe to the Ground (1996, Onefoot)
- Copper Regret (2000, Coldfront)
- Pop Culture Failure (2000, Jump Up!)
- Red-Eyed Regular (2003, OffTime)
- Texas One Ten (2005, ThickThick RecordsTHICK RECORDS is a Chicago based independent record label formed in 1994 by Detroit native Zak Einstein. Early label releases include influential albums from Chicago ska-punkers The Blue Meanies, Alton, IL’s Judge Nothing, and the Omaha based Commander Venus, whose members included Conor Oberst,...
) - Carnival Nostalgia: 2000-2006 (2007, Enemy One Records)
- Local State Inertia (2011, Arctic Rodeo Recordings)
- Seven-inches
- Big Ugly (1991, Earwax)
- Forty-Seven (1992, Earwax)
- Knives, Guns, & Ammo (1993, Rhetoric)
- Disposable comp (1994, Social Retard)
- Face to FaceFace to Face (punk band)Face to Face is an American pop punk band from Victorville, California formed in 1991 by frontman Trever Keith. Originally known as "Zero Tolerance", Keith had been the only constant member of the band during their years of touring and recording albums. The group was initially signed by Dr. Strange...
/Horace Pinker split (1994, Rhetoric) - DIY Polemic Machine (1995, Blurr)
- Selling Out the Scene (1995, Evade)
- Horace Pinker / Doc HopperDoc Hopper (band)Doc Hopper was an American punk band from Maine, and later Boston, Massachusetts who released material through Go-Kart Records and a number of smaller independent record labels throughout their career. A fixture at the MidEast in Cambridge, Mass...
split (1995, OffTime) - I Hate Horace Pinker (1995, Fat Wreck ChordsFat Wreck ChordsFat Wreck Chords is a San Francisco, California based independent record label, focused on punk rock. It was started by Fat Mike and his ex-wife, Erin, in 1990....
) - 80's Punk comp (1995, Suburban Zine)
- Live in New Zealand (1996, only 7 pressed)
- Horace Pinker Live (1997, V.M.L.)
- Numerous Compilations
Television
Horace Pinker songs were used in the following television programshttp://www.horacepinker.com/disc/discography.html:- OrleansOrleans (TV series)Orleans is a short lived American drama series that aired on CBS from January 7, 1997 through April 10, 1997. It ran for only 8 episodes. The series was said to be inspired by the experiences of creater producer Toni Graphia, who was the daughter of a Louisiana judge.-Synopsis:The show was...
, CBSCBSCBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
, 1997, song Switch from Powertools - Party Of FiveParty of FiveParty of Five is an American teen drama television series that aired on Fox for six seasons, from September 12, 1994, until May 3, 2000.Critically acclaimed, the show suffered from low ratings and after its first season was slated for cancellation...
, FOXFox Broadcasting CompanyFox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
, 1997, song 67 Cents from Powertools - Homicide: Life on the StreetHomicide: Life on the StreetHomicide: Life on the Street is an American police procedural television series chronicling the work of a fictional version of the Baltimore Homicide Unit. It ran for seven seasons on NBC from 1993 to 1999, and was succeeded by a TV movie, which also acted as the de-facto series finale...
, NBCNBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
, 1998, song First Everything from Powertools