Paw (band)
Encyclopedia
Paw is a hard rock band from Lawrence
, Kansas
that formed in 1990. The band, in its original line-up, consisted of Mark Hennessy
(words & vocals), Grant Fitch (guitars), Charles Bryan (bass), and Peter Fitch (drums). To date, they have released 3 studio albums – Dragline
, Death to Traitors
, and Home Is a Strange Place
. The band has also released an album of covers and B-sides entitled Keep the Last Bullet for Yourself
. The band have been on supposed hiatus since 2000, but Mark, Grant and Jason reformed in 2008 for a number of shows.
' as Mark Hennessy explained in an MTV interview. They were hailed by many record companies as "the next Nirvana
" and a bidding war erupted to sign them. The band signed a three-album deal with A&M Records
during the height of the grunge
wave, and released their first album, Dragline
, in 1993. Their most well-known songs from this period included the singles "Lolita", "Jessie", "Couldn't Know", "The Bridge", and "Sleeping Bag" – all of which received moderate rotation on both the radio airwaves and on Headbanger's Ball, MTV's hard rock/heavy metal showcase. Paw toured the UK in 1993 supporting Tool
with Headswim
(months after Tool's UK support slot with Rage Against The Machine
), introducing the band to an audience outside of America. The band also recorded a session for BBC Radio 1
's rock show in 1994 (during which they played the Reading Festival), and the songs "Jessie", "Pansy", and "The Bridge" were featured in the 3DO, PC, Saturn and PlayStation versions of the video game Road Rash
.
In 1995, the band released their second album, Death to Traitors
, on A&M Records
. During this period, the band evolved by adding more instrumental and country elements to soften their hard rock edge. The band toured Europe and the UK in early 1995. While the album received favorable reviews from the press, sales quickly fizzled due to a lack of promotional support from the band's label. Paw was later dropped by A&M in 1996, before their contract was fulfilled.
In 1998, Grant Fitch and Peter Fitch formed the band Palomar
and released the album World Without Horses
. Paw still played together during this period, and released a full-length compilation of B-sides and rarities entitled Keep the Last Bullet for Yourself
on their own label, Outlaw Records.
In 2000, founding members Mark Hennessy and Grant Fitch signed Paw with Koch Records and released the mini-album Home Is a Strange Place
that same year. The new album incorporated a more pronounced "stripped-down" blues element to it.
In 2008, after being scheduled on the same bill between their post-Paw bands, Mark Hennessy and Grant Fitch mended their fences and played together on June 6, 2008 at the Revival Tent, Wakarusa Festival, Clinton Lake, Kansas. The performance included the songs "Couldn't Know," "Home Is a Strange Place," "Death to Traitors," "Sunflower," "Hope I Die Tonight" and "Dragline." The band played their first headlining reunion show in Lawrence, Kansas on Saturday, October 4, 2008 at The Bottleneck.
Grant Fitch (guitar) is currently playing and performing with Jason Jones (drums) in The New Franklin Panthers, in Lawrence, Kansas. The duo released its debut instrumental album "Hot Dogs Are Cool: In III Movements" on February 1, 2008.
Peter Fitch (drums) is currently playing and performing with Brian Conway (vocals & guitar) in Las Vegas, NV.
In 1997, Charles Bryan (bass) became "the fastest human in suborbital freefall reaching a mindblowing speed of 327 mph", is married, and has two children, Emma and Rocket.
Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence is the sixth largest city in the U.S. State of Kansas and the county seat of Douglas County. Located in northeastern Kansas, Lawrence is the anchor city of the Lawrence, Kansas, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Douglas County...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
that formed in 1990. The band, in its original line-up, consisted of Mark Hennessy
Mark Hennessy
Mark Hennessy is the vocalist for the Lawrence, Kansas band Paw, and he is a published poet.Hennessy moved to Lawrence when he was 17 years old. He went to the University of Kansas, but dropped out...
(words & vocals), Grant Fitch (guitars), Charles Bryan (bass), and Peter Fitch (drums). To date, they have released 3 studio albums – Dragline
Dragline (album)
Dragline is the debut album by the American grunge band Paw. It was released on May 4, 1993 through A&M Records. While the album was not a commercial success, it is generally considered among fans and critics to be the band's best album....
, Death to Traitors
Death to Traitors (album)
Death to Traitors is the second studio album by the American grunge band Paw. It was released in 1995 through A&M Records. While the album received favorable reviews from the press, sales quickly fizzled due to a lack of promotional support from the band's label...
, and Home Is a Strange Place
Home Is a Strange Place
Home Is a Strange Place is the third album by the American grunge band Paw. It was released on 22 August, 2000 through Koch International. The album is currently out of print. Paw disbanded shortly after the album's release...
. The band has also released an album of covers and B-sides entitled Keep the Last Bullet for Yourself
Keep the Last Bullet for Yourself
Keep the Last Bullet for Yourself is a compilation album by the American grunge band Paw. It was released in 1998 through the band's own record label, Outlaw Records. The record is a collection of covers and B-sides that the band had recorded over the years. The album was sold for a brief period...
. The band have been on supposed hiatus since 2000, but Mark, Grant and Jason reformed in 2008 for a number of shows.
History
Paw formed in 1990 in Lawrence, Kansas, alongside Kill Creek and Stick. Their work from this era can best be characterized as aggressive rock with melodic undertones, or 'Southern rockSouthern rock
Southern rock is a subgenre of rock music, and genre of Americana. It developed in the Southern United States from rock and roll, country music, and blues, and is focused generally on electric guitar and vocals...
' as Mark Hennessy explained in an MTV interview. They were hailed by many record companies as "the next Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
" and a bidding war erupted to sign them. The band signed a three-album deal with A&M Records
A&M Records
A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that operates under the mantle of its Interscope-Geffen-A&M division.-Beginnings:...
during the height of the grunge
Grunge
Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...
wave, and released their first album, Dragline
Dragline (album)
Dragline is the debut album by the American grunge band Paw. It was released on May 4, 1993 through A&M Records. While the album was not a commercial success, it is generally considered among fans and critics to be the band's best album....
, in 1993. Their most well-known songs from this period included the singles "Lolita", "Jessie", "Couldn't Know", "The Bridge", and "Sleeping Bag" – all of which received moderate rotation on both the radio airwaves and on Headbanger's Ball, MTV's hard rock/heavy metal showcase. Paw toured the UK in 1993 supporting Tool
Tool
A tool is a device that can be used to produce an item or achieve a task, but that is not consumed in the process. Informally the word is also used to describe a procedure or process with a specific purpose. Tools that are used in particular fields or activities may have different designations such...
with Headswim
Headswim
Headswim was an indie-rock band formed in Essex, England by Daniel Glendining and his brother Tom Glendining , along with their friends Clovis Taylor and Nick Watts . The band had previously been known as Blinder but changed their name in 1992.-History:The band’s early sound was influenced by...
(months after Tool's UK support slot with Rage Against The Machine
Rage Against the Machine
Rage Against the Machine is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1991, the group's line-up consists of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Commerford, guitarist Tom Morello and drummer Brad Wilk...
), introducing the band to an audience outside of America. The band also recorded a session for BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
's rock show in 1994 (during which they played the Reading Festival), and the songs "Jessie", "Pansy", and "The Bridge" were featured in the 3DO, PC, Saturn and PlayStation versions of the video game Road Rash
Road Rash
Road Rash is the name of a motorcycle-racing video game series by Electronic Arts, in which the player participates in violent illegal street races. The game was originally released for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis, but was ported to several other systems. Six different games were released from...
.
In 1995, the band released their second album, Death to Traitors
Death to Traitors (album)
Death to Traitors is the second studio album by the American grunge band Paw. It was released in 1995 through A&M Records. While the album received favorable reviews from the press, sales quickly fizzled due to a lack of promotional support from the band's label...
, on A&M Records
A&M Records
A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that operates under the mantle of its Interscope-Geffen-A&M division.-Beginnings:...
. During this period, the band evolved by adding more instrumental and country elements to soften their hard rock edge. The band toured Europe and the UK in early 1995. While the album received favorable reviews from the press, sales quickly fizzled due to a lack of promotional support from the band's label. Paw was later dropped by A&M in 1996, before their contract was fulfilled.
In 1998, Grant Fitch and Peter Fitch formed the band Palomar
Palomar (alternative rock band)
Palomar is an alternative rock band formed by three members of the band Paw. "The band sports a gentler and more melodic sound than Paw." They released one album, World Without Horses, in 1998....
and released the album World Without Horses
World Without Horses
World Without Horses is the only album by the band Palomar.-Track listing:#"Beggars Love Thieves" - 4:56#"Deer Park Road" – 4:24#"Pocketknife" - 4:49#"Substance of the Saints" – 4:58#"World Without my Soul" – 4:16#"Walk Into the Sky" - 2:57...
. Paw still played together during this period, and released a full-length compilation of B-sides and rarities entitled Keep the Last Bullet for Yourself
Keep the Last Bullet for Yourself
Keep the Last Bullet for Yourself is a compilation album by the American grunge band Paw. It was released in 1998 through the band's own record label, Outlaw Records. The record is a collection of covers and B-sides that the band had recorded over the years. The album was sold for a brief period...
on their own label, Outlaw Records.
In 2000, founding members Mark Hennessy and Grant Fitch signed Paw with Koch Records and released the mini-album Home Is a Strange Place
Home Is a Strange Place
Home Is a Strange Place is the third album by the American grunge band Paw. It was released on 22 August, 2000 through Koch International. The album is currently out of print. Paw disbanded shortly after the album's release...
that same year. The new album incorporated a more pronounced "stripped-down" blues element to it.
In 2008, after being scheduled on the same bill between their post-Paw bands, Mark Hennessy and Grant Fitch mended their fences and played together on June 6, 2008 at the Revival Tent, Wakarusa Festival, Clinton Lake, Kansas. The performance included the songs "Couldn't Know," "Home Is a Strange Place," "Death to Traitors," "Sunflower," "Hope I Die Tonight" and "Dragline." The band played their first headlining reunion show in Lawrence, Kansas on Saturday, October 4, 2008 at The Bottleneck.
Post-Paw Activities
Mark Hennessy's book of poetry Cue the Bedlam (More Desperate With Longing Than Want of Air) was published in December 2005 from Unholy Day Press. He shared vocals with Mike (bass, vocals & guitar), Justin Parr (drums), Brody Buster (guitar, harmonica & keys), Heather Lofflin (vocals & guitar), James Garvic (bass & guitar), and Kurt Nesbitt (bass) in The Diamond Heart Club in Lawrence, KS, from 2006-2007.Grant Fitch (guitar) is currently playing and performing with Jason Jones (drums) in The New Franklin Panthers, in Lawrence, Kansas. The duo released its debut instrumental album "Hot Dogs Are Cool: In III Movements" on February 1, 2008.
Peter Fitch (drums) is currently playing and performing with Brian Conway (vocals & guitar) in Las Vegas, NV.
In 1997, Charles Bryan (bass) became "the fastest human in suborbital freefall reaching a mindblowing speed of 327 mph", is married, and has two children, Emma and Rocket.
Members
- Mark Hennessy - vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
- Grant Fitch - GuitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
- Jason Magierowski - BassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
Studio albums
- DraglineDragline (album)Dragline is the debut album by the American grunge band Paw. It was released on May 4, 1993 through A&M Records. While the album was not a commercial success, it is generally considered among fans and critics to be the band's best album....
(1993) - Death to TraitorsDeath to Traitors (album)Death to Traitors is the second studio album by the American grunge band Paw. It was released in 1995 through A&M Records. While the album received favorable reviews from the press, sales quickly fizzled due to a lack of promotional support from the band's label...
(1995) - Home Is a Strange PlaceHome Is a Strange PlaceHome Is a Strange Place is the third album by the American grunge band Paw. It was released on 22 August, 2000 through Koch International. The album is currently out of print. Paw disbanded shortly after the album's release...
(2000)
Singles
- Lolita (Vinyl Single) 1992
- Sleeping Bag (Vinyl Single) 1992
- Sleeping Bag (CD Single) 1993
- Jessie (CD Single) 1993
- Couldn't Know (CD Single) 1993
- Surrender (CD Promo) 1994
- Hope I Die Tonight (CD Single, UK and US versions) 1995
- Traitors and Covers (Promo 5 track EP) 1995
- Seasoned Glove (Tour Promo CD) 1995
- Max the Silent (CD Promo) 1995