Yes, this may seem like an entirely random inclusion in the Glass Throat Recordings archive. However, it stands as a humble document of a brief but formative period in my life, one that proved meaningful for many reasons. What follows is a concise account, as everything took place within the span of roughly a year. I also encourage any former members to contribute or clarify details so this record can be as accurate and complete as possible. Some of you may be hearing this music for the first time - enjoy.
In 1996, while living in Williamsburg, Brooklyn (NYC), I started a band with Eric Cooper (guitar/vocals) shortly after his brief stint with Kiss It Goodbye. Eric and I were heavily inspired by many of our early to mid 1990s contemporaries, including Craw, Dazzling Killmen, Glazed Baby, Iceburn, Today Is the Day, and Zeni Geva, as well as labels such as Amphetamine Reptile Records and Skin Graft.
We began as a three-piece and recorded a rough demo with this original lineup. That demo was never publicly released. We rehearsed in Brooklyn at Coyote Studios, which is also where the demo was recorded. It’s worth noting that during this period, three of the four songs in our live set were newly written and did not yet have lyrics; consequently, they were not included on the demo. To my knowledge, many of these songs were also untitled, and I have no recollection of their lyrical content otherwise, I would have included that information here. Perhaps Eric may be able to provide further insight. Eventually, we lost our original drummer, Matt, who went on to join the percussive theater group STOMP!. He was replaced by Jim Paradise from Go! / Hell No, and we later added a second guitarist, Greg.
As for the band’s name, nothing was ever definitively agreed upon. The name remained a point of discussion between Eric and me, and if memory serves, we may have performed our only show without an official name. “Sons of Light” and “Belial” were both considered at various points. For the purposes of this document, however, I will refer to the band as The Wasp Factory, as it was initially proposed by Eric and feels most fitting given the sound.
Our sole performance took place as part of a large holiday matinee lineup that included:
ASSTROLAND
DISTRAUGHT
MOSES
PRY
SWEET DIESEL
There may have been additional acts, though I can’t recall them with certainty. The show was held at Z-Bar in NYC, located on Avenue A, on December 22, 1996.
In the end, it was an incredibly informative and meaningful year for me, and I’m deeply grateful that this moment in time was captured. I’ve often wondered how the band might have evolved and what we could have accomplished. Now, 30 years later, it’s remarkable to reflect on the many projects these members have been part of since, as well as those that came before. These include: Bad Powers, Blood of the Black Owl, Die 116, Go!, Hell No, Human Impact, Made Out of Babies, Moon Mourning Earth, Moses, Pigs, Pushman, STOMP!, The J.J. Paradise Players Club, The Kill Van Kull, and Unsane.
I’ve uploaded our only live performance to the Glass Throat Recordings YouTube channel here:
