• Genre: Rock
• Active: '90s
• Major Members: Demian Johnston, Chris Jacobs, Andy Schmidt, Eric Reynolds, Peter Bagge

Biography

The Action Suits got their start in 1995, when roommates Eric Reynolds, Andy Schmidt, and cartoonist Al Columbia decided to play a show together at a Halloween party held by another cartoonist. Cans, scrap metal, chopsticks, and a saw horse made up the drum kit, while the guitar and bass shared the same amplifier. Fellow cartoonist Jeremy Eaton dressed up and danced while they performed, and by the time the whole affair was over with, Hate cartoonist Peter Bagge decided to take it up on himself to kick out Columbia and take his place behind the "kit." The combo somehow convinced four labels to pay for studio time for the group, despite never playing a live show, and Pigeonhed producer Steve Fisk agreed to produce these sessions for free. In the fall of 1996, all four labels ended up releasing singles from the band, although Sub Pop was originally going to release one of them before owner Jonathan Poneman threw the tape of the song across the room.

Bagge did the artwork, and the singles managed to sell over 10,000 copies once released in 1996. They performed all over town, making friends with a lot of the local talent, including members of Mudhoney, the Posies, Gas Huffer, and Chixdiggit. The Bay City Rollers offered them an opening spot at their Seattle stop, only to inform the band that they would be paid in tickets which could then be sold to their loved ones. They turned down the offer and instead played at a San Diego comic book convention. But, after a few more live shows, no labels really picked up on what they were doing, and Bagge's family asked him to return to drawing comic books. He left the group as they added guitarist Demian Johnston, and they managed to release a "split-MP3" with Ben Lee, featuring drummer Chris Jacobs. It was featured on Lee's website, but after that, the band quietly broke up, as Schmidt moved to California in 1999. ~ Bradley Torreano, All Music Guide

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