Ninety Pound Wuss

Ninety Pound Wuss (aka 90 Lb. Wuss) was an experimental punk rock band from Port Angeles, Washington, USA that released three albums on Tooth & Nail Records. They were part of the Christian punk movement of the mid 1990s, yet as their religious content grew less pronounced, their sound would become more diverse.

History

Ninety Pound Wuss formed in Port Angeles, WA in 1994 with Jeff Suffering (vocals), John Himmelberger (guitar), Matt Nelson (bass), and Marty Martinez (drums).

They released their self-titled debut album on Tooth & Nail Records in 1995, recorded at Robert Lang Studios in Seattle, WA with producer Bob Moon. Yuri Ruley was the drum tech for the album, which featured a relatively straight-ahead punk rock sound, with some subtle pop punk influence scattered throughout. That influence would come to fruition on "Something Must Break", the album's most well-know song due to compilation appearances and a music video. The vast majority of the album's lyrics dealt with the Christian faith and frequently mentioned Christ or Jesus. However, songs like "A.S.D." and "Misplaced Society", with their lack of blatant religious context, would be a glimpse at the direction the band was heading, both lyrically and musically.

Ninety Pound Wuss released their sophomore effort, Where Meager Die Of Self Interest in late 1997, recorded and mixed by Babes in Toyland producer Tim Mac, and marked a notable change in the band's sound, with the music becoming much darker, more experimental, and bordering on thrash punk at times. The vocals would also become more frantic, aggressive, and inaudible, as compared to their debut, while the lyrics still maintained their beliefs with a newfound sense of maturity, as made evident on tracks like "Queen Maggot" and "Sick and You're Wrong". The album's writing and recording process would take place during a transitional time for the band, with the departure of guitarist John Himmelberger, replaced by mainstay, John Spalding. Due to this line-up change, both guitarists would appear on the album, albeit on separate tracks. Bassist Matt Nelson was also replaced with Dale Yob prior to recording. Where Meager Die Of Self Interest also marks the debut of Suffering using a keyboard, another hint at the direction the band would be taking next.

Their third album Short Hand Operation was released on April 22, 1999 and produced by Steve Kravac, known for his work with MxPx, Guttermouth, Union 13, and Blink-182, among others. Dale Yob was replaced with bassist Matt Johnson before recording began. The album marked another drastic shift in the band's ever changing experimental sound scape and would become their swan song. Although some tracks build on the keyboard playing of Suffering from the previous album, it's the guitar work of Spalding that truly becomes prominent, creating a geared, fast-paced album, aside from synth-heavy instrumental "It Seems So Far Away" and epic album closer "At The End Of It All". Ninety Pound Wuss broke up following the release of Short Hand Operation. At the time, Suffering referred to the album as "quite possibly ...the best record I'll ever record." [1] Explaining their breakup, Suffering said, "We had a rough tour and nobody wanted to continue playing in the Christian music industry." [2]

The band would issue one posthumous release, the live album Hierarchy Of Snakes, which primarily focused on material from Short Hand Operation and Where Meager Die Of Self Interest, all but ignoring the debut, with "Misplaced Society" being the lone exception. The release also included the Bauhaus cover "Double Dare" as well as the unreleased song "Dead End" and was limited to a pressing of only 1,000 copies.

Post activity

Suffering and Spalding went on to form Raft of Dead Monkeys with labelmate members of Roadside Monument, releasing their debut album Thoughlev on Burnout Records in 2001. Suffering would go on to front Suffering & the Hideous Thieves, along with contributing to Mars Hill Church in Seattle, WA.

Spalding was diagnosed with cancer sometime in 2004. He amassed a library of home recordings that, after his diagnosis, became a music project titled Loveland. Members of Seattle area bands Minus The Bear, Pretty Girls Make Graves, Botch, These Arms Are Snakes, Roadside Monument, The Blood Brothers, and others contributed to the yet-to-be release titled The Beautiful Truth. After a grueling four year battle against cancer, Spalding died on November 23, 2008.

Lineup

• Jeff Suffering - vocals, keyboards
• John Spalding - guitar
• Matt Johnson - bass
• Marty Martinez - drums

Former members

• John Himmelberger - guitar (1994-1997)
• Matt Nelson - bass (1994-1996)
• Dale Yob - bass (1997-1999)^[2]

Discography

• Ninety Pound Wuss (1995) Tooth & Nail Records
• Kick You Hard 5" (1996) Tooth & Nail Records
• Where Meager Die Of Self Interest (1997) Tooth & Nail Records
• Split 7" with The Captives (1998) Crash Records
• Short Hand Operation (1999) Tooth & Nail Records, Review: HM Magazine^[3]
• Hierarchy Of Snakes (2000) Tooth & Nail Records

References

External links

• Decapolis interview with Jeff Suffering
• SHZine interview with Jeff Suffering (June 2000)
• Song Lyrics
• Spalding death and Loveland project

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