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All Music Guide:
Something of a Chicago punk supergroup, Pegboy carried the torch for the city's classic post-hardcore sound into the '90s, albeit with a more straightforward, melodic approach. Founder and guitarist John Haggerty had been in the seminal Naked Raygun, while his brother, drummer Joe Haggerty, had played with Bloodsport and a later version of the Effigies. Vocalist Larry Damore and charter bassist Steve Saylors had both been in the Bhopal Stiffs, and teamed up with the Haggerty brothers in 1990, when all of their respective bands had given up the ghost (or were about to). Signing to Touch & Go subsidiary Quarterstick, Pegboy debuted that same year with the Three Chord Monte EP, then followed it in 1991 with their first full-length album, Strong Reaction. Later paired on a CD reissue, these two records bridged '90s punk-pop and seminal proto-alternative punkers like Hüsker Dü, Mission of Burma, and the aforementioned Naked Raygun. Following a tour with Social Distortion, Saylors left the band, owing to a new, less flexible day job. Chicago legend Steve Albini filled in for him on the 1993 EP Fore, after which the group settled on a permanent replacement in Pierre Kezdy, another ex-Naked Raygun member who'd started his career in another early Chicago punk outfit, Strike Under (his brother John also fronted the Effigies). Kezdy debuted on the 1994 album Earwig, which was followed by a split single with Kepone. Falling silent for a couple of years, Pegboy returned in 1997 with their third album, the Albini-engineered Cha Cha Damore. The group continued to perform live, but faced with diminishing career momentum, they elected to disband in 2000.
Wikipedia:
Pegboy is an American punk band from Chicago, Illinois with a relatively large cult following. They were founded in 1990 by John Haggerty (ex-guitarist for Naked Raygun), along with his brother Joe Haggerty (drums, formerly of The Effigies), Larry Damore (vocals/guitar), and Steve Saylors (bass). Both Damore and Saylors had been members of Chicago-based hardcore band Bhopal Stiffs, whose 1987 demo had been produced by John Haggerty. Pegboy's 1990 debut EP, "Three-Chord Monte", was also the first release by Quarterstick Records, an off shoot of Touch and Go Records. Steve Saylors dropped out in 1992 after job commitments prevented him from touring. Steve Albini, a longtime friend of the band, filled the bass slot on the "Fore" EP. Former Naked Raygun bassist Pierre Kezdy became the permanent bass player in 1994. After the reformation of Naked Raygun, Mike Thompson took over for Kezdy on bass.
Pegboy supposedly played a "farewell" show on New Year's Eve in 1999 but then denied that it was really a "farewell" show a few years later when they returned to live action.
Pegboy has been touring through the summer of 2009 with Face to Face (punk band) and Polar Bear Club.
Rise Against's Tim McIlrath, Alkaline Trio's Matt Skiba, as well as Shai Hulud's Matt Fox are big Pegboy fans.Cite error: There are <ref> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist}} template (see the help page).
Current members[edit]
Larry Damore — Vocals, Guitar (1990–present)Joe Haggerty — Drums (1990–present)John Haggerty — Guitar (1990–present)"Skinny" Mike Thompson — Bass (2007–present)Former Members[edit]
Steve Saylors — Bass (1990-1992)J. Robbins — Bass (1992, temporary replacement for the Social Distortion tour)Steve Albini — Bass (1993 — on Fore)Pierre Kezdy — Bass (1994-2007 )Cite error: There are <ref> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist}} template (see the help page).
Reception[edit]
"With roots in such seminal Chicago bands as Naked Raygun and Effigies, Pegboy sounds as if it would have been right at home during the punk upheaval of the late `70s." (Greg Kot, Chicago Tribune, 1991)"A barrage of industrial-strength noise from the North blasted through Liberty Lunch on Saturday, when the Jesus Lizard and Pegboy combined with Kepone for a galvanizing concert that brought their autumn tour to a close. All three record for Chicago's fiercely independent Touch and Go combine, which specializes in abrasive guitars over relentless rhythms and a minimum of melody." (Don McLeese, Austin American-Statesman, 1994)"The band has a knack for writing anthemic choruses in the tradition of guitarist John Haggerty`s former band, Naked Raygun."(Review of Strong Reaction, Greg Kot, Chicago Tribune, 1991)"This workmanlike band inherits the Chicago muscle 'n' melody tradition of Naked Raygun." (Review of Earwig, Greg Kot, Chicago Tribune, 1995)Cite error: There are <ref> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist}} template (see the help page).
