#justin trosper

[spilladabalia]

Unwound

[tokiowitch]

unwound: do something exciting (2016) by justin trosper

fun collection of raw clips from live performances of the band in a span of over a decade.

1991-2091

[scavengedluxury]

Unwound - Valentine Card

[sinceileftyoublog]

Unwound & Circuit des Yeux Live Show Review: 3/8, Thalia Hall, Chicago

BY JORDAN MAINZER

I can’t think of another way to say it: How lucky are we that Unwound decided to reunite? Mid-way through their incredible set Wednesday night at Thalia Hall, my friend (who had a spare last minute ticket) turned to me and remarked, ��I feel like this is the closest we’ll ever get to seeing Nirvana.” The comparison is apt. If Nirvana’s is one of if not the most acclaimed band of the 90′s, Unwound is an under-the-radar pick for the best; the A.V. Club named them as such 10 years ago. Over their decade of releasing music, the Washington-based band churned out seven records of post-hardcore classics, from debut Fake Train and sophomore album New Plastic Ideas to their final art rock masterpiece Leaves Turn Inside You, never straying from the DIY ethics they came to be known for.

Unwound broke up in 2002, as bassist Vern Rumsey’s alcoholism worsened, and serious efforts to reunite were hampered by his addiction as late as 2019. With Rumsey’s blessing, frontperson Justin Trosper and drummer Sara Lund rehearsed with bassist Jared Warren, who never got to tell Rumsey about the band’s intent to play shows before Rumsey’s death during COVID. But in an era when artists’ lives in between album release cycles are often displayed for the world to see, the combination of the pandemic and Unwound’s secrecy left the general public comparatively in the dust until last summer. On July 12, the band announced a reunion tour, revealing that they had practiced earlier that spring with the lineup of Trosper, Lund, Warren, and Nocturnal Habits guitarist/keyboardist Scott Seckington. In a statement proving the band’s ethos was as strong as ever, Trosper said, “Starting over again is a rebellious act against our failure.”

Indeed, Unwound’s music is often rebellious without sounding like our schema of rebellion, their dynamics and tight musicianship on display Wednesday night. “Envelope” deftly switched from loud to quiet and back. “Disappoint” burned into its climax. The one-two-three punch of “Valentine Card”, “Kantina”, and “Were Are and Was or Is”, presented in segue like on Fake Train, started as charging punk before expanding into instrumental post-rock, apropos for a band whose evolution in their recorded output was more sneaky than obvious. It’s hard to say, but I can’t say the band sounded much different than what I imagine they’d have sounded like with their original lineup, both members and numbers-wise. If anything, with four instrumentalists on stage, they were more rounded than sharp, all-encompassing and enrapturing.

A few songs prior to the band’s intermission (more bands need an intermission!), Lund asked, not taking for granted the band’s fanbase, “How many people drove far to get here?” At least 1/3 of the room shouted. She continued, “Thank you to young people. We need you.” It’s not just lip service. The band has been handpicking openers for their set, and Wednesday’s was none other than Circuit des Yeux, one and a half years removed from the release of their Matador debut -io. Their performance was the most expressive I’ve ever seen Haley Fohr. Her deep, booming, operatic voice was there as usual, as was her immaculate picking and strumming, but this time, she repeatedly pounded her chest in conjunction with Ashley Guerrero’s drums, primal in her utterances. Throughout the set, Fohr dragged around her microphone, emulated fainting spells, and danced, her stage presence matching the drama of her music. Longtime collaborator Whitney Johnson of Matchess distorted her viola to sound like an electric guitar on “Dogma” and used pedals to create an enormous sound. Though I was glad to hear -io songs live for the first time, Reaching For Indigo’s “Black Fly” was the unabashed highlight of the set. Fohr’s guitar was Crazy Horse-level distorted atop Guerrero’s drum rolls and tom-work and Johnson’s plucking. As Johnson’s viola took on fiddle-like timbres, the song could have passed for a Songs: Ohia jam.

After performing “Vanishing”, Fohr declared, “Happy International Women’s Day to Sara Lund.” With an all-female band, opening for punk legends who themselves supported radical feminist politics, it was the cherry on top of a night that a year prior nobody in the room would have ever expected, even the folks on stage. 

[lovesongforthedeadche]

*to the tune of corpse pose* Scose. Poise. Scose. Poise. Scose. Poise. Scose. Poise.

[capitalradio]

this song makes me insane

[noideamyguy]

Band Recommendations

Unwound are an American post-hardcore band based in Olympia, Washington, United States. They were formed in 1988 by Justin Trosper (guitars and vocals), Vern Rumsey (bass), and Brandt Sandeno (drums). The band existed from 1988 to June 1, 1991 as Giant Henry, until deciding to change their name to “Cygnus X-1” and then Unwound. Brandt Sandeno quit Unwound in 1992 and was replaced by Sara Lund. This lineup would remain in place until the band’s dissolution in 2002. The group was strongly associated with the label Kill Rock Stars throughout the 1990s. Unwound was sharply dissonant and angular, often resorting to unusual guitar tones, and associated with post-hardcore and noise rock. The band toured frequently, preferring “all ages” clubs and are noted for their strong DIY ethic. The group spawned numerous side projects.

In July 2022, Unwound announced reunion shows set for 2023, featuring Jared Warren of Melvins and Big Business on bass, replacing Vern Rumsey who sadly passed away in 2020.   http://www.unwoundarchive.com

[modernbutch]

No but seriously imagine it:

You're seeing Unwound on a concert. Everyone is having a great time. Unwound seem a little excited. "We have a surprise for you guys." Justin Trosper says. All of a sudden Drive Like Jehu come out and start singing "Hand Over Fist." When Rick Froberg gets to the chorus, someone else starts singing… "Goodnight my love remember me as you fall to sleep." Lights flash everywhere, and you see Unwound singing "Hand Over Fist" along with Drive Like Jehu, while Slint is singing "Washer". Everyone in the crowd is going wild and crying. Then, if things couldn't get any better, Bob Mould and Grant Hart walk onto stage and kiss, holding the gay flag.

[confield]

Underground rock guys that my friends and I like keep in little cages:

David Yow

Steve Albini

Justin Trosper

[rabbitechoes]

wanted to post more over here and had the idea to do lil reviews for albums from years past. i'm gonna try to post a review for this series, as the name suggests, every thursday!! this week we're taking a look at the phenomenal debut album from one of Washington's greatest bands: Fake Train by Unwound!!! also feel free to follow me on rate your music and twitter <3

Fake Train - Unwound

◇ release year: 1993 ◇ genres: post-hardcore, noise rock, emo

My experience with getting into Unwound's catalog is weird, but probably not that uncommon in this day and age. The first album of theirs I listened to was 2001's Leaves Turn Inside You, a sprawling, genre-bending double album which unbeknownst to me at the time was a big shift in the band's sound. I decided after a few months of revisiting and falling in love with that album to go back through their whole catalog. I went back to the start, their debut studio album Fake Train. Hearing this album for the first time was a wild experience. It was vastly different from Leaves, but you could already tell some of the pieces were being placed that would eventually form that record. However, the magnitude of their final album in no way undercuts how brilliant their work throughout the 90's is. Especially, Fake Train. Unwound would lean into the noise rock aspect of their sound throughout the decade, but they never sound as scrappy and lo-fi as they do on this record ever again. Everything here has an edge to it. It's such an exhilarating from the start with the opener "Dragnalus." Justin Trosper's dark plodding guitar builds up to make way for the other band members to form this noisy and raw, yet surprisingly rhythmic opener. I feel like the band's ear for really good rhythms is overlooked. It's even present here despite the lo-fi nature of everything. The song's subject matter is pretty standard for noise rock/emo, general apathy for one's surroundings. It's like a less violent version of "Kerosene" by Big Black. Trosper's vocals really add to it, his delivery hammering home the disinterest one can feel with life itself. It's a very strong way to start the album.

"Lucky Acid" has a lot more fire and opens with some screeching guitar feedback and features a likewise more fiery vocal performance. The song seems to be about going on a bad acid trip as well as suicidal ideations. Heavy stuff and the band reflect that musically. Sara Lund's drumming here is amazing, one of her strongest performances on the whole album. "Nervous Energy" has the band shifting into a bit of a post-punk sound intermittent between their big blasts of noise. I have to shout out Vern Rumsey's bass on this song, it's so good. Trosper's "YEAH's" on the track are a highlight of the whole album, it's as if he's throwing himself at the microphone. The centerpiece of the album is the three-track run of "Valentine Card," "Kantina," and "Were, Are and Was or Is." On my first listen to the album, this was where it all clicked. "Valentine Card" is one of the sharpest moments in the band's catalog. Every band member is firing on all cylinders. "Kantina" might be my favorite on the whole record. It sounds so overwhelming in the best way possible. One of those songs that makes you feel like everything around you is crumbling down. You get a small moment of levity as Trosper's muted, spoken-word vocals come in as the band starts ramping up into one of the most explosive moments in their discography. Trosper's strained delivery of the "WAIT, WAIT, WAIT, WAIT DON'T GOOOOOOO" lives in my head rent-free. The way he's almost battling with the other instruments to even be heard is almost heartbreaking, it really hits hard. This track flows seamlessly into "Were, Are and Was or Is," the only instrumental track on the record. It is perfectly placed on the album, providing a bit of a break from the intensity of the tracks before. The band would do more instrumental tracks in the future like "Abstraktions" on New Plastic Ideas and "Go to Dallas and Take a Left" on Repetition, but this still stands as one of the strongest. It also shows just how incredible the band sounds. "Honourosis" kinda flew under my radar after those three songs, but its greatness has been revealed to me over time. It's one of the softer moments on the record all things considered, but it's one of the strongest songs here lyrically. "Pure Pain Sugar" and "Gravity Slips," while good, are probably the weakest moments here. There's nothing wrong with either of them, but I just think the ideas in them were better executed in other places on the record. 

The album ends on a high note with the last three tracks. "Star Spangled Hell" sounds like how walking on hot pavement feels, but ... in a good way. I love how the guitar sounds here. "Ratbite" has the same scrappy energy as a lot of early punk songs. You could've told me it was from some random early 80's punk band's 12-minute EP and I would've believed you. "Feeling$ Real" is one of the more experimental tracks here and it ends the album on a blistering note. Ending with Trosper singing "THE WORLD STARTS COMING DOOOOWN" as the band's instrumentation matches that sentiment. Fake Train ranks among the strongest debut albums of all time. A great start for one of the most influential bands of the decade and one of the pillars of the post-hardcore scene. They would go on to make stronger records in the years following, but Fake Train remains an important listen.

listen here: Apple Music Spotify Bandcamp SoundCloud YouTube ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ thanks for reading <3

[poetessinthepit]

Justin Trosper just going to Alaska to work for the parks service- well, you can tell that dude wrote "Laugh Track".

[spilladabalia]

Unwound - Hexenzsene Live @ Off The Record, San Diego 1997

[cloudcollage]

[buellerismyfriend]

Unwound @ Club 8 1/2 - Fullerton, CA (1993)

[scavengedluxury]

Unwound - Valentine Card/Kantina/Were, Are and Was or Is.

[forkimified]

Unwound - Lifetime Achievement Award