Thin White Rope
Formed in Sacramento, California, the band initially comprised Guy Kyser, Roger Kunkel, Kevin Stayhoder (ex True-West) and Frank French. "Exploring the Axis" was an exceptionally powerful debut album marked by Kyser's distinctive voice and ragged guitar style. "Red Sun" came from a later album (1988) titled "In the Spanish Cave". Despite limited commercial acceptance Thin White Rope continued to record interesting, if erratic, music and in 1991 released an album on Seattle's Sub Pop label.(from liner notes on "Americanism"-CD)
Thin White Rope disbanded in 1992. John von Feldt joined the Walkabouts for some time, and Jozef Becker played in the Loud Family, whom he had worked with several times before. Guy Kyser was reported to be involved in botanics. There were some efforts to get back into recording and performing, but it had to last until 2002, when he re-appeared with his new band, Mummydogs. Once again a strong and wonderful record, now spiced up with female vocals by his wife Johanna. But the TWR-ghost is still with them.
What they said about Thin White Rope:
Rolling Stone: TWR is part of a new breed of guitar bands with roots that extend through smart, crunching '70s renegates like Crazy Horse and Television to the bedrock of the Velvet Underground.
Melody Maker: TWR achieve a synthesis of cinema and pure alchemy. Only Neil Young has recently taken the electric guitar to such sensationally cathartic heights and come back to talk about it.
Spin: Kyser is one of the few on the alternative-rock scene who has a truly distinktive voice - loud and growly with a strangely emotional timbre, like an amplified Tom Waits.
Creem: Moody, haggard western melodies, wrenching at work... plus tales about edgy characters in the throes of desert madness whose love was so ill-conceived ad psychotic it could only be consumnated by murder set this band apart from so many others.
Melody Maker: Tension pulsed throngh the songs, pulling between beauty and terror, dank claustrophobia and limitless space, the coiled, trapped energy of the man's voice and the hurtling freefall of guitars. God, they were good.
(Collected by Frontier Records, Thank you Lisa!)
Discography
Roger Kunkel (g)
Jozef Becker (d)
Stephen Tesluk (b)
1987 Bottom Feeders Mini Album
1987 Moonhead
Roger Kunkel (g)
John von Feldt (b)
Jozef Becker (d)
1989 Red Sun
Roger Kunkel (g)
John von Feldt (b)
Matthew Abourezk (d)
1991 The Ruby Sea
1992 The One That Got Away
Roger Kunkel (g,b,v)
Robert Lloyd (k)
Kevin Staydohar(b)
Stephen Tesluk (b)
John Von Feldt (b)
Stooert Odom (b)
Frank French (d)
Jozef Becker (d)
Matthew Abourezk (d)
but Guy Kyser's comeback band:
Guy Kyser (v,g)
Johanna Kyser (v,k)
Cary Rodda (b)
Paul Takushi (d)