Kill the Musicians
Encyclopedia
Released in 1995, Kill the Musicians was meant to serve as a "cleaning up" of loose ends after Screeching Weasel
Screeching Weasel
Screeching Weasel is an American punk rock band originally from Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1986 by Ben Weasel and John Jughead.Since their formation, Screeching Weasel have broken up and reformed numerous times with numerous line-up changes. Ben Weasel has been the only constant...

's breakup in 1994. The compilation collects demos, b-sides, vinyl-only EPs, and other various odds and ends the band had accumulated in their career from 1989 to 1994. It came on the heels of 1994's How to Make Enemies and Irritate People
How to Make Enemies and Irritate People
How to Make Enemies and Irritate People is the sixth studio album by the American punk rock band Screeching Weasel. It was released in 1994 through Lookout! Records. It was meant to be the band's last album. Shortly after the release of 1993's Anthem for a New Tomorrow, bassist/backing...

, which itself was a collection of the final songs the band had written prior to splitting up. The band would soon reform in 1996 and remain together again until 2000, when they disbanded for the last time. This collection was out of print for a short period until it was remastered and rereleased by Asian Man Records
Asian Man Records
Asian Man Records is a small, DIY record label run by Mike Park in Monte Sereno, California. Park started a record label and began releasing music in 1989 under the name Dill Records, with the Asian Man label established May 1996.-Artists:...

 in 2005.

Track listing

  1. "Kamala's Too Nice" (Weasel/Vapid) – 1:26
  2. "Punkhouse" (Weasel/Jughead) – 2:14
  3. "Fathead" (Weasel/Vapid/Jughead) – 1:16
  4. "Good Morning" (Weasel) – 2:16
  5. "I Need Therapy" (Weasel) – 1:21
  6. "I Think We're Alone Now" (R. Cordell) – 0:57
  7. "Something Wrong" (Screeching Weasel) – 1:50
  8. "This Bud's for Me" (Screeching Weasel) – 2:08
  9. "I Wanna Be a Homosexual" (Weasel/Jughead/Vapid) – 3:04
  10. "She's Giving Me the Creeps" (Weasel/Vapid) – 2:23
  11. "I Fall to Pieces" (H.Cochran/H. Howard) – 2:11
  12. "Celena" (Weasel) – 3:49
  13. "Radio Blast" (Weasel/Vapid) – 3:58
  14. "The Girl Next Door" (Weasel) – 3:12
  15. "Achtung" (Authorities) – 2:19
  16. "Judy Is a Punk" (Colvin/Cummings/Erdelyi/Hyman) – 1:21
  17. "Chainsaw" (Colvin/Cummings/Erdelyi/Hyman) – 1:55
  18. "Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue" (Colvin/Cummings/Erdelyi/Hyman) – 1:21
  19. "Havana Affair" (Colvin/Cummings/Erdelyi/Hyman) – 1:38
  20. "Soap Opera" (Weasel) – 2:37
  21. "Stab Stab Stab" (Weasel) – 3:00
  22. "Six A. M." (Weasel) – 2:16
  23. "Hey Suburbia" (Weasel/Jughead) – 2:46
  24. "The American Dream" (Weasel) – 0:39
  25. "Mary Was an Anarchist" (Weasel) – 3:15
  26. "Around on You" (Weasel/Vapid) – 2:50
  27. "Goodbye to You" (Weasel/Vapid) – 1:44
  28. "Veronica Hates Me" (live) (Weasel) – 3:02
  29. "I Can See Clearly" (live) (Johnny Nash) – 2:19
  30. "Supermarket Fantasy" (live) (Weasel) – 1:30
  31. "The Science of Myth" (live) (Weasel) – 2:14

Personnel

  • Ben Weasel
    Ben Weasel
    Ben Weasel is a punk rock musician, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of bands Screeching Weasel and The Riverdales...

     - vocals, guitar (tracks 1-8, 20-31)
  • Jughead
    John Pierson (musician)
    John Pierson, commonly known by the stage name "John Jughead" or simply "Jughead", founded the pop-punk band Screeching Weasel in Chicago, Illinois with Ben Weasel in 1986. He played guitar for the band until its disbanding in 2001...

     - guitar
  • Danny Vapid
    Dan Vapid
    Dan Schafer is a punk rock musician from Chicago, Illinois best known for his participation in Screeching Weasel, The Riverdales, The Methadones, and various other pop punk bands.-Generation Waste:...

     - backing vocals, bass (tracks 1-8, 16-31), guitar (tracks 9-15)
  • Dan Panic
    Dan Panic
    Dan Sullivan, also known as Dan Panic or Danny Panic, is a punk rock drummer from Chicago.-Career:Dan Sullivan began his musical career with Ivy League, a quartet from Chicago's western suburbs who released one 7" EP in 1990. He then joined Screeching Weasel in 1991 and remained with the band until...

     - drums (tracks 9-31)
  • Brian Vermin - drums (tracks 1-8)
  • Dave Naked - bass (tracks 9-11)
  • Johnny Personality - bass (tracks 12-15)

The songs

Although meant to collect all rare tracks, the compilation does not start with the band's first demo material. That would later be released on their second b-sides collection, 2000's Thank You Very Little
Thank You Very Little
Thank You Very Little is a compilation by Screeching Weasel. It contains b-sides, rarities, and a live show. The title was taken from a line in the movie Caddyshack...

 2xCD. Instead, Kill the Musicians starts with a 1989 demo version of "Kamala's Too Nice," the final version of which appeared on the 1991 LP My Brain Hurts
My Brain Hurts
My Brain Hurts is the third studio album by the American punk rock band Screeching Weasel. It was released in 1991 through Lookout! Records. It was the band's first album released through Lookout! Records. The album marked a very distinct stylistic shift...

. It was taken from a demo session that also included early versions of "Slogans" and "I Wanna Be A Homosexual," neither of which are included on this collection. "Homosexual" was left off since the second recording, which the band deemed better, followed later on the album. Both demos were later released on Thank You Very Little.

Tracks 2-7 were originally released on the Punkhouse
Punkhouse
Punkhouse was the debut EP by the American punk rock band Screeching Weasel. It was released in 1989 through Limited Potential Records. It was the band's first release on Limited Potential Records. It was also the band's first release to feature Danny Vapid on bass . It was also the only...

 EP in 1989, recorded that spring. It contained five original songs as well as a cover of "I Think We're Alone Now" by Tommy James
Tommy James
Tommy James is an American pop-rock musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer, best known as leader of the 1960s rock band Tommy James and the Shondells.-Early life and career:...

.
These songs mark the first Screeching Weasel
Screeching Weasel
Screeching Weasel is an American punk rock band originally from Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1986 by Ben Weasel and John Jughead.Since their formation, Screeching Weasel have broken up and reformed numerous times with numerous line-up changes. Ben Weasel has been the only constant...

 recording that Danny Vapid
Dan Vapid
Dan Schafer is a punk rock musician from Chicago, Illinois best known for his participation in Screeching Weasel, The Riverdales, The Methadones, and various other pop punk bands.-Generation Waste:...

 (then known as Sewercap) played on. The songs are rougher than the more pop-based sound the band came to be known for, but still had a very noticeable melodic quality. The entire EP was recorded without Jughead's guitar. When he overdubbed his tracks, the band was getting impatient and made him hurry, resulting in no one noticing that his guitar was out of tune with the rest of the guitars on the recording. Ben has called this EP his "least favorite Weasel release", but it is held in fairly high regard by fans of the band's earlier material.

"This Bud's For Me" was recorded for a compilation entitled They Don't Get Paid, They Don't Get Laid, But Boy, Do They Work Hard on Maximumrocknroll Records. The band had been told to "keep with the theme" of the record, so they intentionally wrote a fast, angry song as a bit of a parody. After this recording, Danny Vapid and Brian Vermin left the band, causing the first breakup of Screeching Weasel.

Tracks 9-11 are outtakes from the My Brain Hurts
My Brain Hurts
My Brain Hurts is the third studio album by the American punk rock band Screeching Weasel. It was released in 1991 through Lookout! Records. It was the band's first album released through Lookout! Records. The album marked a very distinct stylistic shift...

 recording session. One is a re-recording of "I Wanna Be A Homosexual" with different lyrics and a tighter performance. "She's Giving Me the Creeps" is described by Ben Weasel as "an anti-hippie song," mocking women who fall into the stereotype of the feminist who rages against all men. The last is a cover of Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline , born Virginia Patterson Hensley in Gore, Virginia, was an American country music singer who enjoyed pop music crossover success during the era of the Nashville sound in the early 1960s...

, done in a very different style than any other song the band had recorded up to that point. It's much closer to the original, country style of music than Weasel's brand of pop punk that had emerged at this stage. These three songs were released as the Pervo Devo
Pervo Devo
Pervo Devo is a 1991 EP by the punk rock band Screeching Weasel. It consists of songs that were recorded for My Brain Hurts but were left off the album. The EP was originally included with the final issue of "Teen Punks in Heat", a sex-themed 'zine penned by Ben Weasel. There were two pressing of...

 EP, which is long out of print.

"Celena" was originally demoed for the Wiggle
Wiggle (album)
Wiggle is the fourth studio album by the American punk rock band Screeching Weasel. It was released in 1993 through Lookout! Records. Their previous album, My Brain Hurts, had seen a sharp rise in the band's popularity and a shift in sound towards mid-tempo pop songs. With Wiggle, the band shifted...

 record, but never selected to be re-recorded for the album itself. It was tracked at the same time as "Going Home," which eventually found a release on the CD and CD reissue versions of the album. "Celena" was released on a 12" compilation called It's A Punk Thing, You Wouldn't Understand on Shakefork Records. Ben has gone on record stating his dislike for the song, but cedes that Aaron Cometbus
Aaron Cometbus
Aaron Elliott , better known as Aaron Cometbus, is an American drummer, lyricist, self-described "punk anthropologist," novelist, and author of punk rock zine Cometbus.-Personal life:...

 (from Crimpshrine
Crimpshrine
Crimpshrine was an American punk rock band from Berkeley, California. The group was formed in 1982 by Aaron Cometbus, founder of the seminal punk rock zine Cometbus, and a friend, Jeff Ott. Within D.I.Y...

), who he co-wrote "Going Home" with, thought it was the best song the band had ever written. This demo session was manned by Steve Albini
Steve Albini
Steven Frank Albini is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, audio engineer and music journalist. He was a member of Big Black, Rapeman, and Flour, and is currently a member of Shellac...

, as well as Eric Spicer of the band Naked Raygun
Naked Raygun
Naked Raygun is a Chicago-based punk rock group. Initially active from 1980 to about 1992, Naked Raygun had several short-lived reunions afterwards and a full-time reformation in 2006....

.

"Radio Blast" and "The Girl Next Door" were the A and B sides, respectively, of the Radio Blast
Radio Blast
Radio Blast is a single by Chicago-based pop punk bandScreeching Weasel. The lineup for this single is the same as their 1992 album, Wiggle. 2000 copies were initially pressed on Underdog Records. A later repress came out on burgundy colored vinyl and had a sticker on the sleeve that proclaimed...

 7" EP released on Underdog Records. These songs were recorded during the sessions for Wiggle
Wiggle (album)
Wiggle is the fourth studio album by the American punk rock band Screeching Weasel. It was released in 1993 through Lookout! Records. Their previous album, My Brain Hurts, had seen a sharp rise in the band's popularity and a shift in sound towards mid-tempo pop songs. With Wiggle, the band shifted...

, but were deemed too weak for inclusion on the album. The A-side is a vicious attack on the state of rock radio. Side B is the sad story of a girl who cannot find love and ends up committing suicide. "The Girl Next Door" was covered by Blink-182
Blink-182
Blink-182 is an American rock band consisting of vocalist and bass guitarist Mark Hoppus, vocalist and guitarist Tom DeLonge, and drummer Travis Barker. They have sold over 27 million albums worldwide since forming in Poway, California in 1992...

 in 1993 on their first demo album, Buddha
Buddha (album)
Buddha is the third and final demo by the American punk rock band Blink-182. It was self-produced by the band, and was released in 1993 through Filter Records. It contains songs from Blink-182’s earlier demos and from their debut album Cheshire Cat. The album was one of the few Blink-182 albums...

. When Blink later gained fame and fortune, the song appeared on a CD repress of the album.

Also recorded at this time was a cover of the Authorities' song "Achtung." It was meant for an Authorities tribute album which was never released.

In 1992, the band covered the entire first album by The Ramones
Ramones
The Ramones were an American rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first punk rock group...

 for a vinyl-only release. Four songs from this were selected for inclusion on this compilation. At the time, the cover LP was out of print. It has since been rereleased on CD on Panic Button Records in its entireity as Beat Is on the Brat
Beat is on the Brat
Beat is on the Brat is a CD compilation of out of print and vinyl-only material from Screeching Weasel. The majority of the CD contains their cover of the first album by The Ramones in its entirety. The band was approached to cover the album at a party for the completion of their fourth album,...

.

"Soap Opera" and "Stab Stab Stab" were also recorded at the same time as the covers. "Soap Opera" was originally released on a 10" compilation by Skullduggery Records called Fallen Upon Deaf Ears, and "Stab" found a home alongside the Albini demo of "Going Home" on a split EP with the Pink Lincolns
Pink Lincolns
The Pink Lincolns are a punk rock band formed in Tampa, Florida in 1986 by vocalist Chris Barrows and guitarist Dorsey Martin. The rest of the lineup has frequently changed and currently includes bassist Kevin Coss and drummer Jeff Fox. The band has released five studio albums and six EP's as well...

. Weasel later called "Soap Opera" an attempt to parody the songwriting style of NOFX
NOFX
NOFX is an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California .The band was formed in 1983 by vocalist/bassist Fat Mike and guitarist Eric Melvin. Drummer Erik Sandin joined NOFX shortly after. In 1991 El Hefe joined to play lead guitar and trumpet, rounding out the current line-up...

, since his vocals had been repeatedly compared to their singer, Fat Mike. The two would later sing together on "Peter Brady" on the Anthem for a New Tomorrow
Anthem for a New Tomorrow
- Personnel :* Ben Weasel - lead vocals, guitar* Jughead - guitar* Danny Vapid - bass, backing vocals* Danny Panic - drums* Fat Mike - backing vocals on "Peter Brady"* Blake Schwarzenbach - backing vocals on "A New Tomorrow"...

 album, letting listeners decide for themselves how alike their voices are. "Stab" is much darker than most Screeching Weasel material, and Ben has noted that he considers it one of the best songs he's ever penned.

After the band's 1993 tour with The Queers
The Queers
The Queers are a punk band formed in 1981 by Portsmouth, New Hampshire native Joe King . The band originally broke up in 1984, but reformed with Joe Queer and a new line-up in 1986. In 1990, the band signed with Shakin' Street Records and released their first album Grow Up...

, they recorded eight new songs. Two were released on a split 7"/CD with Born Against
Born Against
Born Against was an American hardcore punk band from New York active between 1989–1993. In addition to their radical leftist politics, the group espoused a DIY punk message and challenged what they perceived as problematic within the punk subculture of their time.-History:The group was founded in...

 and were not included on this compilation, as that release was still in print at the time. "Six A.M." is a trademark Screeching Weasel love song, and has the distinction of being the only song Ben Weasel ever wrote while driving a car, keeping it in his head for hours until he could play it. This rerecording of "Hey Suburbia" featured a new ending that the band had been playing live since 1989. The new ending is a bit longer than the ending that appears on the original release of the song on Boogadaboogadaboogada!
Boogadaboogadaboogada!
-Personnel:* Ben Weasel - lead vocals, guitar* Jughead - guitar, backing vocals* Fish - bass* Steve Cheese - drums-Release variations:* The first 200 copies of the original pressing on Roadkill Records included an insert which featured pictures of the band bowling naked.* Roadkill Records...

 and concludes with Weasel and Vapid harmonizing on the phrase "shut up" repeatedly.

Tracks 24-27, recorded at the same session in 1993, were released as a 7" EP entitled You Broke My Fucking Heart
You Broke My Fucking Heart
You Broke My Fucking Heart is a 4 song EP by Screeching Weasel, written and released around the time of their Anthem for a New Tomorrow album. It features the same lineup as that LP, and represents a time in the band's career considered to be their peak by many fans . The EP was originally...

. Ben has written that he considers this to be some of their best material. It contains two Weasel-penned songs, both with a slight political slant. "The American Dream" is a short, sarcastic take on the ideal nation many citizens imagine the United States to be. It makes its point extremely clear with only six lines of lyrics. "Mary Was An Anarchist" is one of Weasel's finest storytelling songs, chronicling the life of a young girl who protests sexism and "throws a rock at a cop" as a teen, yet ends up a lonely housewife just like her mother by the time she hits adulthood. The song is a brilliant exploration of the effect political extremism can have on impressionable young people. The other two songs, co-written with bassist, backing vocalist, and longtime songwriting collaborator Danny Vapid, focus on more personal themes. "Around on You" is reminiscent of 50s pop songs more than the snotty punk the band was sometimes known for, and contains some of the finest vocal harmonizing the band had ever committed to tape. Both Weasel and Vapid have commented that they feel it's one of the very best songs they ever collaborated on. "Goodbye To You" is a fitting end for the EP, and was the band's set closer for most live shows in 1993.

The final four tracks on this collection are live versions of classic Weasel tunes. They were taken from a show in 1993 at 924 Gilman Street
924 Gilman Street
924 Gilman Street is an all-ages, not for profit, collectively organized music club usually referred to by its fans simply as "The Gilman." It is located in the West Berkeley area of Berkeley, California about a mile and a half west of the North Berkeley BART station and a quarter-mile west of San...

 in Berkeley, CA. During "Veronica Hates Me," there is a noticeable moment when Ben's vocals cut out, caused by cream pies tossed at the band by Tim Yohannan
Tim Yohannan
Tim Yohannan, born August 15, 1945, died April 3, 1998 in San Francisco, California of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, was the founder of Maximum Rocknroll , a radio show and zine documenting the punk scene around the world...

 and friends. Many songs were omitted from this compilation, and many more b-sides were to be written and recorded when the band reformed in 1996, resulting in a two-disc collection in 2000 called Thank You Very Little.

Liner

  • According to the original liner notes, the cover art was originally intended as the cover of My Brain Hurts
    My Brain Hurts
    My Brain Hurts is the third studio album by the American punk rock band Screeching Weasel. It was released in 1991 through Lookout! Records. It was the band's first album released through Lookout! Records. The album marked a very distinct stylistic shift...

    , but Lookout! Records
    Lookout! Records
    -History:Larry Livermore and David Hayes formed the label in 1987. From the start, Lookout released punk rock records, but over time expanded its scope to include various types of pop rock, reggae fusion, acoustic rock, pop punk, and indie rock...

     wouldn't pay for a full color cover.
  • The original liner notes contained a detailed history of the band penned by Ben Weasel. These were omitted for the reissue on Asian Man Records
    Asian Man Records
    Asian Man Records is a small, DIY record label run by Mike Park in Monte Sereno, California. Park started a record label and began releasing music in 1989 under the name Dill Records, with the Asian Man label established May 1996.-Artists:...

    in favor of notes written by Mass Giorgina.
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