Sweep the Leg Johnny
Encyclopedia
Sweep the Leg Johnny was a Chicago
-based math rock
band in existence from 1996 till 2002. The name is a reference to a line in the film The Karate Kid.
Sweep the Leg Johnny was fronted by alto saxophonist
and vocalist Steve Sostak, who formed the band after meeting guitarist Chris Daly while the two attended college at the University of Notre Dame
. The two relocated to Chicago after graduating, where they recruited drummer Scott Anna and bass guitarist Matt Alicea.
In 1997, the band released 4.9.21.30 on Divot Records. Following this, Matt Alicea left and was replaced by John Brady, formerly of Spanakorzo and Swing Kids
. The band then signed to Southern Records
for their second LP Tomorrow We Will Run Faster, released in 1999. Tomorrow... was mastered at Abbey Road Studios
in London
. Their third album Sto Cazzo (an obscenity in Italian
) followed in 2000.
Guitarist Mitch Cheney of Rumah Sakit
then joined the band for their final LP Going Down Swingin, released in 2002. The album featured re-recordings of older songs as well as new material.
After the breakup of the band, Steve Sostak and Chris Daly collaborated on a short lived band called Check Engine. Steve Sostak and John Brady also played in the band ZZZZ
, which released one album in 2005, Palm Reader. Chris Daly joined a group with members of June of 44
and Hoover
called Just A Fire, and currently plays in Haymarket Riot. Mitch Cheney is in a project called GREENESS. Sweep the Leg Johnny also briefly reformed for a benefit gig in Chicago near the end of 2005.
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
-based math rock
Math rock
Math rock is a rhythmically complex guitar-based style of experimental rock that emerged in the 1980s and that was very influenced by progressive rock like King Crimson, Frank Zappa, Henry Cow - and 20th century composers such as Steve Reich and John Cage...
band in existence from 1996 till 2002. The name is a reference to a line in the film The Karate Kid.
Sweep the Leg Johnny was fronted by alto saxophonist
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
and vocalist Steve Sostak, who formed the band after meeting guitarist Chris Daly while the two attended college at the University of Notre Dame
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
. The two relocated to Chicago after graduating, where they recruited drummer Scott Anna and bass guitarist Matt Alicea.
In 1997, the band released 4.9.21.30 on Divot Records. Following this, Matt Alicea left and was replaced by John Brady, formerly of Spanakorzo and Swing Kids
Swing Kids (band)
Swing Kids were a hardcore band from San Diego California during the mid 1990s. They were closely involved with and influenced by the forerunners of the San Diego hardcore punk scene of the 1990s....
. The band then signed to Southern Records
Southern Records
Southern Records is an independent record label closely associated with Crass Records, Corpus Christi Records and Dischord Records. It is based in London and previously had offices in Chicago , Le Havre and Berlin .Southern was originally a recording studio owned and operated by John Loder...
for their second LP Tomorrow We Will Run Faster, released in 1999. Tomorrow... was mastered at Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios is a recording studio located at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music company EMI, its present owner...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Their third album Sto Cazzo (an obscenity in Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
) followed in 2000.
Guitarist Mitch Cheney of Rumah Sakit
Rumah Sakit
Rumah Sakit was an instrumental rock band from San Francisco, California. The group was signed to Temporary Residence Limited. "Rumah sakit" means "hospital" in Indonesian .- Discography :* Rumah Sakit...
then joined the band for their final LP Going Down Swingin, released in 2002. The album featured re-recordings of older songs as well as new material.
After the breakup of the band, Steve Sostak and Chris Daly collaborated on a short lived band called Check Engine. Steve Sostak and John Brady also played in the band ZZZZ
Zzzz
Zzzz or ZZZZ may refer to:*ZZZZ, the four-letter ICAO airport code or ICAO aircraft type designators given in a flight plan, if the respective airport or aircraft hasn't one assigned on its own...
, which released one album in 2005, Palm Reader. Chris Daly joined a group with members of June of 44
June of 44
June of 44 was an American rock band which was formed in 1994 from ex-members of Rodan, Lungfish, Rex, and Hoover. The band's music is often described as 'math rock'. The band's name refers the period during which erotic fiction writers Henry Miller and Anaïs Nin corresponded.The band toured...
and Hoover
Hoover (band)
Hoover was an American post-hardcore band from Washington, DC. Formed in 1992, Hoover went on to produce some of the more intense music to appear on the Dischord Records label in the 1990s...
called Just A Fire, and currently plays in Haymarket Riot. Mitch Cheney is in a project called GREENESS. Sweep the Leg Johnny also briefly reformed for a benefit gig in Chicago near the end of 2005.
Discography
- 4.9.21.30 (1997)
- Tomorrow We Will Run Faster (1999)
- Sto Cazzo! (2000)
- Live September 9, 2000 (2000) - Live split with Rumah SakitRumah SakitRumah Sakit was an instrumental rock band from San Francisco, California. The group was signed to Temporary Residence Limited. "Rumah sakit" means "hospital" in Indonesian .- Discography :* Rumah Sakit...
- Going Down Swingin' (2002)
- Split 7" - Sweep the Leg Johnny: Walking Home on the Emergency Bed b/w A Minor Forest: Inter Continental
- Split 7" - Sweep the Leg Johnny: Mental Vehn Diagram b/w Cowpers: Torn Pieces/98 Slide
- Split 7" - Sweep the Leg Johnny: Transit Must Suffer b/w Biddy Biddy Biddy: We, the Artificial; Casket Lottery: Carmichaels and Carpikes; Trocar: J-Tech
- 7" - New Buffalo/Insomnia Pays/In the Shade of the House