The Avengers are an American

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

band formed in 1977 in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

. The band recorded an EP, '' We Are the One'' (1977) and, after opening for the

Sex Pistols The Sex Pistols are an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they became culturally influential in popular music. The band initiated the punk movement in the United Ki ...

, worked with Steve Jones, but had not released an album before breaking up in 1979. After the breakup an EP with the Steve Jones-produced songs was released (''The Avengers''), and later an album, ''Avengers'', in 1983. Their lead singer, Penelope Houston, is also a

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

singer who has a solo career. Since 1999 a number of other albums were released with studio and live tracks, and the band has come together for various occasions.

History

Early history

Drummer Danny Furious (Danny O'Brien) and guitarist Greg Ingraham decided to start a band, and Furious approached Penelope Houston to be their singer, who agreed. They finished their lineup with Jonathon Postal on bass, although he was replaced shortly after by Jimmy Wilsey. Their first release (and only release while the band was originally together) was '' We Are the One'', a three-song EP which was released on Dangerhouse Records in 1977. The Avengers opened for the

in San Francisco at their final show at

Winterland Winterland Arena (more commonly known as Winterland) was an ice skating rink and music venue in San Francisco, California, United States. The arena was located at the corner of Post Street and Steiner Street. It was converted for exclusive use ...

, which led to Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones producing a recording session for the band. In January 1979, Ingraham left the band and was replaced by Brad Kent, although the band only lasted a few more months until June 1979. An EP, titled ''Avengers'', was released on White Noise Records a few months after the band broke up, which included songs from the Steve Jones produced session. Houston went on to record as a solo artist. An album called ''

Avengers Avenger(s) or The Avenger(s) may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Marvel Comics universe * Avengers (comics), a team of superheroes **Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe), a central team of protagonist superheroes of "The Infinity Sag ...

'' (sometimes referred to as the ''Pink Album'', including by Houston herself) was released in 1983. It featured tracks recorded through the band's whole time together, and was compiled by drummer Danny Furious. The album was out-of-print for a long time due to being in "legal limbo", during which time Houston sold the album in

CD-R CD-R (Compact disc-recordable) is a digital media, digital optical disc data storage device, storage format. A CD-R disc is a compact disc that can only be Write once read many, written once and read arbitrarily many times. CD-R discs (CD-Rs) ...

format directly through her website. The album was re-released in 2010.

New releases and re-formation

In 1999, a

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one Performing arts#Performers, performer or by several performers. If the recordings are from ...

called '' Died for Your Sins'' was issued by

Lookout! Records Lookout Records (stylized as Lookout! Records) was an independent record label, initially based in Laytonville, California, and later in Berkeley, focusing on punk rock. Established in 1987, the label is best known for having released Operatio ...

. In addition to original unreleased studio recordings and live tracks, three tracks were newly recorded in 1999 by the scAvengers, featuring original members Houston and Ingraham with new members bassist Joel Reader (

The Mr. T Experience The Mr. T Experience (sometimes abbreviated MTX) is an American punk rock band formed in 1985 in Berkeley, California, United States. They have released eleven full-length albums along with numerous EPs and singles and have toured internationall ...

, The Plus Ones) and drummer Danny Panic (

Screeching Weasel Screeching Weasel is an American punk rock band consisting of Ben Weasel (vocals), Mike Kennerty (guitar), Mike Hunchback (guitar), Zach "Poutine" Brandner (bass) and Pierre Marche (drums) founded in 1986 by Ben Weasel and John Pierson (music ...

). To support the album, the scAvengers did a few shows. In 2003, a live album titled '' Zero Hour'' was released in Italy. The next year, '' The American in Me'' was released, featuring all of the tracks from ''Zero Hour'' plus four other unreleased studio recordings. Houston and Ingraham again joined with Reader and new drummer Luis Illades to perform some record release shows, and this lineup has performed sporadic live shows since. On July 16, 2006, Houston and Ingraham joined

Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. One of the key bands in the grunge, grunge movement of the early 1990s, Pearl Jam has outsold and outlasted many of its contemporaries from the early 1990s, ...

to perform "American in Me" at the Bill Graham Civic Center. By January 2017, they were recording in Berkeley with Robert Shimp.

Reception

* " The Avengers were one of the best punk bands. I’m proud that they’re from the Bay Area" (

Billie Joe Armstrong Billie Joe Armstrong (born February 17, 1972) is an American musician and actor. He is best known for being the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of the rock band Green Day, which he co-founded with Mike Dirnt in 1987. He is als ...

Green Day Green Day is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Rodeo, California, in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong and bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, with drummer Tré Cool joining in 1990. In 1994, their majo ...

) * "The Avengers, featuring singer Penelope Houston, helped lay the groundwork for political punk while giving the nascent musical form one of its first dynamic frontwomen. ( San Antonio Current)"

Members

Current

* Penelope Houston –

vocals Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...

(1977–79, 1999, 2004– ) *Greg Ingraham –

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

(1977–79, 1999, 2004– ) *Joel Reader –

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

(1999, 2004– ) *Luis Illades –

drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a ...

s (2004– )

*Danny Furious (Daniel O'Brien) – drums (1977–79) *Jonathan Postal – bass (1977) * Jimmy Wilsey – bass (1977–79) (died December 24, 2018) *Brad Kent – guitar (1979) (died February 3, 2016) * Danny Panic – drums (1999)

Discography

Compilation albums

* ''

'' (1983, CD Presents) – also issued as ''Cadillacs and Lincolns'' * '' Died for Your Sins'' (1999,

) * '' The American in Me'' (2004, DBK Works)

Live albums

*'' Zero Hour'' (2003, Get Back) *'' Live at Winterland 1978'' (2010, CD Presents)

EPs

* '' We Are the One'' (1977, Dangerhouse Records) * ''Avengers'' (1979, White Noise Records)

Singles

* "Paint it Black" b/w "Thin White Line" (1983, CD Presents) * "Teenage Rebel" b/w "Friends" (1995, Really Fast Records)

References

External links

Penelope Houston's official web sitePUNKCAST#1028
video of

CBGB CBGB was a New York City music club opened in 1973 by Hilly Kristal in the East Village, Manhattan, East Village in Manhattan, New York City. The club was previously a biker bar and before that was a dive bar. The letters ''CBGB'' were for ''Cou ...

show — September 8, 2006. {{DEFAULTSORT:Avengers Musical groups from San Francisco Punk rock groups from California Musical groups established in 1977 Musical groups disestablished in 1979 Musical groups reestablished in 1999 Musical groups reestablished in 2004 Musical quartets from California Dangerhouse Records artists