Black Eyes was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...

band from

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, United States, that existed from August 2001 to March 2004, disbanding two months prior to the release of their second album, ''Cough''. Its members included Dan Caldas, Jacob Long, Mike Kanin, Daniel Martin-McCormick and Hugh McElroy.

History

Prior to releasing the first album, Black Eyes released a 2-song 7" EP and a split EP of "Someone Has His Fingers Broken" entitled "Have Been Murdered Again." Black Eyes' self-titled debut album was released on April 15, 2003, through

Dischord Records Dischord Records is a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label specializing in punk rock. The label is co-owned by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to release ''Minor Disturbance'' by their band The Teen Idle ...

. Most tracks featured the band's trademark dual vocals from bass guitarist Hugh McElroy and guitarist Daniel Martin-McCormick, as well as two full drum kits and the usage of horns and synthesizers. After extensive touring with

Q and Not U Q and Not U was a post-hardcore band from Washington, D.C., signed to Dischord Records. Members John Davis, Harris Klahr, Christopher Richards, and Matt Borlik formed the band in 1998. After Borlik's departure following the release of their firs ...

, the band broke up just before its second album, ''Cough'', was released on June 1, 2004, also through Dischord Records. For this album, the band incorporated frenzied

brass instrument A brass instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips. Brass instruments are also called labrosones or labrophones, from Latin a ...

s into its sound, pushing further into

free-jazz Free jazz is an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventions, such as regular tempos, tones, and chord changes. Musicians durin ...

territory. Black Eyes disbanded after a final show at The Black Cat in Washington, D.C. All of the band's former members have since moved on to pursue other projects, such as Ital, Earthen Sea, Marriage,

Hand Fed Babies A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala (which has two opposable thumbs on each " ...

Sentai In Japanese, is a military unit and may be literally translated as "squadron", " task force", " division (of ships)", "group" or "wing". The terms "regiment" and "flotilla", while sometimes used as translations of ''sentai'', are also used to ...

and Mi Ami. Hugh McElroy has become fully immersed in his

DIY "Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and semi ...

record label,

Ruffian Records A ruffian is a scoundrel, rascal or unprincipled, deceitful, and unreliable person. Ruffian may refer to: *Ruffian (horse) (1972–1975), a famous thoroughbred racehorse * ''Ruffian'' (film), a 2007 television movie about the racehorse *Ruffian ...

. On November 15, 2022, it was announced that the band would reunite for three shows in April 2023, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their debut album.

Black Eyes discography

''Black Eyes'' (2003) – track listing # "Someone Has His Fingers Broken" # "A Pack of Wolves" # "Yes, I Confess" # "On the Sacred Side" # "Nine" # "Speaking in Tongues" # "Deformative" # "King's Dominion" # "Day Turns Night" # "Letter to Raoul Peck" ''Cough'' (2004) – track listing # "Cough, Cough" # "Eternal Life" # "False Positive" # "Drums" # "Scrapes and Scratches" # "Fathers of Daughters" # "Holy of Holies" # "Commencement" # "Spring Into Winter" # "Another Country" # "Meditation" Shut Up, I Never - track listing # "Some Boys" # "Shut Up, I Never" # "Have Been Murdered Again"

References

External links

Reviews
Review of ''Black Eyes''
at

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog. Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...

Review of ''Cough''
at

Review of ''Black Eyes''
at

Dusted Reviews Dusted may refer to: * ''Dusted'' (Gin Blossoms album), 1989 * ''Dusted'' (Live Skull album), 1987 * ''Dusted'' (Skrew album), 1994 *Dusted (British band), the joint venture of Rollo & Mark Bates * Dusted (Canadian band), a Canadian indie rock band ...

Review of ''Cough''
at

American post-hardcore musical groups Dischord Records artists Musical groups from Washington, D.C. {{US-punk-band-stub