Guy Charles Picciotto ( ) (born September 17, 1965) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, musician, and producer from

Washington, DC. ) , 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, Na ...

He is best known as the guitarist and vocalist in

Fugazi Fugazi (; ) is an American post-hardcore band that formed in Washington, D.C., in 1986. The band consists of guitarists and vocalists Ian MacKaye and Guy Picciotto, bassist Joe Lally, and drummer Brendan Canty. They are noted for their sty ...

and Rites of Spring.

Career

Rites of Spring and early projects

Picciotto's career as a guitarist and vocalist began in 1984, with the group Rites of Spring. A part of the D.C.

post-hardcore Post-hardcore is a punk rock music genre that maintains the aggression and intensity of hardcore punk but emphasizes a greater degree of creative expression. It was initially inspired by post-punk and noise rock. Like post-punk, the term has be ...

scene, Rites of Spring increased the frenetic violence and visceral passion of hardcore while simultaneously experimenting with its compositional rules. Picciotto, as the band's lyricist, as well as singer and guitarist, shifted hardcore into intensely personal realms and, in doing so, is generally credited with creating

emo Emo is a rock music genre characterized by emotional, often confessional lyrics. It emerged as a style of and hardcore punk from the Washington D.C. hardcore punk scene, where it was known as emotional hardcore or emocore and pioneered b ...

. Picciotto's early musical resume includes the bands

Insurrection Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...

(1982) where he only played guitar,

One Last Wish One Last Wish was a short-lived post-hardcore band from Washington, D.C. It was formed in May 1986 by members of Rites of Spring, and split up in January 1987. Amidst the breakup of Rites of Spring in 1986, three of its four members – Picciott ...

(1986), Happy Go Licky (1987–1988), Brief Weeds (EPs released circa 1991–1992), and The Black Light Panthers (ongoing sporadic project since 1982), the last two bands both being projects with Brendan Canty. He created a record label called

Peterbilt Records Peterbilt Motors Company is an American truck manufacturer. Established in 1939 from the acquisition of Fageol Truck and Motor Company, Peterbilt specializes in the production of heavy-duty ( Class 8) and medium-duty (Classes 5–7) commercia ...

, which released limited-quantity

vinyl record A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove usually starts ne ...

albums for the bands Rain, Happy Go Licky, and Deadline, then years later was involved in releasing the album ''1986'' by One Last Wish, along with

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 Idles ...

Fugazi

Though not in the original lineup of

, Picciotto joined very early in the group's career, singing with them by their second show and appearing on all the band's studio recordings. From the ''

Repeater In telecommunications, a repeater is an electronic device that receives a signal and retransmits it. Repeaters are used to extend transmissions so that the signal can cover longer distances or be received on the other side of an obstruction. Som ...

'' album on, he took up second guitar duties, playing characteristically trebly

Rickenbacker Rickenbacker International Corporation is a string instrument manufacturer based in Santa Ana, California. The company is credited as the first known maker of electric guitars – a steel guitar in 1932 – and today produces a range ...

guitars. After seven albums and several tours, Fugazi went on "indefinite hiatus" in 2003.

Side projects and production work

Picciotto has collaborated and performed with

Mats Gustafsson Mats Olof Gustafsson (born 29 October 1964) is a Swedish free jazz saxophone player. Career Gustafsson came to the attention of lovers of improvised music as part of a duo with Christian Munthe (started in 1986), as member of Gunter Chri ...

, Vic Chesnutt, and members of the Ex among others. He has produced numerous albums including the

Gossip Gossip is idle talk or rumour, especially about the personal or private affairs of others; the act is also known as dishing or tattling. Gossip is a topic of research in evolutionary psychology, which has found gossip to be an important means ...

's breakthrough record ''

Standing in the Way of Control ''Standing in the Way of Control'' is the third studio album by American indie rock band Gossip, which was released on January 24, 2006. The album was produced by Guy Picciotto and Ryan Hadlock It reached number 1 on the UK indie chart and als ...

'' as well as

Blonde Redhead Blonde Redhead is an American alternative rock band composed of Kazu Makino (vocals, keys/rhythm guitar) and twin brothers Simone and Amedeo Pace (drums/keys and lead guitar/bass/keys/vocals, respectively) that formed in New York City in 1993. ...

's ''

Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons ''Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons'' is the fifth studio album by American alternative rock band Blonde Redhead. It was released on June 6, 2000 by Touch and Go Records. The album was recorded at Bear Creek Studio in Woodinville, and was produce ...

'' (2000) and ''

Misery Is a Butterfly ''Misery Is a Butterfly'' is the sixth studio album by American alternative rock band Blonde Redhead. The album was released on March 15, 2004 by 4AD. Much of the visual and lyrical imagery of the album is reflective of an accident in which lead ...

'' (2004), The Blood Brothers final album, '' Young Machetes,'' and Downtown Boys' ''Cost of Living'' (2017) as well as two records for The Casual Dots, their self-titled debut album and the follow-up Sanguine Truth 2022. Additionally, Picciotto has produced four albums by the duo Xylouris White: ''Goats'' (2014), ''Black Peak'' (2016), ''Mother'' (2018), and ''The Sisypheans'' (2019) Picciotto played on the Vic Chesnutt albums ''

North Star Deserter ''North Star Deserter'' is a 2007 album by Vic Chesnutt. The backing musicians on the album are Guy Picciotto (guitarist and vocalist for the groups Rites of Spring and Fugazi) and Canadian Post-rock band, A Silver Mt. Zion. It was released on Con ...

'' (2007) and ''

At the Cut ''At the Cut'' is a 2009 album by Vic Chesnutt. It was his penultimate album release before his death on December 25, 2009, from an overdose of muscle relaxants. The song "Flirted with You All My Life" alludes to Chesnutt's own attitude toward s ...

'' (2009), and accompanied him on tours of Europe and North America. He co-produced the films ''

Chain A chain is a serial assembly of connected pieces, called links, typically made of metal, with an overall character similar to that of a rope in that it is flexible and curved in compression but linear, rigid, and load-bearing in tension. ...

'' and ''

Museum Hours ''Museum Hours'' is a 2012 Austrian-American drama film written and directed by Jem Cohen. The film is set in and around Vienna's Kunsthistorisches Museum. Plot When a Vienna museum guard befriends an enigmatic visitor, the grand Kunsthistorisch ...

'' with

Jem Cohen Jem Alan Cohen (born 1962) is an Afghan-born American filmmaker based in New York City. Cohen is especially known for his observational portraits of urban landscapes, blending of media formats ( sixteen-millimetre, Super 8, videotape) and coll ...

(who made the Fugazi film '' Instrument''). In 2012, Picciotto was interviewed on stage at the Pop Montreal festival by

Howard Bilerman Howard Bilerman (born September 25, 1970) is a Canadian musician, sound engineer, and record producer based in Montreal, Quebec.

about his experiences in the music industry. On January 24, 2020, Guy appeared on an episode of Live From the Barrage for a wide-ranging discussion that was his first long form interview in quite some time.

Equipment

Guitars

* Rickenbacker 330 – Picciotto's main guitars are a sunburst Rickenbacker 330 and 2 identical black Rickenbacker 330's all equipped with RIC HB1 humbuckers. He has occasionally been seen playing a natural-finish 330. The characteristically trebly Rickenbackers allowed Picciotto to make use of sonic space not taken by MacKaye's chunkier, rhythmic guitar playing in

. * Rickenbacker 370 – Picciotto's main guitar when he fronted Rites of Spring,

and in the first few years with Fugazi was a Mapleglo Rickenbacker 370. It eventually ended up in a state too fragile for live use, but he still used it in the studio right up to The Argument. * Gibson Les Paul Jr. – During Picciotto's time with Rites of Spring and during the early days of Fugazi (photos show until at least as late as 1993), he could also be seen playing a white Gibson Les Paul Doublecut Jr. with a single P90 pickup. In an interview done in 2011, Picciotto is quoted as having had a Gibson SG Jr. stolen in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. The NPR article may be incorrect about it being an SG and it was likely the same Les Paul Jr. guitar.

Amplification

*Park 100 Watt heads * Marshall JCM 800 2203 heads *Red or Black Marshall JCM 800 4x12 cabinets fitted with 75-watt celestion speakers *

Fender Twin The Fender Twin and Twin Reverb are guitar amplifiers made by Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. The Twin was introduced in 1952, two years before Fender began selling Stratocaster electric guitars. The amps are known for their characterist ...

reverb (studio)

Personal life

Picciotto was born to an American mother and an Italian father. He holds a BA degree in English from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private research university in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll in 1789 as Georgetown College, the university has grown to comprise eleven undergraduate and graduate ...

and is a graduate of the Washington, D.C. private school, the

Georgetown Day School Georgetown Day School (GDS) is an independent coeducational PK-12 school located in Washington, D.C. The school educates 1,075 elementary, middle, and high school students in northwestern Washington, D.C. Russell Shaw is the current Head of Sc ...

. Picciotto married musician Kathi Wilcox from the band

Bikini Kill Bikini Kill is an American punk rock band formed in Olympia, Washington, in October 1990. The group consisted of singer and songwriter Kathleen Hanna, guitarist Billy Karren, bassist Kathi Wilcox, and drummer Tobi Vail. The band pioneered the r ...

and the Frumpies; as of September 2020 the two were living in Brooklyn with their teenage son.

Discography

Rites of Spring

*'' Rites of Spring'' (1985) *'' All Through a Life'' (1987) *'' End on End'' (complete discography) (1991)

One Last Wish

*''1986'' (1999)

Happy Go Licky

*''12"'' (1988) *''Will Play'' (1997)

Black Light Panthers

*''Peterbilt 12" 82-97'' (1997)

Brief Weeds

*'' A Very Generous Portrait 7"'' (1990) *'' Songs of Innocence and Experience 7"'' (1992)

Fugazi

*'' 13 Songs'' (September 1989) *''

'' (March 1990) *'' Steady Diet of Nothing'' (August 1991) *''

In on the Kill Taker ''In on the Kill Taker'' is the third full-length studio album by the American post-hardcore band Fugazi. It was released on June 30, 1993 through Dischord Records and was recorded at Inner Ear Studios and produced by Ted Niceley and Don Zientara. ...

'' (May 1993) *''

Red Medicine ''Red Medicine'' is the fourth studio album by the American post-hardcore band Fugazi, released on June 12, 1995, by Dischord Records. It is the band's most commercially successful album, peaking at number 126 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200 and num ...

'' (June 1995) *''

End Hits ''End Hits'' is the fifth studio album by American post-hardcore band Fugazi, released on April 28, 1998, by Dischord Records. It was recorded at Inner Ear Studios from March 1997 to September 1997 and produced by the band and Don Zientara, and sa ...

'' (April 1998) *'' Instrument Soundtrack'' (1999) *'' The Argument'' (October 2001)

References

External links

Interview from 2001 at Welcome to Flavor Country''Nude as the News'' interview with Guy Picciotto (October 2001)''Pitchfork'' interview with PicciottoExclaim.ca September 2007 interview with Guy PicciottoPicciotto's 1999 Fugazi Guitar Rig
GuitarGeek.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Picciotto, Guy 1965 births American punk rock guitarists American people of Italian descent American punk rock singers Post-hardcore musicians Georgetown College (Georgetown University) alumni Living people American indie rock musicians American male guitarists Fugazi members 20th-century American guitarists Rites of Spring members One Last Wish members 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers Georgetown Day School alumni