Jonathan Fire*Eater was an American

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

band best known as a progenitor of the

post-punk revival Post-punk revival (also known as garage rock revival,J. Stuessy and S. D. Lipscomb, ''Rock and roll: its History and Stylistic Development'' (London: Pearson Prentice Hall, 5th edn., 2006), , p. 451. new wave revival,. and new rock revolution) is ...

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 line-up was Stewart Lupton (vocals), Tom Frank (bass), Paul Maroon (guitar and pedal steel), Matt Barrick (drums), and Walter Martin (organs, keyboards). The band broke up during their height in 1998; after the band's break-up, Maroon, Barrick, and Martin went on to form

The Walkmen The Walkmen is an American indie rock band. Active from 2000 to 2013, they are known as part of the 2000s-era post-punk revival in New York City, particularly for their critically acclaimed single "The Rat (song), The Rat." The band is made up o ...

History

Jonathan Fire*Eater was formed from a childhood band called The Ignobles. All the members of Jonathan Fire*Eater attended high school at the D.C. private school St. Albans School. Lupton, Martin, and Barrick formed a ska band called the Ignobles while in junior high school. Maroon joined as the guitarist and Ryan Cheney signed on as the vocalist. Lupton played bass. In 1993, the members went to college, mostly in New York City, and Jonathan Fire*Eater was formed with Cheney departing and later joining The Cunning Runts and Lupton taking over vocal duties. St. Albans alum Tom Frank joined as a new bassist. In 1995, they released their eponymous debut on Tucson, Arizona's Third World Underground Records, which featured "Christmastime, Halloween", "To The Tigers", and other tracks. Later that year, a self-titled EP on PCP established their reputation with the frenetic tracks "The Public Hanging of a Movie Star" and "When Prince Was a Kid". In 1996, the five-song mini-album '' Tremble Under Boom Lights'' was released by

The Medicine Label The Medicine Label (sometimes called Medicine for short) was a record label founded in New York City in 1992, originally as a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Records. The original purpose of the label was to release "new, cutting-edge music", as Irving ...

, featuring well-produced offers such as "The Search for Cherry Red" and "Give Me Daughters". Reviews were positive, with

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

describing ''Tremble'' as "a ferocious record" despite its "minor flaws." By this time, the band was receiving considerable media and industry attention. They were courted by

Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer who launched the company that would later become Calvin Klein Inc., in 1968. In addition to clothing, he also has given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and ...

to model and opened for Brit Pop stars

Pulp Pulp may refer to: * Pulp (fruit), the inner flesh of fruit Engineering * Dissolving pulp, highly purified cellulose used in fibre and film manufacture * Pulp (paper), the fibrous material used to make paper * Molded pulp, a packaging material ...

and Blur. As Lupton said in a 1996 ''New York Times Magazine'' profile, "Right now the record companies are sort of circling like vultures." In early 1997, Jonathan Fire*Eater signed with

David Geffen David Lawrence Geffen (born February 21, 1943) is an American business magnate, producer and film studio executive. He co-created Asylum Records in 1971 with Elliot Roberts, Geffen Records in 1980, DGC Records in 1990, and DreamWorks SKG in 199 ...

's nascent

DreamWorks DreamWorks may refer to: * DreamWorks Pictures, an American film production company of Amblin ** DreamWorks Television, an American television production company and division of the film studio ** DreamWorks Records, an American record label and f ...

music label. Their major label debut, ''Wolf Songs for Lambs'', was released by DreamWorks in 1997 to tepid critical response. Not long after the album's release, tensions between Lupton and the other members and a general wariness of mainstream success led to the band's breakup. They played their last show at the Central Park bandshell on July 28, 1998. Jonathan Fire*Eater was once called "possibly the most hyped young group that nobody has ever heard of". Maroon, Barrick, and Martin later went on to form

and Lupton has pursued his music career through his band The Childballads, who put out their debut album in January 2007. The latter has toured with

Cat Power Charlyn Marie "Chan" Marshall ( ; born January 21, 1972), better known by her stage name Cat Power, is an American singer-songwriter, musician and model. Cat Power was originally the name of her first band, but has become her stage name as a ...

and

the Kills The Kills are an English-American rock duo formed by American singer Alison "VV" Mosshart and English guitarist Jamie "Hotel" Hince. They are signed to Domino Records. Their first four albums, '' Keep On Your Mean Side'', ''No Wow'', ''Midni ...

. In 2009, he released an EP in a new band, The Beatin's, which he formed with Carole Wagner Greenwood. Titled ''A Little Give And Take'', the limited edition vinyl included Lupton's poetry and the duo's art and writing. Tom Frank pursued a career in journalism as T.A. Frank. Stewart Lupton died on May 27, 2018 at the age of 43.

Legacy

In addition to being a precursor to the Walkmen, Jonathan Fire*Eater has also been cited as an influence by many of the early

-based groups of the

, including

Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cri ...

and the

Yeah Yeah Yeahs The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are an American indie rock band formed in New York City in 2000. The group is composed of vocalist and pianist Karen O (born Karen Lee Orzolek), guitarist and keyboardist Nick Zinner, and drummer Brian Chase. They are complem ...

, and comparisons were drawn between the band and

the Strokes The Strokes are an American rock band from New York City. Formed in 1998, the band is composed of lead singer and songwriter Julian Casablancas, guitarists Nick Valensi and Albert Hammond Jr., bassist Nikolai Fraiture, and drummer Fabrizio More ...

. The Kills, also considered part of the post-punk revival, covered "The Search for Cherry Red"; their version was released as a B-side to their single "Pull A U". They were featured in the 2017 book ''Meet Me in the Bathroom: Rebirth and Rock and Roll on New York City''.

Discography

Albums

*''Jonathan Fire*Eater'' (album, 1995, Third World Underground) *'' Wolf Songs for Lambs'' (1997, DreamWorks SKG)

Singles and EPs

*''Jonathan Fire*Eater'', aka ''The Public Hanging of a Movie Star'' (EP, 1995, PCP) *"Give Me Daughters" (1996, Deceptive) *'' Tremble Under Boom Lights'' (1996, Medicine) *"When the Curtain Calls You" (1997, Deceptive) *"These Little Monkeys" (1998, Deceptive) *"No Love Like That" (1998, DreamWorks)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jonathan FireEater Indie rock musical groups from New York (state) Musical groups from New York City DreamWorks Records artists Musical groups established in 1993 Musical groups disestablished in 1998 Indie rock musical groups from Washington, D.C.