| Latex Generation |
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The Early Years (1990-1992) The founding members were:
The first performances were at high school functions at Wheatley High in East Williston, NY (where Paul & Hobbs attended). No Frontman was available at this point so good friends/family members took the stage with the band. (Ali Hobbs & Ali Redmond) The band soon added James Simpson on guitar to fill out the live sound. However, Simpson's role wih the band was shortlived due to personality clashes with the other members. Soon after this, vocalist Matt Smalls was recruited. Matt fronted the band for a few shows at Long Island's HammerHedz, the Vault in Queens (NYC), & the Wheatley High School's Battle of the Bands. The Wheatley battle of the band's show incited a mosh pit that brought the show to a halt twice and lead to the school principal ejecting the band's fans. However, the band soon realized that Matt's singing style didn't fit their style so his stint as lead singer ended quickly. After several unsuccessful auditions, the band approached Joseph Nienstedt, the . Although the band endured growing pains during the first two years, the lineup solidified and allowed it to grow quickly into a force on the local scene:
Recording Session #1 Latex Generation recorded a Demo entitled ''Loser'' with local producer Steve Ronsen. The six song demo included: # Myself # Funky Green Carpet # Not a Crime # Whore # Grow # FCC The Middle Years (1993-1996) The band became actively involved in the Long Island/Queens Punk/Hardcore scene which was centered around the club "The Angle" ( Mineola, New York ). These club appearances lead to the band signing with Indie Label Motherbox Records. Motherbox helped fund and distribute the band's first 7" record entitled "Bored" (1993). Recording Session #2 The ''Bored'' 7" was recorded by Steve Ronsen at Buzz Productions. Songs Included: # PB&J # Home # Bored # Two Faces The song "Two Faces" featured Joe playing guitar alongside Paul for the first time. Impressed with the results of the session, the band decided a role shift would benefit everyone imvolved. So, Joe took on the lead guitar role allowing Paul to concentrate on lead vocals and his electric live performances. In an attempt to broaden their fan base, the band purchased a van and worked hard expanding their influence into New Jersey and Pennsylvania. These shows lead to strong relationships with bands such as Weston, Bouncing Souls, Plow United, nooneR & Grady . During this time, the band tightened up and Latex G headed back to the studio..... Recording Session #3 The ''I Killed the President'' 7" was recorded by Steve Ronsen at Buzz Productions. Songs Included: # Fuck Me, I'm a Rockstar # Delivery Boy # I Killed the President With two 7" records to their credit, the band grew more ambitious. Longer tours were now being organized throughout the Northeast and larger groups of fans were attending shows. However, L8XG continued it's DIY philosophy by silk screening T-Shirts, Buttons, and Patches in Tom's Basement. The band's buzz grew louder with each month and requests were coming in from minor labels to provide new songs for upcoming comps. Recording Session #4 Although the band was satisfied with the early home studio recordings done at Buzz Studios, they felt it was time to record in a more professional environment. They were introduced to engineer/producer Steve Meyer in 1995 and recorded two new songs and two covers (live) for upcoming record label compilations. The ''Steve Meyer sessions'' included the following songs: # Daddy Was a Communist # I'm Not You # The Theme from TV's The Jeffersons (Cover) # Runaround Sue (Cover) Latex was now playing shows with larger bands in the NYC punk scene. This paid off in a big way after playing a sold out show with No Use For a Name at NYC's Wetlands. Soon after, the band was approached by a New Zealand based Record Label called "Onefoot Records", with whom they signed a worldwide recording and distribution contract. Recording Session #5 The ''360'' CD & LP was recorded by Steve Meyer and included all new recordings of the following songs: # Central America # Daddy Was a Communist # They Killed the Radio # 360 # Delivery Boy # PB&J # 3 Years After # Fuck Me, I'm a Rockstar # I'm Not You # I Killed the President # Bazooka # Fallen Angel (with bonus track "Sgt. Thrasher hidden afterwards) Latex then organized it's most ambitious tour to date. With record label backing and a new CD to promote, the band embarked on a seven week US tour. The band continued its DIY work ethic by making almost all of their own merchandise, booking shows, advertising, and managing themselves. This required a monumental effort and put a strain on the relationships between members. The Later Years (1997-1999) After they returned from the tour supporting 360, the band brought on Hugo Gasc as a 2nd guitar player. When drummer Mike Hobbs & Singer Paul Fort left for college that fall they looked on it as a much needed break from band tensions/pressures. However, the distance between members only fueled the fires. After much debate, Tom & Joe felt it was better to move on and replaced Hobbs with Hugo Gasc as the new drummer. Soon after, Paul Fort left the band as well. The remaining members tried out new frontmen, but no one suitable was found. Eventually Joseph Nienstedt reclaimed the lead singer position he occupied when the band was first formed. The band continued touring under the name "Latex Generation" with the following members:
With a full catalog of music, the band got back on the road to support Florida's Ska/Punk kings Less Than Jake on an east coast tour. They soon recorded some new material for a 7" single, as well as a few tracks for their follow up record to 360. The band members had changed, and so did their sound. In a final transition from old Latex to new, the band changed studio engineers again. Recording Session #6 During the ''Eric Rachel sessions'' (Tracks East Studios, NJ) they recorded the following songs: For the ''Whatever Happened to PJ Soles?'' 7" # Whatever Happened to PJ Soles? # Come Along Sorry Ass, We're Going Places (which also appeared on "Boysrock") For Compilation Records : # 21 (of age) (which also appeared on "Boysrock" and the "Boysrock Sampler" cassette) # Cycle (which also appeared on "Boysrock" and the "Boysrock Sampler" cassette) # Holiday Road (which was never released commercially) The band then made their first international tour with Florida 's "Radio Baghdad" to Eastern Europe . The band was featured in video Documentary filmed during that tour. (European release only) Some material recorded for the documentary appeared in a short video clip on the "Boysrock" CD. Upon returning from the European tour, L8XG parted ways with Hugo Gasc (who remained a close friend and played an occasional show with them as a guitarist) due to his commitment to his own band Desperosity. L8XG began to audition new drummers and found a drummer named '''Jay''' who played their first Vans Warped Tour shows as well as a nationwide tour with the band '''Whatever?'''. However, the band did not have the same chemistry achieved with Hugo, so they parted ways with Jay. Ensuing auditions produced drummer '''Brian Alien'''. To make up for lost time, the band immediately began writing for a new record and went back to Tracks East in NJ to lay down what would be "Boysrock", their sophomore CD. The lineup for Boysrock was as follows:
Latex Generation was a completely different band when they recorded Boysrock. They had been through numerous line-up changes and had matured since the early days. The end result was a record that sounded nothing like their previous recordings. Fans of the older material had mixed reactions to the shift in style demonstrated on Boysrock and the band found themselves playing less and less of the old material live. Recording Session #7 The songs that appeared on ''Boysrock'' Latex Generation's 2nd CD, were: # Laugh It Off # 6th Sense # 21 (of age) (recorded with Hugo on drums from the previous session) # Cycle (recorded with Hugo on drums from the previous session) # Tank Stellar # One For the Bastards # Come Along Sorry Ass, We're Going Places (recorded with Hugo on drums from the previous session) # Ilona Stanley's Response # Inspiration on TV # Desperosity ( with Jessica on Saxaphone - formally of Less Than Jake ) # Mac ( with Jessica on Saxaphone - formally of Less Than Jake , this song was written by Patrick Walsh) # Campsite 54 Other songs recorded during that session include: # Closed Casket (which was pulled from Boysrock at the last minute and never commercially released) # Trash (with Hugo Gasc on lead vocals and rythym guitar) After they recorded Boysrock, the band did a lot of short tours in the US, including a slot on a tour with The Bouncing Souls , a tour with Pennsylvania 's Digger, and a string of dates on the Vans Warped Tour in the US. They headed to a studio in South Carolina to record 2 songs for the record label '''Fast Music''' that were to appear on a split 7" record with the band Digger. The 7" never came to fruition, but one of the songs was used on a Fast Music compilation. Recording Session #8 The ''Columbia, SC sessions'' included the following songs: # Undependant (released on the Fast Music Compilation) # The Best Revenge (never commercially released) L8XG landed a slot on the Australia n leg of the '98 Van's Warped Tour . When they returned from that tour, Joseph Nienstedt got married. The band was having difficulties with Brian Alien who had substance abuse issues and was not reliable enough anymore to play live shows, often dropping sticks or forgetting which song he was playing. One last tour was organized with California's Lagwagon before Brian left the band. Life was changing quickly for Joe (expecting his first child)& Tom (starting his own T-Shirt business) so the band was placed on hold. WHERE ARE THEY NOW? The Official Latex Generation website is latexgeneration.com To read more about Latex G and contact old fans/friends, checkout the Mike Hobbs' Latex Generation MySpace page here: Latex Generation On MySpace
''In late 2004, Joe, Tom & Hugo got together at a party in Brooklyn to play one last song for their friends. It was 21 (of age).'' |
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