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Pitchfork (no affiliation with the website) were a four-piece post-hardcore band from San Diego, California that were around from 1986 to 1990. They are perhaps best known for being the band that Rick Froberg and John Reis were in before Drive Like Jehu and Hot Snakes. They only released one album and one EP, both of which were eventually compiled together in 2003 on John Reis’ label, Swami Records (though they’re included separately below). Sonically, this band sounds like what you’d expect from one-half of Drive Like Jehu. The angular guitar rhythms, odd song structures, and Froberg’s distinct voice are all present here. Albeit, the songs do tend to take a slightly more straight-forward punk influence, with more fast-tempo songs and distinct melodies. They sound like a half-way point between earlier bands like Husker Du and Embrace, and the noisy, complex, drawn-out instrumental chaos that DLJ would be. Pitchfork put out some fantastic music in their time, and though it is hard to separate this from what its members would go on to do, it’s a great document to prove the prowess these guys displayed from the get-go. Enjoy.
