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Railroad Jerk was an American, New York-based indie rock band of the 1990s, specializing in a hard-driven punk blues sound.[1]

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History

Railroad Jerk's lineup changed frequently, but the core members were Minnesota native Marcellus Hall (vocals, guitar) and North Carolina-born and Trenton, N.J.-bred Tony Lee (bass).[1] The two met in Trenton, New Jersey in early 1989 and formed the band with drummer Jez Aspinall and second guitarist Chris Mueller rounding out the quartet.[2] Hall chose the band's name because he "liked the clack and clang of the two words together."[3]

The band gained a following on the Manhattan club scene and were signed to indie label Matador Records, for whom they recorded four albums[4] — all well received critically — before breaking up in the late 1990s.[1]

Their first two albums, Railroad Jerk (1990) and Raise the Plow (1993), did well, but Railroad Jerk reached its biggest success with One Track Mind (1995).[1] The band made two music videos for the record: "Rollerkoaster" and "Bang the Drum", both directed by Jim Spring and Jens Jurgensen.

The "Rollerkoaster" video was shown on MTV's Beavis & Butthead. On tour, the band shared bills with bands including Guided by Voices, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Cibo Matto, Girls Against Boys, and Cat Power. "The Ballad of Railroad Jerk" became a college radio hit.

Around the time their fourth album — The Third Rail (1996) was released — the band recorded demos for a fifth Railroad Jerk LP which was to be entitled 'Masterpiecemeal'. This final LP was never released. Dave Varenka and Marcellus Hall went on to form the band White Hassle.^{[citation needed]}

Discography

Albums

• Railroad Jerk (1990), Matador
• Raise the Plow (1992), Matador
• One Track Mind (1995), Matador
• The Third Rail (1996), Matador[1]

Singles and EPs

• "Younger Than You" - 7" (1991), Matador
• "Milk the Cow" - 2x7" (1992), PCP Entertainment
• 02.20.93 - 7" EP (1993), Walt Records
• "We Understand" - CDEP/2x7" (1993), Matador
• "Bang the Drum" - CDS/7" (1995), Matador
• Sauberes Hemd - CDEP (1996), Matador
• Railroad Jerk 2001 - 7" (2000), Sub Pop

References

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