Born Against: The WFMU Sessions 1990-1991 (revised)

My first exposure to Born Against was hearing them play live on Pat Duncan's radio show on WFMU in 1990. Of course i immediately ran out and bought their s/t 7", and was even lucky enough to score a copy of Dear Jesus #37 (Born Against front man Sam's zine) which came with a copy of the Eulogy/Riding With Mary 7". The records were great, but i think i played that WFMU live set (which i had recorded) way more than the records at that time. It was just so much more intense and frantic than the studio recordings. By the time the full length came out, Born Against were one of my favorite bands of the '90s, along with Citizens Arrest and Rorschach. They played ABC No Rio constantly from '90-'91. The one time i got to see them play there was in October of 1991 with Merel and 1.6 Band. That was their last show with Javier on bass. What a kick ass show.

So here's the two sets Born Against played at the WFMU studio in East Orange, NJ (currently in Jersey City, NJ). The first one was recorded on 11/11/90, and was their first show with Jon Hiltz on drums, replacing Daryl Kahan (Citizens Arrest), who played on the band's first 7". The second one was recorded on 5/16/91. These sets are some of my favorite recordings this band ever did. Sound quality is good. Enjoy

Born Against: The WFMU Sessions

the lineup during these recordings:
Sam McPheeters - vocals
Adam Nathanson - guitar
Javier Villegas - bass
Jon Hiltz - drums

Born Against existed between 1989 and 1993 and played over 218 shows in 37 states, and in 14 different countries. They went through many lineup changes during their existence, with Sam McPheeters and Adam Nathanson (ex-Life's Blood) being the only constant members. They went through 7 different drummers, and 4 bass players, including Tonie Joy of Moss Icon and Neil Burke of Life's Blood. All the records they released were on Sam's own label (Vermiform), besides their split with Screeching Weasel (Lookout Records) and their split with Universal Order of Armageddon (Gravity Records).

The song Eulogy, which was a re-working of a Clenched Fist song (a short-lived band from the late '80s with Neil Burke, Daryl Kahan and some members of Mental Abuse), was written about Steve Reddy of Equal Vision Records (founded by Ray Cappo in the early '90s).

After Born Against broke up, Sam went on to Men's Recovery Project and Wrangler Brutes, and Adam went on to Young Pioneers. All great stuff.

There's a quality sounding Born Against set recorded live at Gilman St, Berkely, CA on 2/19/93 that you can download from this blog.

You can hear the infamous Born Against vs. Sick of it All debate here. Sam, Adam and Charles (Rorschach) go head to head with Lou and Pete (SOIA), and the head honcho of In-Effect Records. Awkward to say the least.