Blowing Off Steam
Burian, who plays bass in Milemarker, switched to guitar, and the pair began writing and demoing a clutch of tunes inspired by SST’s mid-80s catalog–music that combined breakneck tempos, noisy guitars, and thoughtful melodies. “The basic thing with Challenger was not really very high-concept,” says Burian. “It was just to have a band with the standard two guitars, bass, and drum lineup.” (Milemarker’s roster includes a keyboardist.) Drummer Timothy Remis, who played on the Challenger record, later dropped out, and Burian and Laney recruited Milemarker bandmate Noah Leger to take over. Burian overdubbed the bass tracks in the studio, but for the past couple months Challenger has relied on bassist Jessica Hopper, better known as a publicist and the editor of Hit It or Quit It.
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More From the Langford Juggernaut
Future releases, which will arrive in batches of two or three every few months, include a record from English singer-songwriter Kevin Coyne backed by the Pine Valley Cosmonauts; a solo album from Mekons cofounder Tom Greenhalgh; a Jon Langford/Richard Buckner duet disc; and a reissue from Hangahar, a 1979 collaboration between Sally Timms and the Buzzcocks’ Pete Shelley.
