Liquor Bike

Liquor Bike is a post-punk band that formed in 1991 in Baltimore, Maryland. The group released 3 full length records, several 7" singles & appeared on a few compilations. They released records for Grass Records/BMG, Merkin Records, Penultimate Records and many others. The band disbanded in September of 1996. Fall of 1991, in the blue-collar city of Baltimore, David Koslowski had written and recorded some songs on a cheap ass tape recorder. He asked his roommate Colin Preston to buy a bass and form a band with him. Colin had never played an instrument before…it’s the classic punk rock story. The two would go onto generate a machine-like band known as Liquor Bike. The roommates posted a flyer in various record stores looking for another guitarist & drummer. After several failed auditions the band brought in guitarist, Stefan Meyers, who was a friend from the local watering hole and recruited Eric Dixon, a drummer and record store clerk. The first incarnation of the band was complete. The group quickly set up shows playing its first at The Jar, a loft space in Baltimore and their second show was in Boston the next weekend. They were driven and ready to hit the road and put out records as soon as possible. In the summer of 1992, after putting out a critically-acclaimed 6-song demo cassette, Liquor Bike were asked to put out a 7” single on San Francisco’s Penultimate Records. The single was well received and the group hit the road again. While on the road, they were asked to do a couple songs for some other indie labels like Uprising and Third World Underground. They recorded some tracks with Candy Machine’s Tony French. The band was then snagged up by local indie label, Merkin Records for the release of its first full-length. Before they hit the studio, Stefan was replaced by guitarist, Michael Gaitley. Eli Janney from Girls Against Boys jumped on board to produce 'Lowborne'. 'Lowborne' was a hard-hitting and in your face assault of punk-pop. Liquor Bike quickly hit the road to support the record, playing all over the East Coast and Midwest. 'Lowborne' gained the attention of CMJ, receiving a glowing review. At this point, the band started getting hit up by every major & indie label from Atlantic to Columbia to Grass Records. The group played a few showcases in NYC, some labels walked out with their ears bleeding from the volume, others ate their dinner while the band sang their hearts out, but one woman stuck around and actually talked to the band after a show at Under Acme in Manhattan. Camille Sciara from Grass Records, which was part of Dutch East India wanted to sign the band on the spot. The following Monday the contract was faxed over and the band had a record deal. While touring to support 'Lowborne', they played a pinnacle show at 7th Street Entry in Minneapolis, which was attended by Creature Booking’s Dean Van Lith. Creature was the booking agency for L7, The Melvins, The Cows, Hammerhead, Helmet and many others. Dean loved the band and wanted to bring them into his stable. Liquor Bike agreed and signed on. Dean would work with the band until its demise. With a booking agent now in place, Liquor Bike began work on 'Neon Hoop Ride', their debut for Grass Records. They recorded with Drew Mazurek (Jawbox, Shudder To Think) at AmRep Recording Division in Minneapolis with the help of Tim Mac (Cows, Hammerhead, Helmet). 'Neon Hoop Ride' was more bombastic and pummels the listener over the head while continuing to build on the ever present pop hook. The band toured extensively in support of 'Neon Hoop Ride', even hitting the West Coast for the first time. Playing shows with The Cows, Iowa Beef Experience, Alice Donut, SNFU, Green Day and fIREHOSE. The beginning of 1995 saw a tour with Hammerhead and then another with Killdozer & Casper Brotzman. The band was now ready to record its next record for Grass, but at this point the label had been sold to a multimillionaire who had ties to BMG. Therefore, the next record was set to be released on Grass/BMG. Grass Records would eventually morph into Wind-Up Records and sadly release music by Creed and Evanescence. They decided to record at producer Drew Mazurek’s newly remodeled studio in Baltimore. 'The Beauty of Falling Apart', production was expansive and once again the band delivered some of its catchiest numbers. The group even started to experiment in the studio adding acoustic guitar and violin to tracks like “Old Fashioned,” 8 tracks of guitar to “Hi-Fi Sigh,” and David even sang falsetto through a fan on “Superface.” The end result was the band’s finest work. 'The Beauty of Falling Apart' was set to be released in May ‘96 and the band was hitting the road for 6 weeks in support. They toured the East Coast with Gas Huffer and then branched out on their own, travelling all through the Midwest and out to the West Coast again. It was in the Midwest that the band received heartbreaking news, at a truckstop David had called their manager to find out where their record was and why there weren’t any posters up at the clubs they were playing and was informed that their A&R person had been fired and they were dropping most of her bands, including Liquor Bike. Being the troopers that they were, Liquor Bike got back in the van and finished the next 4 weeks of the tour, sans their new record and tour support. The next 5 months were trying months for Liquor Bike, they had just recorded their best record, had a great booking agent, but no label to put out the release. David and their manager spent the next several months talking with labels and sending out copies of the record, but to no avail. In July of 1996, guitarist Michael Gaitley decided to leave the band and return to the working world. The band played one final show with Michael. Eric, Colin and David wished him the best and began talks on how to fill his shoes. During this time, David made the crucial decision to end the band he had started with his roommate Colin. The band had unfortunately succumb to 'The Beauty of Falling Apart' in September, 1996. In 2012, after 14 years of living in North Carolina, David Koslowski decided to return to Baltimore. Upon his arrival, he called up the guys and they got in a room and started banging out music together. On December 1st the band played a 20 year reunion show at Ottobar in Baltimore. In February 2013, Plastique Recording Co. will be releasing all of the Liquor Bike material in digital format.