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The Wesley Willis Fiasco | |
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| Origin | Chicago,Illinois, U.S. |
| Genres | Hardcore punk,punk rock,hard rock,alternative metal,alternative rock,grunge,outsider |
| Years active | 1991–1996 |
| Labels | Urban Legend,Sympathy for the Record Industry |
| Past members | Wesley Willis Pat Barnard Dale Meiners Dave Nooks Brendan Murphy Michael Cates |
The Wesley Willis Fiasco was an Americanpunk rock band based inWicker Park,Chicago,Illinois, United States, led byWesley Willis.
The band was formed byWesley Willis onvocals, Pat Barnard on leadguitar, and his friend Dale Meiners on guitar and bass.[citation needed] Dale Meiners previously played guitar inBilly Corgan's pre-Smashing Pumpkins band,the Marked.[citation needed] In 1992 Willis began writing songs, and soon after, Meiners took Willis into his studio to record them. After many drummer changes, Meiners, Barnard and Willis formed the Wesley Willis Fiasco with Dave Nooks on bass and Brendan Murphy on drums.[citation needed] Their name was coined by early second guitarist Michael Cates.[citation needed]
They released only one studio album in 1996,Spookydisharmoniousconflicthellride (a reference to Willis's description of hisschizophrenic episodes), which is found on the Urban Legend label.[citation needed] Various live albums are available, though most are bootlegs. After the band broke up, Willis continued to record his own solo albums. One of his songs on his solo album "Rock 'n' Roll Will Never Die" is about the Fiasco.[citation needed]
The Fiasco band covered the song "Girls on Film" byDuran Duran, which appeared on the Duran Duran Tribute Album in 1997. They also released a much sought after and hard to find 7" vinyl split withSublime, as well as a split with Milwaukee'sThe Frogs.[citation needed]
The Fiasco toured with many bands, most notablyRocket from the Crypt, Sublime, andLordz of Brooklyn. The band was also noted for charmingEddie Vedder, lead singer ofPearl Jam.[citation needed]
Due to conflicts between the Fiasco band's shows and Willis's solo keyboard shows, the band broke up while on tour inOhio in 1996. Willis stated that the demons in his head worsened, causing him to constantly yell at the band unintentionally.[citation needed]
After the breakup, Pat Barnard sold his equipment and moved toLake Tahoe, where he died in a drowning accident at the age of 27. Murphy, who briefly played withThe Jesus Lizard, lives in Chicago, working for an indie label. Dale Meiners builds custom furniture.[1] Dave Nooks got married and was a member of the Chicago-based punk and roll band The Symptoms for a time. Willis continued his solo career until his death from leukemia in 2003, age 40.[citation needed]
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