Neon Christ

Neon Christ
300x200px Danny, Randy and Jimmy of Neon Christ, in January 2006
Background information
Origin	Atlanta, Georgia, US
Genres	Powerviolence, hardcore punk
Years active	1983-1986, 2004, 2008, 2011
Labels	Social Crisis Records F-King Records
Associated acts	Alice in Chains Comes with the Fall Madfly No Walls
Past members	Randy DuTeau William DuVall Danny Lankford Jimmy Demer

Neon Christ was an American Hardcore Punk band from Atlanta, Georgia, pioneers of powerviolence the band was formed in 1983. Its core members were Randy DuTeau (vocals), William DuVall (guitar), Danny Lankford (bass guitar), and Jimmy Demer (drums). One of their songs "Ashes to Ashes" was included as the third track on the International P.E.A.C.E. Benefit Compilation, a 1984 double album, released on R Radical Records, featuring 55 hardcore punk acts from around the world. As of 2011, the band have said they will be reuniting to record a new album featuring material that they had originally begun back in 1985.

History

Formation, rise and break-up (1983-1986)

Neon Christ played their first gig at the Metroplex Atlanta on New Year’s Eve, December 31, 1983 according to their MySpace page. In March 1984, they began recording their self-titled debut album, which was released three months later as a 7” EP through Social Crisis Records. Upon completion of this album, Neon Christ would go on touring throughout the East Coast, playing in several different locations. On Labor Day in 1984, they recorded four more songs, one of which, “Ashes to Ashes”, would appear on the aforementioned P.E.A.C.E. compilation. They continued touring throughout the Atlanta area, playing alongside other notable acts such as Corrosion of Conformity and Dead Kennedys. For a brief spell in 1985, they added second guitarist Shawn Devine. They were also occasionally joined onstage by a roadie named Randy Gue, who worked with DuVall again on the short-lived project The Final Offering. Later that year they began recording another album that ultimately never materialized. (However, the band have since said they will begin recording a new album in spring of 2011 that will contain the first proper studio recordings of their 1985-86 material.) In January 1986, they went back to being a quartet and played their final show in February before going separate ways.

Post-Neon Christ (1986-2008)

With the exception of William DuVall, most members of Neon Christ have largely pursued other endeavors outside of music, although Jimmy Demer and Danny Lankford have respectively played guitar and bass in another band called Accidents. In 1990, Demer put out a double 7” EP through F-King Records, featuring their four Labor Day songs.

In 2007, Randy DuTeau published a detailed article highlighting the achievements of his former bandmate William DuVall, who by then was the new lead singer of Alice in Chains, after Neon Christ broke up. DuVall thanked all of his former Neon Christ bandmates within the liner notes of Alice in Chains' 2009 album Black Gives Way to Blue.

Reunion and future plans (2008-present)

Neon Christ reunited for a one-time show on February 2, 2008 in Lawrenceville, Georgia. Since then, the band have gotten together with director Edgar Johnson to create a documentary film called All Alone Together: Neon Christ and Atlanta Hardcore.

William DuVall said of the project:

I was first approached in 2005 by Edgar Johnson (director) about making a Neon Christ documentary. However, while I always thought our story was interesting, I really questioned who else would care. It was a long time ago. Nostalgia is boring to me. Why would I want to foist that onto anyone else? 'Back in my day…' Whatever, fuck off! I want to know what kids are doing NOW. But when Neon Christ reunited for one show in February 2008 and all these 15 and 16 year old kids were singing our songs back to us, it was very moving, and not just because it was a pleasantly surprising ego rush. It was more about what those kids and that club represented. The show took place at the Treehouse, a DIY all-ages storefront club in the Atlanta suburb of Lawrenceville. The energy and enthusiasm of the entire scene there was electrifying. Those kids were taking what we started, the real outsider/all-ages/DIY/basement punk culture and making it their own. That’s when I knew we had our movie: Take two generations of outsider kids, nearly 30 years apart, and tell both their stories concurrently – what’s different, what remains the same, why it all still matters.”

To help raise funds for this project, the band announced a pledge drive in February 2011, offering backers all kinds of merchandise, including the aforementioned new album featuring their unfinished material from 1985, depending on the amount they were willing to pledge. This pledge drive has surpassed its goal of raising $6,500 and the project will be funded on April 16. Edgar Johnson credited DuVall and his fellow Alice in Chains bandmates for boosting this project by raising awareness on their website.

Discography

Albums

Year	Album details
1984	Neon Christ 7” Released: January 24, 1992 Label: Social Crisis Records
1990	Neon Christ 2x7" Released: 1990 Label: F-King Records

Compilation appearances

Year	Song	Title	Label
1984	"Ashes to Ashes"	P.E.A.C.E.	R Radical Records New Red Archives (1997 CD reissue)

Videography

Release Date	Title	Label
TBA	All Alone Together: Neon Christ and Atlanta Hardcore	Social Crisis Films

External links

• Neon Christ on Myspace