Biography
Greg Ginn, the guitarist for Black Flag, stood out as the single most influential player to surface from the American hardcore and punk scenes that took shape in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He routinely wove elements of jazz fusion and the heavy-metal sound associated with Black Sabbath into his lines while also drawing on amplifier feedback, and because he remained the sole constant member from the band’s inception through its dissolution, his guitar work became a central component of the group’s overall identity. Drawing equal inspiration from the Grateful Dead and the Stooges, Ginn launched Black Flag in 1977, yet the outfit only began attracting widespread attention after he relocated operations to Hermosa Beach, California, in early 1979 and opened an electronics-supply company named Solid State Transmitters, shortened to SST. When no existing label would issue the band’s recordings, Ginn started SST Records specifically to put out Black Flag’s Nervous Breakdown EP. Although vocalists rotated frequently—Keith Morris, Ron Reyes, and Dez Cadena among them—the group continued to build a devoted audience through relentless touring, a string of singles and EPs that included the well-known Jealous Again and Six Pack, and a featured appearance in the documentary The Decline of Western Civilization. Around the same period Ginn adopted a Plexiglas Dan Armstrong guitar that quickly became closely identified with both him and Black Flag, even after the instrument was later covered in black tape.
Nationwide recognition followed once devoted fan Henry Rollins joined as the fourth vocalist, an addition that produced the band’s debut full-length album, the 1981 release Damaged, which numerous observers regard as one of the definitive hardcore records. Legal obstacles delayed the next studio album and even led to Ginn spending five days in jail, but Black Flag re-emerged with renewed intensity on titles such as My War and In My Head. The group also issued an entirely instrumental record, Process of Weeding Out, which prompted Ginn to form the instrumental outfit Gone; that project yielded Let’s Get Real, Real Gone for a Change and Gone II: But Never Too Gone. At roughly the same time Ginn assembled another side project, October Faction, that drew contributions from several other SST-affiliated artists. Black Flag concluded its run with a final U.S. tour in 1986; afterward Ginn chose to concentrate on label operations rather than continue with Gone, establishing the new imprint Cruz while also overseeing New Alliance, formerly associated with the Minutemen, and maintaining SST.
In the early 1990s Ginn ended a period of relative seclusion by issuing solo albums such as Getting Even, Payday, Dick, and Let It Burn while unexpectedly reviving Gone. He participated in additional ensembles including Mojack, Hor, and Killer Tweaker Bees, briefly ran the coffeehouse The Idea Room, and occasionally broadcast under the pseudonym Poindexter Stewart on his program Screw Radio. Three Black Flag reunion concerts took place in 2003 to support cat-rescue charities, with Dez Cadena the only other widely recognized former member alongside Ginn. After moving to Taylor, Texas, in 2004, Ginn assembled the instrumental group the Texas Corrugators, handling every instrument except drums, which Steve DeLollis played; the pair recorded Bent Edge in 2007 and Goof Off Experts in 2008. Live lineups varied, with Ginn switching between bass and guitar, Gary Piazza on guitar, and Sean Hutchinson of New Monsoon on drums. Ginn characterized those performances as wholly improvised sets that blended rock, jazz, Latin, psychedelia, and country. In 2010 the band’s name became the Taylor Texas Corrugators, and the album Legends of Williamson County appeared on SST. Ginn simultaneously continued to release experimental solo material, among them We Are Amused in 2011 and Fearless Leaders in 2013.
Early in 2013 Ginn announced the reformation of Black Flag, recruiting original vocalist Ron Reyes along with newcomers Dave Klein on bass and Gregory Moore on drums. The revived lineup embarked on an international tour with Good for You, another Ginn project, serving as support. December 2013 brought the release of What The…, the band’s first album since 1985; both the tour and the record drew mixed responses. Shortly before the album’s arrival, Reyes was removed from the vocalist role during an Australian concert, with conflicting accounts claiming he had quit or been dismissed. In 2014 Ginn introduced yet another Black Flag configuration featuring vocalist Mike Vallely, who also performed with Good for You, bassist Tyler Smith, and drummer Brandon Pertzborn, with both live dates and new recordings scheduled for that year. Ginn also maintained his solo output, issuing Gumbo and Holy Water in May 2014.
Nationwide recognition followed once devoted fan Henry Rollins joined as the fourth vocalist, an addition that produced the band’s debut full-length album, the 1981 release Damaged, which numerous observers regard as one of the definitive hardcore records. Legal obstacles delayed the next studio album and even led to Ginn spending five days in jail, but Black Flag re-emerged with renewed intensity on titles such as My War and In My Head. The group also issued an entirely instrumental record, Process of Weeding Out, which prompted Ginn to form the instrumental outfit Gone; that project yielded Let’s Get Real, Real Gone for a Change and Gone II: But Never Too Gone. At roughly the same time Ginn assembled another side project, October Faction, that drew contributions from several other SST-affiliated artists. Black Flag concluded its run with a final U.S. tour in 1986; afterward Ginn chose to concentrate on label operations rather than continue with Gone, establishing the new imprint Cruz while also overseeing New Alliance, formerly associated with the Minutemen, and maintaining SST.
In the early 1990s Ginn ended a period of relative seclusion by issuing solo albums such as Getting Even, Payday, Dick, and Let It Burn while unexpectedly reviving Gone. He participated in additional ensembles including Mojack, Hor, and Killer Tweaker Bees, briefly ran the coffeehouse The Idea Room, and occasionally broadcast under the pseudonym Poindexter Stewart on his program Screw Radio. Three Black Flag reunion concerts took place in 2003 to support cat-rescue charities, with Dez Cadena the only other widely recognized former member alongside Ginn. After moving to Taylor, Texas, in 2004, Ginn assembled the instrumental group the Texas Corrugators, handling every instrument except drums, which Steve DeLollis played; the pair recorded Bent Edge in 2007 and Goof Off Experts in 2008. Live lineups varied, with Ginn switching between bass and guitar, Gary Piazza on guitar, and Sean Hutchinson of New Monsoon on drums. Ginn characterized those performances as wholly improvised sets that blended rock, jazz, Latin, psychedelia, and country. In 2010 the band’s name became the Taylor Texas Corrugators, and the album Legends of Williamson County appeared on SST. Ginn simultaneously continued to release experimental solo material, among them We Are Amused in 2011 and Fearless Leaders in 2013.
Early in 2013 Ginn announced the reformation of Black Flag, recruiting original vocalist Ron Reyes along with newcomers Dave Klein on bass and Gregory Moore on drums. The revived lineup embarked on an international tour with Good for You, another Ginn project, serving as support. December 2013 brought the release of What The…, the band’s first album since 1985; both the tour and the record drew mixed responses. Shortly before the album’s arrival, Reyes was removed from the vocalist role during an Australian concert, with conflicting accounts claiming he had quit or been dismissed. In 2014 Ginn introduced yet another Black Flag configuration featuring vocalist Mike Vallely, who also performed with Good for You, bassist Tyler Smith, and drummer Brandon Pertzborn, with both live dates and new recordings scheduled for that year. Ginn also maintained his solo output, issuing Gumbo and Holy Water in May 2014.
Albums
