Skeleton Key

In 1994 the junk-rock quartet Skeleton Key began taking form after guitarist/vocalist Chris Maxwell crossed paths with former Lounge Lizards bassist Erik Sanko at the Knitting Factory, the downtown New York club where Maxwell then handled booking. Once drummer Steve Calhoon joined them, the three declared their intention to perform “garbage;” this led them straight to Rick Lee, a musician already in possession of a “junk kit” built from an old table, propane tanks, chairs, film reels, a red wagon, and pots and pans. Skeleton Key released their self-titled debut EP on Motel Records in mid-1996, and Capitol issued the full-length Fantastic Spikes Through Balloon the following year. The album’s striking packaging earned the band a Grammy nomination in 1997. Guitarist Colin Brooks entered the lineup by the start of the new millennium, and Obtainium surfaced in summer 2002.