The Figgs

In Saratoga Springs, New York, The Figgs came together during 1987. Mike Gent handled guitar and vocals while Pete Donnelly covered bass, Pete Hayes played drums, and Guy Lyons took lead guitar duties. Devoted to power pop yet equally drawn to brash punk, the quartet fused both impulses without sacrificing melodic focus. Early 7" singles and cassette tapes appeared on the regional indie Absolute-a-Go-Go before the group delivered its first full-length statement, the 1994 Imago album Low-Fi at Society High. That same year brought the Hi-Fi Dropouts EP, and reviewers along with college radio outlets responded favorably to each. When Imago abruptly lost funding and distribution, the Figgs and their next batch of recordings were left without support, yet the band quickly secured a deal with Capitol that yielded Banda Macho in 1996. Capitol proved uncertain how to promote the expansive record or its creators, however, and soon dropped the group. An invitation to serve as Graham Parker’s touring ensemble followed after the songwriter heard the Figgs’ rendition of “Passion Is No Ordinary Word.” The road trip produced the live album The Last Rock N Roll Tour, issued by Razor and Tie in 1997, though the engagement chiefly allowed the musicians to share stages with one of their idols. Absolute-a-Go-Go released the Couldn’t Get High LP in 1998, and an EP surfaced on Hearbox the following year. Both the vinyl-only Rejects on Philthyrex and Sucking in Stereo on Hearbox arrived in 2000, the latter highlighting the band’s early new-wave leanings within its energetic, impudent pop approach. Several observers viewed Sucking in Stereo as a welcome return to lean, buoyant rock for a unit that had already navigated repeated label setbacks and fleeting breakthroughs. The 2001 EP Badger extended that momentum, as did the 2002 Hearbox album Slow Charm. Dates supporting the latter included performances alongside Tommy Stinson, who repaid the favor in 2004 by appearing on the Figgs’ self-released double album Palais. Bloodshot issued the live set 103 Degrees in June two years afterward, a mail-order and download-only document capturing the Figgs backing Graham Parker at Chicago’s Double Door. Follow Jean Through the Sea reached listeners before the year concluded.