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Justin Moyer

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Justin Moyer
Moyer performing in 2012
Moyer performing in 2012
Background information
Born1977
OriginPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
GenresPost-punk, indie rock, funk rock, soul rock, post-hardcore
Occupation(s)Musician, writer, attorney
Instrument(s)Vocals, bass, guitar, drums
Years active1996–present
LabelsDischord, DeSoto, Mud Memory, Touch and Go, Resin, Lovitt Records, Sockets Records, Don Giovanni Records
Websitewww.mudmemory.com

Justin Moyer (born 1977) is an American musician, journalist, and attorney.[1] He has been a member of many Washington, D.C.-based bands on Dischord Records, including El Guapo, Supersystem, Antelope, Edie Sedgwick, and Light Beams. He was part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning team at The Washington Post that covered the Capitol insurrection.[2]

Bands

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El Guapo/Supersystem

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Main article: Supersystem (band)

Moyer formed El Guapo with Rafael Cohen, now a member of !!!,[3] at Wesleyan University in 1996, when Moyer and Cohen were juniors.[4][5][6] After recording for Resin, Mud Memory, Dischord, and Touch and Go Records, the band broke up in 2006.[7]

Antelope

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Moyer formed Antelope with Bee Elvy and Mike Andre in 2001.[8] After releasing an eponymous EP produced by Trans Am's Phil Manley as well as a single and full-length produced by Ian MacKaye, the band broke up in 2008.

SPRCSS

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In 2006, Moyer declared the defunct New Jersey group S-Process, also known as SPRCSS, his favorite band in a blog post[9] and called for the band to reform. Partially in response to this plea, SPRCSS, which had recorded for French Kiss Records,[10] reformed in 2007 with Moyer playing guitar. After founding drummer Daneil Mazone quit the band in 2011, the band, fronted by founding guitarist Bob Doto, played additional shows with TJ Lipple on drums, and a final show at Fort Reno Park with Moyer on drums.[11] Later that year, the band digitally self-released two EPs produced by Moyer and Ian MacKaye.[12]

E.D. Sedgwick

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Moyer formed Edie Sedgwick with Ryan Hicks (formerly of Bloomington, Ind.'s Panoply Academy Glee Club)[13] in 1999.[14] The duo, who wrote songs about celebrities, took its name from Andy Warhol superstar Edie Sedgwick. Moyer played bass; Hicks played drums. After releasing "First Reflections," an LP, on Moyer's Mud Memory Records[15] and recording another, the band went on hiatus in 2001 when Moyer was diagnosed with epilepsy.[16]

In 2004, Moyer relaunched Edie Sedgwick as a solo act, performing in drag accompanied only by an iPod. He released the LP "Her Love is Real But She Is Not," a well-reviewed[17] electroclash effort recorded primarily in his bedroom, on Desoto Records[18] in 2005. "I always found it strange that every musician I met would spend so much time engrossed by visual media and then write a song about class struggle or Rwandan genocide," Moyer said in 2008. "I'm more interested in making my art about Molly Ringwald or Martin Sheen than exploring these so-called weighty topics which, for better and worse, are alien to me."[19]

After releasing "Things Are Getting Sinister and Sinisterer," an LP, on Dischord in 2008,[20] Moyer again reformatted the band—he no longer performs in drag, and performs exclusively with women. Subsequent tours and videos[21] to support 2011's LP "Love Gets Lovelier Every Day" have showcased this version of the band, now called "E.D. Sedgwick" instead of "Edie Sedgwick."[22] "We Wear White," Sedgwick's most recent LP, was released in November 2012.[23]

Puff Pieces

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Moyer plays guitar in Puff Pieces, a trio featuring Mike Andre of Antelope and Amanda Huron of Vertebrates. The band released a single on Lovitt Records in 2014, and a full-length in 2016.[24]

Light Beams

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Light Beams, a trio featuring Moyer, bassist Arthur Noll and drummer Sam Lavine, released a cassette[25] and a split seven-inch with Ian Svenonius's solo project Escapism[26] in 2017. The trio's first full-length, "Self Help" (2020), won a Washington Area Music Association award in 2021.[27]

After adding percussionists Leah Gage and Erin McCarley, the quintet released another full-length, "Wild Life," in 2023.[28]

Discography

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Release date Album name Group name Record label
1997 Untitled 7" El Guapo Red Skies at Night Records
1998 The Burden of History El Guapo Resin Records
1999 The Phenomenon of Renewal El Guapo Resin Records
2000 The Geography of Dissolution El Guapo Mud Memory Records
2001 super/system El Guapo Dischord Records
2001 First Reflections Edie Sedgwick Dischord Records/Mud Memory Records
2002 Fake French El Guapo Dischord Records
2003 Begin Live Transmission El Guapo Dischord Records
2003 s/t Antelope Dischord Records/Bug Records
2004 Crowns/The Flock Antelope Dischord Records
2005 Always Never Again Supersystem Touch and Go Records
2005 Her Love is Real But She is Not Edie Sedgwick Desoto Records
2005 Born into the World/Defcon Supersystem Touch and Go Records
2005 Miracle Supersystem Touch and Go Records
2006 A Million Microphones Supersystem Touch and Go Records
2007 Reflector Antelope Dischord Records
2008 Things are Getting Sinister and Sinisterer Edie Sedgwick Dischord Records
2011 Love Gets Lovelier Every Day Edie Sedgwick Dischord Records
2011 Songs for Isadora Edie Sedgwick and A.K. Sockets Records
2012 We Wear White E.D. Sedgwick Dischord Records
2012 Heat Wave 12" E.D. Sedgwick Dischord Records/Mud Memory Records
2014 s/t 7" Puff Pieces Lovitt Records
2016 Bland in D.C. Puff Pieces Lovitt Records
2017 Born 2 Die 7" Puff Pieces Lovitt Records
2017 Light Beams Cassette Light Beams Don Giovanni Records
2017 Escapism/Light Beams Split 7" Light Beams Lovitt Records
2020 Self Help Light Beams Don Giovanni Records
2023 Wild Life Light Beams Dischord Records/Mud Memory Records

Writing

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Moyer, a former private investigator,[29] is a long-time freelancer for The Washington City Paper, where he covered the 2008 election,[30] and blogs about books[31] and life as a touring musician.[32] Since 2008, he has written for The Washington Post, where he reviews books[33] and writes about poker[34] and city politics.[35]

In 2009, Moyer was criticized by conservative websites for a piece[36] on Jenna Bush.[37] His pieces about the Beatles,[38] the Google Doodle[39] and jazz[40] have also generated controversy.[41]

References

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  1. ^ "Justin Wm. Moyer - The Washington Post". Justin Wm. Moyer. Retrieved 2024-07-21.
  2. ^ "Justin Wm. Moyer - The Washington Post". Justin Wm. Moyer. Retrieved 2024-07-21.
  3. ^ Chea, Steven. "!!! (Chk Chk Chk) brings dance party to Harlow's". Sacramento Press. Archived from the original on 1 February 2013. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
  4. ^ Interview with El Guapo (1998) Archived 2008-07-08 at the Wayback Machine, Wesleyan Music Journal. By Kim Wetzel. Issue 5, Article 4. May 1999. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
  5. ^ Senior Honors Theses in Music, 1952–2012, Wesleyan University Music Department. 1998, Justin Moyer. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
  6. ^ Kanin, Mike (8 October 1999). "Play It Er, Again". Washington City Paper. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
  7. ^ "Supersystem break up". Brooklyn Vegan. 7 December 2006. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  8. ^ "Dischord Records Antelope band page". Dischord Records. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
  9. ^ "Paging the Late, Great Philly Band SPRCSS". Philebrity. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 15 May 2012.
  10. ^ Shepherd, Julianne. "SPRCSS: MNML". Pitchfork. Retrieved 15 May 2012.
  11. ^ "SPRCSS @ Fort Reno 2011 #4". YouTube. Retrieved 15 May 2012.
  12. ^ Little, Ryan (16 May 2011). "SPRCSS Releases Two (Two!) New EPs". Washington City Paper. Retrieved 15 May 2012.
  13. ^ Boldman, Gina. "The Panoply Academy Glee Club". allmusic.com. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  14. ^ "Edie Sedgwick band page". Dischord Records. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  15. ^ "Mud Memory Records Edie Sedgwick page". Mud Memory. Retrieved 6 May 2012.
  16. ^ Moyer, Justin (19 June 2012). "Why John Bryson and John Roberts should talk about their seizures". The Washington Post. Retrieved 19 June 2012.
  17. ^ Raposa, David. "Edie Sedgwick: Her Love is Real...But She is Not". Pitchforkmedia.com. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
  18. ^ "Desoto Records Edie Sedgwick page". Desoto Records. Retrieved 6 May 2012.
  19. ^ Mackey, Robbie. "Edie Sedgwick is dead, but empty celebrity is alive and well". indyweek.com. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
  20. ^ "Edie Sedgwick: Things are getting sinister and sinisterer". DOA. Archived from the original on February 23, 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  21. ^ "E.D. Sedgwick 'Silver Bullets,'". Youtube. Retrieved 6 May 2012.
  22. ^ Warminsky, Joe. "Edie Sedgwick's Love Gets Lovelier Every Day". Washington City Paper. Archived from the original on 19 December 2011. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  23. ^ "Edie Sedgwick – We Wear White (175)". Dischord.com.
  24. ^ Schweitzer, Ally (16 April 2014). "One Track Mind: Puff Pieces, 'New Nazis'". Washington Citypaper. Retrieved 22 April 2014.
  25. ^ "Light Beams, "Feeling Good"". Thesparkmag.com.
  26. ^ "Check the Video Premiere of Light Beams Desiring Creatures". Ausdtintownhall.com. 15 September 2017.
  27. ^ "Move over Grammys, Wammies honor outstanding local musicians". WTOP News. 2021-03-29. Retrieved 2024-07-21.
  28. ^ "Hip-hop is a source of inspiration in Light Beams' evolving sound". Washington Post. 2023-11-14. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2024-07-21.
  29. ^ Moyer, Justin (October 1999). "Whitey, P.I." Washington City Paper. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  30. ^ Moyer, Justin (31 October 2008). "The Battle for the Mid-Atlantic". Washington City Paper. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  31. ^ Moyer, Justin (28 March 2012). "Five Books I'd Read". Washington City Paper. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  32. ^ Moyer, Justin (23 March 2012). "Heat Wave: Edie Sedgwick Goes to SXSW". The Washington City Paper. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  33. ^ Moyer, Justin (4 August 2009). "Book Review: Michael Jackson". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  34. ^ Moyer, Justin (18 July 2010). "Poker at Charles Town and Greenbrier". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  35. ^ Moyer, Justin. "If fewer kids are in foster care". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  36. ^ Moyer, Justin (31 August 2009). "Names and Faces". The Washington Post. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
  37. ^ Beaujon, Andrew (31 August 2009). "Hatred of Justin Moyer briefly distracts right-wing blogosphere". Washington City Paper. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
  38. ^ Moyer, Justin. "The Beatles: Let them be". The Washington Post. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
  39. ^ Moyer, Justin. "From Gandhi to MLK, history's giants have become marketing tools". The Washington Post. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
  40. ^ Moyer, Justin. "All that jazz isn't all that great". The Washington Post. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
  41. ^ Richards, Chris. "All what jazz? Or: How to declare something dead without listening to it". The Washington Post. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
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