The Greenhornes's recorded their debut at Ultrasuede Studio in Cincinnati. One of the earliest other debut albums I could find recorded there was Lizard 99's 1990 self-released album Black Fantastic.
The first track of Black Fantastic calls to mind The Feelies mixed with Steve Albini's Big Black project but after "Dance Dance Dance" concludes, it gives way to the less industrial and more metal and goth rock influences of the 80s. Solid musicianship prevents Black Fantastic from becoming a chore to listen to even if the lyrics force an eye-roll at least once or twice per song.
Zee Avi had gone viral with her song "No Christmas for Me" but it took drummer Patrick Keeler to begin the journey of getting her name to the right people, specifically, to his manager Ian Montone.
Patrick Keeler has drummed in a few bands but started out with the retro garage rock band The Greenhornes. The quintet released their debut album Gun for You in 1999, and it is the sole release of Prince Records (likely the band's own label.)
The title of the album and its cover are the only indicators for the listener that this is a nineties release. Play any track at random and it could be the start of a compilation album featuring decent but forgotten Midwestern garage rock gems of the 1960s. But, The Greenhornes are not a sixties band and they're not musical archaeologists though they make a good act of it. Rather, they are more akin to geneticists, and their cloning project is a scientific success. From the lyrics and song structures to the vocals and harmonies to the guitar riffs and audio production, they sound exactly like a band formed amidst the long shadow of The Rolling Stones that never managed to sonically get out from under it. If the album were a rediscovery from a past era, it might have enjoyed cult status as an album of the lost "very good" from creative middle America. Instead, The Greenhornes have crafted an album as a very good bar band: playing for patrons originals that sound like covers which are just trying to recapture, for the players and for the listeners, the love of a past era now gone.
Here is the discography surrounding The Greenhornes's debut album:
