Thin White Rope

by Jason Ankeny
Copping their name from William S. Burroughs euphemism for ejaculation, Thin White Rope was founded in Davis, California in 1984; although the time and place of their formation aligned them with both the Paisley Underground and roots-rock movements, the group quickly staked out its own musical territory, divining their own unique brand of dark, surreal desert-rock. Thin White Rope was led by singer/guitarist Guy Kyser, whose harsh, tightly-coiled vocals and unsettling lyrics combined to give the band its edge; in the groups first incarnation, Kyser was joined by guitarist Roger Kunkel, bassist Kevin Staydohar (soon replaced by Steven Tesluk) and drummer Jozef Becker.
While Thin White Ropes 1985 debut Exploring the Axis flirted with neo-psychedelia, the 1987 follow-up Moonhead upped the ante by allowing the desperation of Kysers lyrics to take full command of the music: unrelentingly grim and harrowingly provocative, the albums best songs — like Crawl Piss Freeze and If Those Tears — were postcards from the edge. Following the addition of new bassist John von Feldt, 1988s In the Spanish Cave continued along the same path, albeit with a renewed sense of humor (Mr. Limpet) and more oblique wordplay.
Though garnering little notice stateside, Thin White Rope earned a solid fanbase in Europe, and even became the first American independent-label act to tour the Soviet Union. 1990s Sack Full of Silver, a collection of songs written while on tour abroad, featured new drummer Matthew Abourezk as well as a newly-focused sonic attack; the album also featured a left-field rendition of Cans Yoo Doo Right, a hint of things to come on the 1991 all-covers EP Squatters Rights.
1991s full-length The Ruby Sea, a dense, atmospheric work highlighted by the riveting Clown Song, proved to be Thin White Ropes studio swan song: in 1992 the band split, and while most of the players continued performing in various musical projects, Kyser devoted himself to a career as a botanist. The posthumous The One That Got Away 6-28-92 Ghent, a two-disc live set recorded in Belgium peppered with odd covers of Lee and Nancys Some Velvet Morning, Bob Dylans Outlaw Blues and Hawkwinds Silver Machine, appeared in 1993; Spoor, a collection of demos, remixes and rare tracks, followed two years later.