About Fine China

There are two bands with the name Fine China. 1) Fine China from Phoenix, Arizona. Fine China was an indie rock band from Phoenix, Arizona comprised of Rob Withem (vocals, guitar), Greg Markov (bass) and Thom Walsh (drums). The indie rock three-piece Fine China have been honing their keyboard-laden style since signing to Velvet Blue Music in 1997. That same year Fine China made their debut with the release of their 7 inch entitled, "The Beautiful" and an E.P. entitled, "No One Knows". In 1998 the band released their second E.P. known as "Rialto Bridge". These first two E.P.s were a mixture of rock and synth-pop. During the span of 1997-1998 the band started gigging in and around their hometown of Phoenix, building a name for themselves while sharing tour dates with fellow space rockers like Starflyer 59 and electronic group Joy Electric. In 2000 the band released their first full length, the synth-pop oriented "When the World Sings" on Tooth & Nail Records. In 2001 Fine China released their second full length and and fifth album all together entitled "You Make Me Hate Music". While their first full-length was synth heavy this album was much more rock oriented . It received great reviews and pushed the band further into the indie rock spotlight. After a brief hiatus the band returned to the studio in 2004 to begin work on their third full length. In 2005 it was released as the critically acclaimed "Jaws of Life" which features fellow Velvet Blue artist Josh Dooley of Map and Starflyer 59. The "Jaws of Life" is also noted for the pop hit, "My Worst Nightmare" which is known as a favorite track from the populat television show, the oc. That same year they also released a 7 inch titled "Don't Frown" on Velvet Blue Music. Fine China the band came to an end in 2006. Rob Withem announced this sad news through a letter dated April 21, 2006. The letter is as follows: "better to burn out than to fade away Hello everyone, This is Rob from FC. My first post on this site will also be my last post. After 9 years of being and doing Fine China the day has come to call it quits. We are burnt out, we are tired, and we are ready to move on to the next stage in our lives. We have loved being in this band, and making music that we thought/hoped/wondered if it meant anything to anyone, and the response on this site alone has been wonderful. Thank you for your generous and kind words, and thank you for listening. In the days to come, we will finally post the video for Rated-R Movie, as well as some live and rare tracks, as a farewell to you, our friends." 2) Fine China from San Diego, CA. Fine China is a local hard rock band from San Diego, CA.