About Plunger

There is more than one artist with this name. 1. A Maryland Emo group formed in the 90's. 2. A New York alternative indie group formed in 1994 and disbanded in 2001. 1. Plunger was a 90's emo band from Crofton, MD. The line up consisted of: Tom LoMacchio - Vocals Derek Haseltine - Drums Matt Brennan - Guitar Marc Haseltine - Bass A history of Plunger and Tom LoMacchio, taken from the myspace of Tom LoMacchio's current band Stereograph. 1990- Tom and his family move to Crofton, MD, a neighboring town of Annapolis, where Marc was already living with his family. Both were fans of punk/post punk/new wave music of the 80s, and found a thriving local scene in Annapolis and Washington, DC. Some of the bands of the time that proved to be an influence include The Hated, Moss Icon, Lungfish, and Tsunami. 1993- Marc and his brother Derek form Plunger, along with their friend Matt Brennan. Tom and his book of lyrics join as their singer, and Plunger releases their first demo. Plunger plays their first show to a small, anxious crowd, where they start their tradition of emotional and sometimes chaotic performances. 1994- Plunger self-releases their first vinyl recording - a 5 song 7" EP. In the summer, the release receives favorable reviews in MAXIMUMROCKNROLL ("Melodic post-punk stuff here, well worth the price") and HeartattaCk ("Plunger is a good band and this is one record worthy of many, many listens"). The record grabs the attention of Daniel McVey (Spearfinger Records) and Scott Beibin (Bloodlink Records) in New Jersey. A split 7" with William Martyr 17, another split 7" with Blank and a handful of New Jersey shows follow. New Jersey becomes Plunger's most played state next to their home state of Maryland. Members of the Bee Hive Collective in Washington, DC help Plunger get some great shows. Plunger's most notable shows in 1994-95 include performances with Universal Order of Armageddon, Cap'n Jazz, Indian Summer, Lync, The Delta 72, The Crownhate Ruin, and Antioch Arrow. 1996- Once again working with Daniel McVey and Spearfinger Records, Tom releases his first solo LP/CD under the project title The Deadwood Divine. This album was recorded entirely on 4-track cassette by long time friend Jason Eaton and features appearances by Ryan Shellket of Blank and Joe Mattson of Constatine Sankathi. A two-month summer tour of the US ensues, including a performance on LA's KXLU radio station, followed by a successful double 7" single on Bloodlink Records, also titled The Deadwood Divine. Plunger records a final session in Pennsylvania, funded by Monica Ormes and Nick Pimentel (Planaria Recordings). In August, Plunger played their last show in Alexandria, Virginia. 1997- A second and final two-month tour for The Deadwood Divine project takes place in the summer. A posthumous Plunger LP, containing an unreleased 1995 session and their final 1996 session, is released by Planaria Recordings. 1999- Tom meets Mike Treff, then owner of Linkwork Records, now the owner of Tiger Style Records. Linkwork forks over the cash for a three day nightmare recording session in Washington, DC. The result is Tom's final acoustic full length to date, under his own name, and titled "Five Years Later". The release is supported by a string of shows in New York City, and several in Baltimore, Maryland. Tom begins learning analog and digital synthesizers, slowly forming a solo electronic project that would be called Stanlow. This work would existed as a bridge between the past and Stereograph's inception. 2000- Tom meets Dan at a favorite Baltimore hang out, The Depot, on the club's synthpop/new wave night. They quickly become friends. Tom plays 3 final acoustic shows: One in Baltimore, Maryland, a second in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and an announced final performance in Denver, Colorado at Double Entendre Records. 2003- After four years of preparation and juggling band members, Tom contacts Marc to see if he would play in the band version of his Stanlow music project. Marc full-heartedly accepts the offer. 2004- Dan agrees to try his hand at electronic percussion. Dan mentions the stereograph, a mid-19th century photograph viewing device, while he and Tom watch an old 70's British horror film. What a great name for a band! Finally, a three piece band with a name! It's official... Stereograph is born! 2. Plunger was a 1990's alternative band from Cortland, NY. The band's formal lineup was Corey Brandes (guitar), Brian Melanson (Bass), Chris (Weasel) Monaco (drums) and Adam Milne (Vocals). The band wrote and played over 30 songs which reached a large audience due to constant touring. In 2000 the band released an experimental rock album under the name Choke Monkeys. It was the last with lead singer Adam Milne who passed away in 2001. Guitarist Corey Brandes continues to write and record under the name Sufflocky www.last.fm/music/Sufflockyto this day.