New Wet Kojak Announce First Shows in Over 20 Years

New Wet Kojak will be reuniting their original 5-person lineup for three shows on the East Coast in December. Aside from playing five songs at the Black Cat’s 15th anniversary event in DC in 2014, these will be their first shows in more than 20 years.

New Wet Kojak Upcoming Shows

DEC 1st – Kingston, NY - Tubby’s

DEC 2nd – Brooklyn, NY – Saint Vitus

DEC 3rd – Washington, DC - Black Cat Red Room

New Wet Kojak was formed in 1993 by guitarist/singer Scott McCloud and bassist Johnny Temple – both members of Girls Against Boys + Soulside - during a lost weekend in Amsterdam. They created an overtly seductive aesthetic on their albums – utilizing the saxophone, whispered vocals and reserved instrumentation.

After the original weekend in Amsterdam, the project picked up steam a bit later in DC, after a Girls Against Boys show at the (original) 9:30 Club. McCloud and Temple used alcohol to con three DC friends into doing some more recording: Geoff Turner (Gray Matter) and Charles Bennington (High Back Chairs) joined on lead guitar/keyboards and saxophone, respectively, along with drummer Nick Pelliciotto (Edsel).

More songs emerged, as well as a loose band aesthetic of raw, late-night experimentation. It was a wildly erratic combination of difficult personalities and musical arrogance, with a pitch-perfect balance of brilliance and confusion. They were aware that having a saxophonist in the band could be problematic.

In 1995, the five-piece ensemble released their self-titled debut album via Touch and Go. Their second album, Nasty International, was released by Touch and Go in 1997. The releases that followed, Do Things (2000) No. 4 EP, and This Is The Glamorous (2003) were released by Beggars Banquet.

Why did they stop performing and making records? They’ll take that secret to the grave. Why did they decide to play again now? None of your business. Either way, it’s time.