Railroad Jerk is an "industrial folk" band (for lack of a better term) that came hurtling out of New York City in the early '90s. They were discovered by Matador Records founder Chris Lombardi on the Bowery, playing their idiosyncratic flavor of music for whatever people would give them.
The band basically consisted of four unchanging members, Marcellus Hall, Tony Lee, Dave Varenka, and Alec Stephen. Information on other musicians in the band is either confusing or vague. The band wasn't around for too long, but did manage to create some great music, plus Marcellus and Dave formed the band White Hassle after the breakup.
But what do they SOUND like? It's hard to describe. A lot of their uptempo stuff sounds hurried, kind of ragged, but full of energy. The vocals can be kind of yelpy, but really do fit in with the sound. (If you just HAVE to know, to be cheap: the White Stripes' Hotel Yorba sounds eerily alike to a LOT of Railroad Jerk) But, if you are one of the few, patient, souls who will actually go out and take the time to get used to their sound, here's a discography:
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