Gregor Samsa

Named after the main character in Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis, the Aroura, IL-based Gregor Samsa originally started out in 1995 as "something to do" between a collective of friends. Without the purpose of having a specific sound, the lineup would change constantly, at one point having up to ten members playing everything from Moog keyboards, to triangle, to pots and hammers. Between 1995 and 1998, Gregor Samsa's sound labeled them as "congested noise" as some of their songs only consisted of tape loop noise and guitar feedback. But by 1999, the remaining members Thomas Chavon (synth/guitar/bass/vocals) and Rick Berry (drums/percussion) collaborated on a quirk of new wave and noise that was eventually released on their self-titled debut album that same year on their own Ruben Sandwich Records.