Black Market Flowers

Biography

Guitarist Matt Neth and Bassist Bryan Ray started playing together right out of high school as Black Market Flowers (name given to them by a schoolmate). After going through numerous incarnations of band members and name changes in their hometown San Francisco, they settled in Los Angeles and shortly thereafter finalized the line up with Heath Patterson as thee drummer as well as Matt picking up the task of lead vocals. They settled with the original name given to them and the power trio was bor...

Guitarist Matt Neth and Bassist Bryan Ray started playing together right out of high school as Black Market Flowers (name given to them by a schoolmate). After going through numerous incarnations of band members and name changes in their hometown San Francisco, they settled in Los Angeles and shortly thereafter finalized the line up with Heath Patterson as thee drummer as well as Matt picking up the task of lead vocals. They settled with the original name given to them and the power trio was born.

The first single Cracked Pain / Coool was cut in San Francisco by Bart Thurber and released in 1991 on Piece of Mind Records followed shortly by a three song demo Fixin' / Kenny and Cleo / Pink Heavy produced by Rich Mouser (in his bedroom studio complete with mixing board on the waterbed). After a year of gigging clubs on the west coast, Black Market Flowers were signed by Relativity Records, and released Gladiola Flower Petal II CD-EP and 7" in the Spring of 1993 with Sympathize, I'll Awake, Hurry Home, and a cover of Neil Youngs Cinnamon Girl. Later that year BMF released their debut full length, Bind. They tracked the album at Butch Vigs Smart Studios in Madison, WI and mixed it with Richard Mouser at the Mouse House in Pasadena. They Toured the US a whole bunch, released a single and a video for Kenny and Cleo (video directed by Casey Nicolli), totaled their fifteen passenger van in Knoxville TN, toured some more, released Fixin as a second single, quit Relativity and then quickly signed with Jon Pikus label Boys Life / Interscope in 1995. Their second album Thicket was released later that year along with the video for Rainvisor directed by Scott Sampler. Secret track included on CD was a cover of Echo and the Bunnymens Do It Clean tracked and produced by Matt on an old school Otari 8 track in the band's rehearsal studio. A 10" vinyl version of Thicket was released with switched up sequence of tracks, an additional song and different album art. Additional track included on the 10" vinyl was PTWTWABS (played the whole thing with a broken string) recorded live to DAT Tape (a song usually reserved as a recovery song if Matt or Bryan broke a string in the middle of a live set). Toured the US some more. While Black Market Flowers were writing and recording for their third full length album in July 1997, sisters Mykel, Carli and Trysta Allen were killed in a car accident while driving home from a concert to see their father in Salt Lake City. BMF played their last show, with Weezer and That Dog, as a fundraiser for the sisters' family. They were truly the first BMF fans and helped the band from start to finish. It didn't seem right to go on with out them.
LOVE, Heath, Matt and Bryan Ray
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