Clockcleaner

Clockcleaner is a punk band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,USA, named after a particular "hot bag" of heroin that was distributed in Philadelphia in the 1980s. The band consists of John Sharkey III on vocals/guitar, Karen Horner on 6-string bass guitar, and Richie Charles Jr on drums. The trio has drawn comparisons to The Birthday Party, Big Black, Bauhaus, Flipper and even harsh noise band Whitehouse. Their influences have been cited as including Crucifucks, Modern English, Cro-Mags, GG Allin, Neil Young and the first Skrewdriver LP.

Formed in summer 2003, Clockcleaner released an LP called The Hassler on the now defunct Philadelphia label Manic Ride Records. The album echoed early 1990s noise rock, with high pitch guitar sonics and a thumping bass sound. After touring for the EP, original bass guitarist Warren Slegel was fired from the band, and was replaced in the studio by John Sharkey. In early 2006, they released a 7" on Baltimore’s Noise/Avant label Hit-Dat Records ("Missing Dick" b/w Crucifucks' cover "By the Door"). Soon to follow was their second LP, released on another Baltimore label, Reptilian Records. The album was called Nevermind (a sarcastic ode to Nirvana's 1991 release). The record was allegedly recorded while Sharkey was under a state of bi-lateral amnesia from a car accident in the summer of 2005. John Sharkey has insisted that the title was a joke to annoy people (he has even gone so far as to call Nirvana "dogshit" in a Dusted magazine interview in 2007):