The John Spencer Blues Explosion “Crypt Style” 1992. Crypt Records. Today, June 18th is Mr. Judah Bauer’s 50th birthday! I’ve known Judah since the 9th grade when we were at Roosevelt Junior High in Appleton, WI. Here’s some yearbook photos from the ‘85-’86 yearbook for entertainment (pictured also is our friend, Cristian, and to spread the embarrassment around, I’m including mine as well). Here’s also a photo of the three of us plus Judah’s older brother, Donovan, in 2015.

Crypt Style! and John Spencer Blues Explosion (shown below on CD, Caroline Records) both came out in ‘92, and both in April I believe. The albums are intense, heavy and experimental. There are a few cuts that made both releases, such as “Chicken Walk,” “’78 Style” and “Comeback.” Because I’m from Wisconsin, my favorite track is, of course, “40lb Block of Cheese,” mainly because I envision the writing process that went into the song involving some late night with the guys sitting around an apartment in NYC, Judah regaling Jon and Russell with tales of growing up in a smallish Wisconsin city with nothing much to do other than eat cheese (not totally wrong).