Latch
| Latch | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Genres | Punk/Alternative |
| Years active | 1989-1990 |
| Past members | |
| Del Howes (guitar/bass), Simon Clifton (vocals), Lee Winter (drums), Andy Sandall (bass/guitar), Paul Bott (vocals) | |
Latch was a band formed from the remnants of Fruit Shop and was one of the first of the short-lived bands that were created quickly whenever a gig at the Boston Indian Queen needed a last minute support band or (more usually) Vehicle Derek had been asked to play a show and one or more members were unavailable. Latch performed twice in the space of a month, supporting out of town bands Sink, Fudge Tunnel, Juice and the newly formed Big Chief Fail. The sets were a mix of hardcore punk covers, original songs, and reworked versions of rejected Vehicle Derek songs.
The band split up live on stage at their second and last gig on 5th January 1990 when, needing to fill a 40 minute slot and only having 25 minutes worth of material, the band embarked on a 15 minute version of Suzanne Vega's Luka, a task not helped by band members only knowing the words to the first verse and chorus. Most band members quit the stage around eight minutes in, leaving just Del Howes and Lee Winter remaining on guitar and drums respectively. Howes then announced that they had become a new band - Toboggan - and proceeded to play the opening of Bruce Springsteen's 'Born In The USA' for ten more minutes before ending the set and leaving the stage.