Gray Matter officially formed in the summer of 1983 from the remnants of several Washington, D.C. area punk bands. Geoff Turner, Mark Haggerty and Dante Ferrando had been playing in bands since their early junior high school days. In 1983, Dante and Mark were playing in
Iron Cross, but when the band's image began to reflect its violent supporters more than the members themselves, Dante quit. Soon after Mark also left and the two reunited with Geoff and
Steve Niles and started playing shows around Washington D.C. as Gray Matter. The band's first album,
Food For Thought, was recorded at
Inner Ear studio in November 1984 with
Minor Threat's
Ian Mackaye assisting with production. It was originally released on
R&B Records in 1985, while the members were still in high school. In 1986,
Dischord Records released the EP
Take It Back. Shortly thereafter, Mark left the band to go to college and Gray Matter broke up. Dante went on to play drums for Ignition and Geoff, Steve, and Mark reunited and formed the band Three, with Jeff Nelson from Minor Threat. Gray Matter reformed in the spring of 1990 and released a double seven inch in 1991 and the full-length,
Thog, in 1992. The band officially disbanded in 1993. Dischord originally re-issued
Food For Thought and
Take It Back (DIS 49) onto one CD in 1990.
Post-breakup Niles later gained fame for writing horror comic books, in particular
30 Days of Night. Geoff Turner went on to found WGNS recording studios, and Dante Ferrando is the founder and owner of long running D.C. alternative and punk nightclub the
Black Cat. On September 21, 2003, the band reunited for a one off show to celebrate to 10th anniversary of the Black Cat. Subsequently, Gray Matter has performed at the Black Cat's 15th, 20th, 25th, and 30th anniversary shows. ==Influences==