Hailing from Champaign, IL, the Blackouts spent five years in the garage banging out Cramps riffs and perfecting their rock & roll growl before unleashing their debut, Every Day Is Sunday Evening, on the Lucid label. The 2002 album brought the first wave of Strokes, New Bomb Turks, and Mooney Suzuki comparisons in the press, often qualified with phrases like "tougher than…" and "more intense than…." Some picked up on the band's Television influence, while others heard a bit of Neil Young in the mix. Sharing the stage with J Mascis and the Ravonettes increased the Blackouts' following outside of the Chicago area and prepared them for their sophomore release. The more mature Living in Blue hit the shelves in early 2005 as the bandmembers announced they were changing their name. With too many other bands using "blackout" somewhere in their moniker, the Blackouts became the Living Blue and signed a deal with Minty Fresh. ~ David Jeffries