Visqueen

Visqueen formed in Seattle in 2001 and took their name from a brand of plastic sheeting that Homeland Security chief Tom Ridge once pitched as protection against bioterrorism, which tells you plenty about their sense of humor. Rachel Flotard sang, wrote and played guitar, Ben Hooker drummed (both had come from Hafacat), and Kim Warnick, late of the Fastbacks, rounded out the band.

The sound is power pop with a punk engine: fast, loud, fuzzed-up and packed with hooks, with Flotard's big, brassy voice leading the charge. King Me, from 2003, has "Vaxxine" on it, a buzzing little blast of a song.

The lineup shifted after Warnick retired at the end of 2004, with Ronnie Barnett of the Muffs sitting in on bass for a tour, then Bill Coury, Tom Cummings and producer Barrett Jones coming aboard at various points, before Cristina Bautista took over the bass. The third album, Message to Garcia, came out in 2009 on Flotard's own Local 638 Records, named for the union her late father belonged to. They played what were billed as farewell shows in 2011, but it didn't stick: in 2016 Flotard, Hooker and Bautista reunited to open for X at the Crocodile Lounge in Seattle.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.