Burning Airlines were a three-piece post-hardcore band from Washington, DC that formed in 1997 and broke up in 2002. Following the dissolution of Jawbox in 1997, vocalist/guitarist J. Robbins and guitarist Bill Barbot reconvened as Burning Airlines, with Barbot switching over to bass. They were joined by drummer Peter Moffet, Robbins' former bandmate in Government Issue. Barbot left the band in 1999 and was replaced by Mike Harbin (who had previously played in Admiral). Ben Pape joined them in 2000 as a second guitarist and keyboardist, rounding out their line-up as a four-piece.
Burning Airlines released two full-lengths, a 7", and two splits (both with incredible bands). Most of their material was released by DeSoto Records, a label run by Barbot and Kim Coletta. In many ways, this band was a continuation of Jawbox, with the duel-guitar mingling, off-kilter rhythms, and melodic vocals. I wouldn't say they sound exactly alike, more like a natural evolution had Jawbox continued. Which isn't surprising, considering it quite literally was the case for 2/3 of them. Having said that, I do want to underline that they do stand on their own They considered a name change near the end of their tenure (touring the US post-September 2001 with this name was... unfortunate), but decided against it. The band abruptly broke up the following year. Highly recommended stuff, enjoy.
Yeah, B.A. was phenomenal, both on record and live. I probably saw them a half dozen times during their lifetime; a pretty decent alternative to missing out on Jawbox.
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