New Jersey isn't the most likely place to find a driving, melodic punk band -- that's more of a West Coast thing -- but Heckle wanted to change all of that when they first got together in 1994. Having an appreciation for California acts such as Bad Religion and NOFX with an added inspiration of early D.C. and New York hardcore bands, Steve Cunningham (vocals), Chris Whalen (bass), Eric Arikian (guitar), and Tim Caspare (drums) played up and down the East Coast with this combined sound before releasing their split EP with AFI in early 1996. During that same year, Wingnut Records released their first full-length, We're Not Laughing with You, followed by a full-scale tour, adding Todd Hennig (formerly of Vermont's SevenYearsWar) on drums to replace Caspare. After getting hooked up with Hopeless Records, their sophomore (and final) effort, The Complicated Futility of Ignorance, was released in 1999. ~ Mike DaRonco