The Gits

[ComfortablyNumb]

THE GITS

The Gits were a punk rock band from Seattle, Washington that formed in 1986 in Yellow Springs, Ohio. They are known for their part in the Seattle scene during the 1990s, their influence on the Riot Grrl genre, and their distinct punk rock sound that gained a reputation for its bluesy street punk aesthetic. They were known for their live performances and they had a dedicated following both during and after their existence.

Mia Zapata lyrics dealt with inner struggles, alcohol, death, survival, hopelessness, feminism

The band dissolved in 1993 after Zapata's murder.
After the initial shock of Zapata's murder, both the remaining members of the Gits and the Seattle musical community began an intense investigation into her death. The Seattle Police Department initially focused theirs on Zapata's friends, believing that her murderer must have been someone she knew. Using funds generated by the Seattle music community (from benefit shows and CDs), as well as their own money, the remaining band members hired private investigator Leigh Hearon.
For over three years, Hearon and the Seattle Police Department investigated the crime with little or no breaks in the case.

Seven years passed with few new leads until a random DNA check conducted by the Seattle PD's Cold Case Unit and the Washington State Crime Lab led to the arrest of a Cuban-American fisherman,Jesus Mezquia. Mezquia, who briefly lived in Seattle during the time of Zapata's murder. He was linked to the crime in 2003 when a DNA profile was extracted from a saliva sample left on Zapata's body.

Mezquia had bitten her breast. It had been kept in cold storage until the STR technology was developed for full extraction. An original entry in 2001 failed to generate a positive result, but Mezquia's DNA entered the national databank after he was arrested for burglary in 2002.

In 2004 a jury convicted Mezquia of Zapata's murder and sentenced him to 36 years in prison.

After Zapata's murder, friends (Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Heart. and the Presidents of the United States of America) helped to create a non-profit self-defense group called Home Alive, which still exists to this day. They hold a range of courses, from anger management and use of pepper spray to the martial arts.

Punk rock band 7 Year Bitch, who were good friends and briefly label mates of The Gits, named their 1994 album ¡Viva Zapata! as a tribute.
The cover features a painting of Zapata wearing bullet sashes. The song "M.I.A.," which explicitly deals with Zapata's death, appears on this album.

Though they never signed with a major label and never reached the mainstream, they were very influential, Zapata especially. She has been cited as an influence by several subsequent female punk vocalists.

Great band. It is a shame Mia was killed because it would have been interesting to see what they did next.

Members

Mia Zapata - vocals

Joe Spleen (AKA. Andy Kessler) - guitar

Matt Dresdner - bass

Steve Moriarty - drums


Albums

Frenching the Bully- their best album IMO

Enter: The Conquering Chicken

Kings & Queens

Seafish Louisville

Best of The Gits









(I will post so more videos later, my youtube is messed up)

 

[FoxyPage]

Nice thread, dude, I haven't listened to them in ages. Almost forgot they existed.

 

[rtbuck]

I know it's not Mia but the band also released a live cd with Joan Jett on vocals under the name Evil Stig (backwards Gits Live). She dod a brief tour with proceeds from the tour & album to go towards the investigation in the case. Jett also wrote a song titled "Go Home" on her 'Pure & Simple' album which was about Mia's death & at the end of the video for the song there was a message asking for any info on Mia's Death.

 

[ComfortablyNumb]

Yea I have the album Evil Stig made.

Here are some videos of that.









Here is another great song by The Gits with Mia.


If you look up the lyrics to this song it is very very very very creepy what she wrote about and how she was murdered.

 

[Fisha]

Oh I remember checking these guys out a little back after hearing a bit about the organization. Female vocals add something to heavier forms of music. I love it.