There is more than one artist with this name: 1) Sticks and Stones is a punk rock band from New Brunswick, New Jersey formed in 1987. They currently consist of Pete Ventantonio on guitar/vocals, Chris Calello on drums, Osamu Kawahara on bass/vocals, and Johnny X on guitar and vocals. They were originally active in the fertile New Jersey punk scene of the late 80's and early 90's, but have recently reunited. The band went against punk convention, rejecting trends often at the expense of commercial success. They are considered by some to have been ahead of their time, but disbanded in 1995 before their particular brand of punk would become more popular. They were closely associated with fellow New Brunswick band The Bouncing Souls, including releasing albums on The Bouncing Souls' own label, Chunksaah Records. Upon disbanding in 1995, the members of the band went on to several successful projects. Guitarist and vocalist Pete Ventantonio, under the pseudonym of Jack Terricloth, became the lead singer and personality for punk cabaret band The World/Inferno Friendship Society while Johnny X started the band Johnny X and the Conspiracy as well as the comic book series 66 Thousand Miles Per Hour. The band has recently had a resurgence. In 2003 they released the double-album The Strife and Times, a collection of 41 remastered songs drawn from all their previous efforts, to commemorate the release of their first full-length album. On Halloween 2004, the band performed a surprise set in the middle of The World/Inferno Friendship Society's annual Hallowmas show in Brooklyn. Since then they have performed several intermittent shows, including ones reuniting with their old friends, The Bouncing Souls. 2) Jazz trio Sticks and Stones formed years ago when drummer Chad Taylor (Chicago Underground, Sam Prekop Band, Active Ingredients), bassist Josh Abrams (Town and Country, Sam Prekop Band, David Boykin Expanse, Nicole Mitchell Black Earth Ensemble, The Roots) and alto saxophonist Matana Roberts met each other at a performance space in Chicago. Roberts and Abrams had played extensively at open jam sessions at Fred Anderson's legendary Chicago club, The Velvet Lounge. The three immensely enjoyed playing together, and thanks to Fred Anderson soon became the house band at the Sunday night Velvet Lounge sessions. It took nearly four years of playing together before they adopted the name "Sticks and Stones," (the name of a favorite song of Chad Taylor), and an even longer time before the released their first album, 2002's Sticks and Stones (on Chicago's 482 Music). Their second and newest release, Shed Grace, is their first on Thrill Jockey. It was recorded at Semaphore Studios with Ken B. Brown (Directions in Music, Tortoise, Pullman). The album was recorded in two February sessions following their first ever US tour (February of 2003), and a third and final session in October. It was recorded live to tape using no edits or overdubs, preserving all of the spontaneous energy and raw excitement of their live shows. Shed Grace is largely original compositions (songwriting split equally among the three). The eclectic selection of covers includes songs by Fela Kuti, Thelonious Monk, and Billy Strayhorn. 3) HArd Rock/glam band from Iowa, USA.