The Halo Benders

The Halo Benders was a band formed in 1994 as a side project by Calvin Johnson of Beat Happening and Doug Martsch of Built to Spill. They released their first album, God Don't Make No Junk, in 1994. They followed up in 1996 with Don't Tell Me Now and in 1998 with The Rebels Not In. All three of the band's albums were released on Johnson's Olympia record label, K Records. Following a hiatus through the early 2000s, the Halo Benders reformed in March 2007 for a pair of shows at the Visual Arts Collective in Boise, Idaho. The band featured Doug Martsch, Ralf Youtz, Calvin Johnson, Bret Netson, and Stephen Gere. November 2010, a reformed version with both Doug and Calvin appeared for a benefit for Friends of Mia, related to Mia Zapata the late singer for The Gits at the Capitol Theater in Olympia,WA.