"they've managed to piss a lot of people off"
this music is created by friends, for friends

Newark, Ohio is one of those places in the Midwest where Appalachia and The Rust Belt meet. The city is renowned for its historically seedy reputation and "rough around the edges" demographic.

During the 1980's, a close-knit group of latchkey friends weaned on skateboarding and BMX, eventually grew into a microcosm of the underground music scene. Around this time everyone started "collecting" music gear and bringing it over to Tom's basement and having impromptu punk/hardcore "jam sessions" under the pseudonym Stress Crack. Stress Crack had 1-20 members at any given time, which included: Durb Morrison (Stained Skin Tattoo, Numbskull), Jack (Fate Tattoo), Jeremy Clark (Traditional Stance, Downfall), Tony Terrell (Newark High Marching Band), Jim Stiers (Infected Youth, Downfall), Tom Barrett, Kevin Byers (Final Summons, Mourning Again), Eddie Mix (Traditional Stance, Gasohol) and Bill Rector (Traditional Stance, Numbskull) just to name a few. Walk Around Me was Stress Crack's biggest single (still available on random cassettes).

Run-ins with the local rejects were a daily occurrence, but the confrontations seemed to fade when tattoos came onto the scene. Anyway, several rival bands and 'zines existed for a while and the intercity ties were made through religious treks out of town to see bands and ride, not unlike thousands of other youths around the world.

Blatant Finger was assembled in 1993 as a three piece with Andrew Konink (16 year old, former child skateboard prodigy) on drums, Mike Walton (cool guy; everyone always congregated at his house) on bass and Tom Barrett (disgruntled music fan/mamas boy) on the vocals and guitar. Tom and Andrew had been playing in friends' hardcore bands: Downfall and Cutthroat the previous couple of years. Soon after those bands had disintegrated, Tom started concentrating on writing material for a yet to be formed band, focusing on timeless three chord guitar hooks and a more street credible vocal delivery than the wimpy pop punk/emo shit that contributed to the emasculated, easy access alterna-junk, that's everywhere today. A sort of Green Day meets Oi approach was envisioned. It had to be something organic and believable in the least!

Around 1995, Tom was finishing up at OSU and living in the infamous 89 Euclid BMX House in Columbus where Blatant Finger now practiced. BF started playing short sets at BMX parties hosted by the 24 Northwood House and also opening for Th' Flying Saucers at Stache's and elsewhere around Columbus.

Having become more and more disgusted with the way punk and alternative music we're being misrepresented and interpreted, Tom found solace in traditional country and rockabilly, "basically any old or dead hardass." In turn, some of BF's songs at the time received a little "twangification." For a long time, most of the bands Blatant Finger shared bills with were rockabilly. Most of them promoted by Columbus-based booking manager Jeff Eaton.

In 1996, a major lineup change ensued with the designation of two of Tom's long time friends on bass and drums. Jim Stiers (former lead singer of Downfall and onetime Sunsports-sponsored skateboard bra') took over the "sound of brown." Washington Courthouse native: Tony Terrell was honorably discharged from the Navy and ready to kill the drums. Tom had been wanting to get this arrangement together for years and the opportunity finally arrived.

Blatant Finger continued pounding their way throughout the region and landing some opening spots for more than a few national acts. In 1999, BF started recording the first full length Sit & Spin in Workbook Studios. Shopping a demo was never a consideration at the time and the self-released disc came out in the spring of 2000. Less than a handful of copies were sent out for review. Regardless, Sit & Spin has been praised considerably for a punk debut. The show dates kept coming, from all out brawls, empty rooms, dance clubs, birthday parties, art shows to opening up for a pissed off and cancelled Weird Al (twine ball!!) show.

On one dark day in 2000, when Columbus' brilliant version of a punk Mollie Hatchet: Dixie Chopper split up; drinkin' buddy and friend Fred Sarginger aka The Swashbuckler was asked to join Blatant Finger as lead guitarist. Sarginger's guitar work gave BF a more polished and full sound. Hailing from Salem, Ohio Fred's no Quaker when it comes to songwriting (check out The Recovery)! "Fred and Jim's song arrangements are definitely more planned out than mine, that's for sure." (Barrett, 2003)

In the summer of 2002, not long after completing multiple dates with Tommy and the Terrors and Suspect Device in Boston and Providence, Blatant Finger welcomed the drumming expertise of John Nincehelser of The Baxters and Let it Rip promotions. One year later, Blatant Finger was offered a pressing and promotion deal from Pelado Records out of Costa Mesa, California.

Blatant Finger went back into Workbook Studios late 2003 to complete a 14 song cd, Moving Forward, for Pelado Records which was released in early 2004.

Sometime in the 2005 range, Stiers stepped out of the bass position and Marc Cerana came in from cyberspace to fill in. Marc was formerly in Concrete Trampoline from New Philly, Ohio. Sometime after the Bosnian Conflict and finishing grad school etc. etc. we lucked out that he was interested in playing in C-town (his now-permanent residence) via a post on cring.com..

Oh, then the ol Ninch decided to part. Tony Terrell was in town having moved back from Chicago and playing with DonkeyPunch. He surprisingly agreed to join the lost cause again for some pre-scheduled dates. After a few months of rehearsing permanent drummers, TT was back on full time again as our own Mr. Drummint'. A year or so goes by, the Ninch swings by to play drums for the current release- Eight for the Road. July 2008; the ep is self-released to get it on the streets asap. DIY..... kinda..