Bio

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Cut to the chase:

 The Hasbros are an American indie alt/pop band from Queens, New York who played their earliest gigs at CBGB’s and other NYC clubs. The band includes guitarists Ken O’Connor and Bob Hanophy, drummer Joe Gorelick (Garden Variety/Red Hare) and bass player Tom Cavanagh (Lita Ford/Pop Smart Overdrive). Their 2018 LP, “Cart Before The Horse” received rave reviews. Their long awaited follow-up, “God Hates The Hasbros” was released in October of 2023. 

Deeper Dive:

The Hasbros are an American indie alt/pop band formed in  the New York City Borough of Queens in the mid-1980's. After growing pains, and several personnel changes, the band clicked in 1986 when guitarist Bob Hanophy answered an ad seeking musicians playing sounds similar to his interests. It was at that audition that Bob realized that the guys he was jamming with didn't know what the hell they were talking about. While they bickered between songs, Bob stood off to the side and played Black Flag riffs and was surprisingly joined by the band’s 6’7” bass player, Ken O’Connor. Bob left the audition and didn’t return their calls. After placing his own ad seeking musicians, Bob received a call from a cool sounding bass player who, in as small a world as you can get in the NY Metro area, turned out to be O’Connor. Bob and Ken were soon joined behind the drum kit by Joe Gorelick. The band played many NYC area shows, garnered favorable press reviews and gathered a small following. The band opened for The Spin Doctors, They Might Be Giants and other leading acts in the NY club scene. After failing to gain the traction to continue on, the band eventually petered out with Gorelick  going on to tour extensively, first playing in King Missile on their Atlantic Record’s U.S. tour debut, then creating the popular emo-punk band trio Garden Variety and later joining Washington DC’s Bluetip, 5 records and multiple TV appearances with NYC trio Retisonic, a UK tour with Marah, and finally releasing two critically acclaimed LP's with Dischord records band Red Hare (ex-SWIZ).

After reuniting for a one off show at NYC's, "Arlene's Grocery," the band made plans to record a long overdue LP. In 2017, The Hasbros descended upon Obscenic Arts Studio in Dillsburg, Pennsylvania, to work with Anthony Esposito (Ace Frehley, Lynch Mob, Red Dragon Cartel) to record the critically acclaimed 2018 album, 

"Cart Before The Horse."  While plans for its follow up were derailed by the COVID pandemic, the band  dropped two basement demos on Bandcamp to keep interest in the band at a high level. The Hasbros expanded from a trio to a quartet in September of 2022 with the return of Thomas Michael Cavanagh (Lita Ford, Pop Smart Overdrive), who had a previous stint in the band in the early 90's. Together, The Hasbros recorded their second album (with the tongue in cheek title), "God Hates The Hasbros" which was released in October of 2023. The album contains twelve tracks of the melodic post-punk, with a side of sandpaper that Hasbros fans love.