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title: Drive Like Jehu created: 2026-04-07 updated: 2026-04-07 type: band tags: [band, post-hardcore, noise-rock, era-1990s] sources: [raw/articles/drive-like-jehu-wikipedia.md]

Drive Like Jehu

San Diego, California. Formed 1990 by John Reis (guitar/vocals, ex-Pitchfork) and Rick Froberg (guitar/vocals). Mark Trombino (drums) and Mike Kennedy (bass). Math-rock-inflected post-hardcore. One of the most important bands in San Diego’s legendary 1990s scene.

Key Releases

  • Drive Like Jehu (1991, Cargo/Headhunter) — Self-titled debut. Angular, dissonant, intense. “Caress,” “Spikes to You.”
  • Yank Crime (1994, Interscope) — The masterpiece. “Do You Compute,” “Luau,” “Golden Brown.” Long, complex songs with interlocking guitar parts, stop-start dynamics, and Froberg’s desperate vocals. One of the best post-hardcore albums ever recorded.

The Reis/Froberg Axis

John Reis and Rick Froberg were one of punk’s great creative partnerships. Reis’s guitar work was complex, angular, and rhythmically inventive. Froberg’s guitar and vocals were raw, emotional, and aggressive. Together they created a sound that was simultaneously math-rock and punk — complex but never pretentious.

After Drive Like Jehu

  • John Reis → Rocket from the Crypt (garage-punk), Hot Snakes (post-punk/punk), The Sultans, Swami Records (his label). Reis became one of San Diego’s most important musical figures.
  • Rick Froberg → Hot Snakes (with Reis), Obits (Brooklyn).
  • Mark Trombino → Became a producer (Jimmy Eat World’s Clarity, Blink-182’s Dude Ranch).

Influence

Yank Crime is a foundational post-hardcore record — its influence on At the Drive-In, Refused, and countless 2000s bands is well-documented. The album’s long, dynamic song structures proved that hardcore could be epic without becoming metal.