Interview by Kevin Corazza with Pat

Sig Transit Gloria called it quits at the height of success after a successful run on Johanns Face.  The band released an EP, LP, and various songs for compilations. STG called it quits in 2001 when this interview was done, in early 2009 the band played a reunion show.

How did the band start out?
Nate and Mike started the band actually when they were writing songs in Nate's basement. Nate and Jason had done the Brockmeyers together and had known each other for a while and they just put the band together.

I know you weren't the original drummer. Whats the story with the other guy?
Dave Tirio was recruited from the Plain White T's to play drums but was only a fill-in until they could find a permanent replacement (me) and he played the first 4 shows with the band. Jason approached me one day at College Of Dupage and asked me if I would want to join and of course I said hell yes!

Who do you site as your main influences?
Well it's hard to say but me personally I know I clashed musically with the band. I like rock and roll and pop punk music (Green Day, Elvis Costello, The Police, etc.) and Jason, Nate, and Mike are more into indie rock (Sea and Cake, Elliot Smith, Promise Ring) so we clashed a lot. But when it came to song writing we clicked very well so diverse musical backgrounds made for some good songs. There were a few bands that we all liked of course but I must say to many peoples surprise we're not huge Get Up Kids fans.

You had some self released material, The Orange Tape and The Kevin Arbuckle Sessions. Can you tell us a little about them? Who recorded them and other additional info.
The Orange Tape and Kevin Arbucklem tapes were all down by Kevin Arbuckle. He's a close personal friend of ours and we love him to death. Watch out though he's got foot rot. They were recorded with Dave on drums and were only made available for the local kids (or anybody that could get them.) You'll never find this recording but maybe if you bug me I'll send you a copy but don't hold your breath.

What was the writing process when the band wrote songs?
The band was a total democracy with equally contributing members. Nate was definitely the strongest influence on the band but a song may have started out as one person but it we all put our own touches on every song.

Only after six months of being a band you guys got signed to the legendary Chicago label Johanns Face where many bands like The Smoking Popes, Apocalypse Hoboken, Alkaline Trio, Oblivion,  and others started out on. How did that make you feel to be a part of a label like that? Especially since you guys basically weren't around for all the long...
Well Jason and I had been around the local scene for years and knew the popularity of Johanns Face. Nate and Mike really weren't totally familiar with the label except for the Popes and the Trio. It was a great feeling to know that we were going to get immediate respect with that logo on our records. Marc has been putting out amazing records for years and to be mentioned in the same sentence as him and the bands on his label is unbelievable. We couldn't have asked for anything more considering he was taking a chance on us seeing as how we were still unestablished.

The EP 2/28/00 came out on the label and was basically the first release to become extremely accessible to the fans. What really went into the process of making that EP? Did you already have some ideas going into the studio?
2/8/00 was basically just a demo for labels that we threw together. We had some re-records on the EP from the Kevin Arbuckle and orange tape recordings but "Hello" and "First Time On Time" were brand new as well as "When I Get Home." We practiced one day and picked the best five songs. I insisted on doing "Don't Come In" even though the rest of them weren't sure about it. Other than that everything else was just what we felt at the time was our strongest material.

You recorded with Matt Allison who is notable for his work with many great Chicago bands. What went into your choice for picking him for producing your debut on Johanns Face?
Matt was a friend of mine from other bands I had been in and when I suggested him for our EP everybody else was in. I love that man! He has gotten his hands on some of the best talent in Chicago and has delivered every time with great recordings.

What was your decision into picking Jeremy Lemos for producing your next release after 2/28/00, your debut full length, S/T? I understand Jeremy Lemos records in analog in contrast to Matt Allison who records in digital. Which do you prefer? Did the analog sell you?
Jeremy was suggested by the label and we though what the hell he seems like a rad guy. The truth is that a lot of people didn't like the recording so I can only say this.  We only had a short amount of time to record (recording is not cheap) and when your pressed for time you have to make sacrifices. I think it could have sounded better but the songs is what counts not weather or not your your keyboards were loud enough or whatever bullshit people said about it.

Shortly after the release of S/T you toured the east coast as well as some other areas. Where was your favorite place/city that you played at?
Let me say this, If you are in a band and can tour I highly recommend it! It is the best time of your life as long as you don't kill each other or go broke. I can't say that our tours went smooth but the first one was surprisingly easy for a first tour. The first tour we did a stint of shows with a band called the Nine-Lives and a band called the 65 Filmshow. Both bands are amazing and the coolest guys. My favorite places to play on the first tour was Philly, Baltimore, and South Carolina. Although meeting drag-queens in mobile Alabama makes that place a contender as well.

You had some appearances with exclusive songs on compilations including "Angel Song" from the Elmhurst/Villa Park compilation put out by He Who Corrupts/Fudgesickill records and "Frontdoor Farewells" on Living Today, Tomorrow put out by Asian Man Records. When were those tracks recorded and who produced them?
"Angel Song" was recorded with our friend Bob at Plutone studios in Chicago. We shared the studio with AWOL who is also on the Elmhurst/Villa Park comp. "Frontdoor Farewells" was another gem produced by Matt Allison. Did I mention I love that man?

What can you tell us about the band disbanding? I know the main reason was that Mike Perkins (keys) wanted to go back to school. Did you feel you couldn't go on without him because the keyboards in the band was such a major part of your sound?
Well here is where the clearing up of rumors comes in. Yes, Mike had talked about going back to school but really we just weren't getting along. The only down side to touring is that when you live with people practically for months at a time you start to see sides of people you didn't see before. After our last tour we knew the end was near. Being in a band no matter how good you are with people you don't get along with sucks a lot. We could have continued on without out Mike and been okay but it just wasn't fun anymore so we called it a day.

Whats the band doing now?
As of right now Jason and I are doing the Brockmeyers, Mike is playing in a band called Written In The Sand with members of Boy Lion, and Nate is working on solo material and some other unknown projects. Jason and I were jamming with Graham for a while but he is too busy with school and work to commit to what we want to do but of course we love Graham like a brother.

Is there any way people can get info on the band? I know your official web site doesn't exist anymore.
The web site is done with just like the band. If people have questions about the band the can contact me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or if there are questions about merch they can go to www.johannsface.com.

Final comments?
Well I can only say thanks to the fans who supported us and to the many people who we met on our tours. The band was a lot of fun to be in and we will all have a place for STG in our hearts. But in the same breath we must say that it's time to move on. We're sorry that we "let people down" but we only hope that people will support us all in our new projects. Hey some of the best bands have come out of disbanded groups that were popular (Jets To Brazil, Promise Ring, etc) so you never know!