Down on Jane began in the late 1990s as a creative experiment between friends Rob Hoffman and Scott Spear, who bonded over Marlboro Reds and a shared love of music while learning guitar together in college. The circle grew from there, with close friends Dan Calig and Jeff Weiss joining in, Dan splitting time between guitar and bass, and Jeff bringing his deep, baritone voice to the group. Rob and Scott led the songwriting, laying the groundwork for the band’s early sound.
Hindsight is 20/20
People often ask, who is Jane? Ironically, drummer Tom Staszak’s wife’s name is Jane, but there’s no connection. The band was actually called The Epimeres at first, until Scott moved to Jane Street on Pittsburgh’s South Side. From then on, they were always practicing and playing down on Jane, and the name stuck.
After months of convincing, Tom rounded out the lineup, giving the band its rhythmic backbone. Jeff eventually stepped away to explore other paths, and the band brought on vocalist Dallas Rogers for a new chapter. With Rob and Scott still writing, Dallas added his own lyrical and melodic ideas, and the band found a strong creative groove. That period produced their first studio release, Aestus, featuring rich harmonies and the standout track “With This Soul.”
Building On That Momentum
Down on Jane went back into the studio for the Empty Bottle EP, which included a polished version of “Kaleidoscope,” later reworked as “Red Guitar.” After some internal shifts and a parting with Dallas, the band connected with vocalist Matt Galluzzo. His arrival brought a sound that felt both new and true to the band. With Matt on vocals, Down on Jane hit its stride, releasing a self-titled album anchored by “Finder,” a track co-written by Matt and Rob. At their peak, Down on Jane played regionally around Western and Central PA and opened for My Morning Jacket in 2003.
As the members moved from their twenties into the demands of adult life, the band slowly wound down, but never really ended.
During the pandemic, Rob went back through old demos and song fragments from over a decade of writing, which turned into a solo Down on Jane release, Solos, Oddities, Instrumentals, and Space Junk. Raw and unpolished, it was enough to bring back his creative spark. In 2024, he released “Fall Under and Drown,” with more songs already in the works. Not every original member will appear on the next album, but many contribute to individual tracks, keeping the collaborative spirit alive.
11 Days
11 Days is the first full Down on Jane album in more than twenty years. The name comes from an eleven-day recording challenge Rob set for himself over the 2023 holidays. It took three years instead.
Rob wrote, performed, engineered, and produced most of the record himself in his home studio, pulling together songs written across two decades, some dating back to his twenties, others finished just weeks before release. The album still carries the band’s collaborative spirit: Tom plays on “Starnak’s Space,” and Jeff, the original singer from back when the band was still called The Epimeres, returned to sing “The Cliff,” a song he wrote decades ago that he and Rob recorded together after reconciling, closing a long-open chapter between them.
11 Days isn’t a comeback record. It’s an honest look at twenty years of life: good years, bad years, kids, divorce, starting over, and still showing up. It’s raw and bittersweet in places, but it carries the same spirit that started this whole thing in college decades ago. The album is available now on Spotify, Apple Music and most streaming platforms.
Today
Today, the band exists more as friends playing music together than as a formal group. The members stay in touch, getting together a few times a year to write new material, jam the old catalog, and keep the spirit of being down on Jane alive. 11 Days is proof that spirit never really left.