[2][3] Along with Embrace, Gray Matter, and Rites of Spring, they were one of the mainstay acts of the 1985 Revolution Summer movement[4] which took place within the Washington, D.C. hardcore punk scene.
Beefeater was formed by Tomas Squip (who later adopted the name Oman Emmet), Fred "Freak" Smith, Dug E. Bird (Birdzell) and Bruce Atchley Taylor.
[2] For Beefeater's second record, drummer Bruce Taylor was replaced by Mark "Two-Chair" Shellhaas, who in turn, would be substituted by Kenny Craun for the band's final album.
[3] Dug E. Bird's fast-paced bass slap drives a rhythm section over which Fred "Not Sonic" Smith's guitar rides in a way reminiscent of the Minutemen.
Squip's essay in Threat by Example: A Documentation of Inspiration (Martin Sprouse, editor, 1991 Pressure Drop Press: San Francisco, ISBN 0-9627091-1-5) outlines his notably religious world view and motivation, unusual for a Dischord band.