Emily Neveu (vocals, guitar, piano) and Dave “Petti” Pettijohn (bass) never intended to form a band when they first began playing together. According to their MySpace page bio, they simply played what they wanted to hear, expressing themselves through music in the warmth of their makeshift studio. These late night recording sessions brought in a wide range of musicians, each of them adding their own element to the music.

One such musician was Scott Wheeler (lead guitar), a new San Diegan who had just moved into the city from Minnesota. Although Wheeler’s style leaned toward the weird and wonderful side of the folk genre, apparent in his own band Indian Moon, he added something special to the group. His musicianship was of the highest quality, a student of his own musical tastes, which was similar to Neveu and Pettijohn.

The group almost split up before their 2007 EP A Catalyst for Change could be completed.

“Members of the band are leaving me,” said Neveu, after a February 2007 no-show at the Casbah. “As the founding member of the band and the main decision maker, I have decided to change the [band’s] name, to complete the new record myself and release it,” she told the Reader in an e-mail. “A new name has not been chosen quite yet. This all has happened so quickly that I haven't had time to come up with anything, sadly.” She says she’ll find new players to complete the record.

Tyler Stover at the band’s label Banter Records posted his own spin online. “The Clock Work Army did not break up. Scott [Wheeler] the guitarist quit, but the band will go on. The album is almost finished being recorded…don’t lose faith, they’re not going anywhere.”

Singer/pianist/guitarist Emily Neveu also played bass for the Muslims. On the night Clock Work Army canceled, Neveu still hit the Casbah stage...with the Muslims.