Santiago Durango

Santiago Durango (b. 1957, Colombia) was the guitarist for the influential noise rock band, Big Black. He currently works as an attorney.

Biography

Durango was the son of a Colombian doctor. His family moved to Chicago, Illinois in the US when he was 10.

A graduate of the University of Illinois at Chicago, Durango was an original member of Naked Raygun, one of Chicago's first punk rock bands. Raygun fan Steve Albini was forming a band called Big Black and asked both Durango and Raygun lead singer Jeff Pezzati to join. Durango remained a member until the group broke up in 1987.

After Big Black ended, Durango attended law school. During that time he formed a new band called Arsenal with bassist Malachi Ritscher. Together they released the "Manipulator" EP on Touch and Go Records in 1988. In 1990, Durango teamed up with Pierre Kedzy of Naked Raygun on bass to record and release a second Arsenal EP entitled Factory Smog Is A Sign Of Progress.

After law school, in his first case he helped recover Cynthia Plastercaster's bronze casts of the genitalia of various rock and roll artists, including that of Jimi Hendrix. He handled some litigation for Chicago's Touch and Go Records. He is currently an appellate defender in Ottawa, Illinois, USA.

Durango's first wife was chanteuse Cath Carroll. His second wife was children's book author Julia Durango.

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