DURING a recent 36-hour whirlwind visit to Hong Kong, Spin Doctors, the definitive US East Coast rock band, took the time to record a segment for MTV and check out the territory.
Less than three years after its first public performance at a Columbia University fraternity party, its distinctive brand of bluesy-rock has garnered a fanatical East Coast following.
Guitarist Eric Schenkman deemed the band as representative of New York City, just as Nirvana is for Seattle, Smashing Pumpkins for Chicago and Lemonheads for Boston.
Some music critics have labelled them a post-grunge band, but Schenkman disagrees.
''Grunge is Seattle's stuff. But we are from the east, far from Seattle, so basically they can't say we are a grunge band,'' Schenkman said.
Sometimes, people compare them with so-called grunge bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers. The band is unconcerned because ''everybody needs to compare themselves to something''.