by Jason AnkenyThe Washington, D.C.-based indie pop band the Ropers was formed in 1991 by singer Doug Bailey and guitarist Mike Hammel, students at the University of Maryland who quit school after two years to begin making music. They soon recruited drummer Alex Hacker, whom both Bailey and Hammel knew from their brief stint in the Lilys; with bassist Greg Pavlovcak, the Ropers recorded their debut single, the 1992 Slumberland label release "Sunbathe," soon followed by "I Don't Mind." In 1994 the group released a self-titled EP, with the full-length All the Time following a year later; Hacker departed in early 1996, and with new drummer Mike Donovan, the Ropers recorded their TeenBeat label debut The World Is Fire, disbanding a short time later.