Like many musical endeavors, Deer Tick's mussy blend of blues-rock and faux-country started in the bedroom of the Providence, Rhode Island native, John McCauley III. Where a frayed larynx, nylon guitar and trusty four-track recorder once served as a "band," Deer Tick (or Ixodes scapularis) has since bloated to a quartet that includes: Andy Tobiassen, Dennis Ryan and Chris Ryan. Born On Flag Day is their second LP and follow-up to the 2007 debut War Elephant (reissued in 2008 by Partisan Records with a strange bikini-and-guns cover .) Flag Day 's title comes partially from McCauley sharing his birthday with the U.S. holiday, and his love of Springsteen's Born in the U.S.A. , and Oliver Stone's adaptation of Ron Kovic's novel Born on the Fourth of July . The Tickheads sealed the deal on the title during one late-night drive when they saw a mysterious dark sedan with a "JUNE 14" vanity plate. Curiously the album's release date isn't on the holiday.