III. "...And for the Little Children, Sing."

The Bittersweet fiasco forced John and Ed to start from scratch which, as John put it, "was depressing for a while because we had this album written that we felt a deep connection to, but we'd lost our drummer, our record contract and a once in a lifetime opportunity." This was the group's low point, and the logical choice seemed to be to disband. Yet for all these setbacks, the Putrid Flowers songs that had been circulating on comps and 7-inches had been well received, and the expanding Internet provided a forum where a new group of fans, some far from overseas, could show their devotion to The Flowers. Soon, John and Ed resolved to continue making music as the Putrid Flowers, without getting involved with record companies. In late 1998, they met their next drummer, an Irish immigrant from Dublin now living in Queens known simply known as Peelo, and they enlisted the help of longtime producer Chris Fasulo on guitar. After a year of practices and showcases, the 4 piece recorded their 2000 record "...and for the little children, sing."

Instead of recording in a lavish studio, the band chose to record the album in Chris's basement on Long Island, far removed from the pressures of NYC. The DIY ethos and the fact that they had severed their ties with Bittersweet, meant there were no external checks on the creativity of the group, as evidenced by the masterful 18-minute Broadway-like collection of vignettes done in a punk rock genre that closes the record.

...And For The Little Children, Sing was released independently, as the group consciously tried to court underground music fans. Although all the songs had a certain poppiness to them, they were interested in connecting with people who felt the same way we did about music. These were people who searched out obscure bands and shared them with their friends, and whose identity was forged through a religious devotion to music. The underground did respond well. Fanzines reviewed the album to almost universal praise getting them high marks in reviews in sources like Hybrid Magazine, World Wide Punk and Punk International and mention on top album lists by sources such as PunkRockReviews.

After the release, the band set out on an extensive tour in support, and while they didn't lose the spontaneity of their old New York shows (replete with gangster rap covers and bake-sales), the group did decide to forego higher profile NYC gigs for a more modest and comprehensive tour of East Coast. According to Chris, "I think we played every VFW and Church basement from Maine to Maryland in from 2000-2001 which was hard, but comfortable, and there was a sense that the grass roots was where we were supposed to be." Their loyal following began expanding throughout the East Coast, and comps and radio play of their single " If I Just Could Make It on My Own" garnered them a handful of record offers.

Weary of their experiences, the Flowers turned down a score of prospective record contracts. Ed would state: "at that point we were satisfied with the level of interest that we were able to generate through informal channels like underground radio, internet and friends we'd made while playing out. We had matured and now we weren't so concerned about competing with popular bands. We were more interested on doing things on our own terms, and being a band that was important to people."

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