WOW, WHAT A SHOW (SLIGHT RETURN)

I've been meaning to tell you about this one. Yes, the Screamers have been covered here. But not this profile. It's not the only band history sort of thing written about the band, and there are some longer, but for one that even touches on their pre-Screamers years, it's a relatively quick read. Perfect for those of you that can't understand what the big deal is. Not that it will necessarily help.

~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~  

Read:
The Screamers: The Great Lost Band of the First Wave of L.A. Punk at Nightflight
Listen:
The Screamers - Punish Or Be Damned (demo) mp3 at HoboFM
The Screamers - 122 Hours of Fear (streaming) at Avant Avant
Earlier posts:
Anyone Can Make a Record More music, videos, links, etc.
Wow, What a Show Ditto

ANYONE CAN MAKE A RECORD

Back in the late seventies, when the punk scene in L.A. was just getting off the ground, like other scenes that were springing up it was predominantly guitar based bands. Some may have had a sax here or some keyboards there, but it was all but written that a band be centered around the standard guitar-bass-drums foundation. This coming from a movement that was about tossing out the old way of doing things and starting from scratch, With the benefit of hindsight, from a musical standpoint it seems almost reactionary. Louder, faster, tough lyrics, yeah, yeah, but that's not exactly turning things upside down. That might be the reason why the Screamers, despite having never officially released a single record, have proven to be one of the most significant bands of that era. They consisted of two keyboards, a drummer and a vocalist. Not a single stringed instrument, Before you go spouting off, consider that this was before synth based bands really existed, and before industrial music was a definable movement.

Rather than rehash what I wrote a few years ago (you can read that here). I'll cut to the quick, The late Tomata Du Plenty was the lead singer of the Screamers. From the violent unfamiliar sound of the Screamers, and Du Plenty's intense stage presence, one could easily be intimidated by him from afar. But if you knew him as many, many people did, you know what an incredibly gracious person he was face to face, I was lucky enough to had a bunch of interactions with him back then. The man was totally disarming.

There's a documentary being made about Du Plenty, and I hope it covers him as a person, his being, as much as it does his music and various other works (acting, painting). Because first and foremost, that, to me, was what made him special, the standout member of a standout band.

~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~  

Listen:
The Screamers - Punish Or Be Damned (demo) mp3 at HoboFM
The Screamers - 122 Hours of Fear (streaming) at Avant Avant
Video:
The Screamers - Punish or Be Damned (live) at YouTube
The Screamers - In A Better World (live) at YouTube
The Screamers at Network Awesome Eight live videos, in succession
The Screamers - Tons more at YouTube
Population 1 - Trailer/movie site Expanded two DVD edition for sale, bonus disc with 40 minutes of the Screamers
Visit:
The Life and Times of Tomata Du Plenty - Kickstarter Campign (Relax, it's funded.)
The Screamers - Unofficial site Very comprehensive
The Screamers - Profile at Beware of the Blog
The Screamers - Profile at Perfect Sound Forever 

WOW, WHAT A SHOW!

If you ever saw the Screamers live, you know. Sadly, most people didn't, and never will. They were only around for about four years, from 77-81, and what few recordings exist fail to compare to their live performances. Though they did record demos, they were just that, demos. They once said that they weren't going to release records, they were instead waiting for video discs to come out. This was before video discs existed on store shelves. Before Beta recorders, before VHS, and before music videos were commonly done. They were forward thinking, original, and unconventional; on the fringes of a movement that was supposed to be. They seized the synthesizer, from the hands of experimental, prog and art rock bands, and into punk rock; and they went in through the front door. Two keyboard players, a drummer and a vocalist who demonstrated that punk rock was more than loud guitars and abbreviated rock n' roll licks. They had no real predecessors, and few stylistic peers.

All that exist are demos, primitive videos, a feature film starring lead singer Tomata duPlenty, and the written word, rather a lot of written words. There's a bunch of links below. A great place to start would be the recent post at Beware of the Blog, which reminded me that I'd never gotten around to throwing them in front of you. You should also check out the Unofficial Screamers site (hosted by Synthysteria). It's very comprehensive. History, time line, discography, videography, press, interviews, flyers, photos; they got it all. Check out the videos too. Imagine that band, well mixed and loud. There's also a link to the site for the film, Population 1, starring duPlenty, Vampira (Plan 9 From Outer Space), Penelope Houston (Avengers), El Duce, members of Los Lobos, Al Hansen, and Hansen's grandson, a twelve year old Beck.

~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~

Listen:
The Screamers - Punish Or Be Damned (demo) mp3 at HoboFM
The Screamers - In A Better World (demo) mp3 at The Cargo Culte
The Screamers - 122 Hours of Fear (demo) mp3 at Avant-Avant
The Screamers - 122 Hours of Fear (demo) (Pt 1) and (Pt 2) at Zahnarzt
Video:
The Screamers - Punish or Be Damned (live) at YouTube
The Screamers - Let's Go, Vertigo (live) at the Population 1 movie site
The Screamers - In A Better World (live) at YouTube
The Screamers at Network Awesome Eight live videos, in succession
Population 1 - Trailer/movie site Expanded two DVD edition for sale, bonus disc with 40 minutes of the Screamers
Visit:
The Screamers - Unofficial site Very comprehensive
The Screamers - Profile at Beware of the Blog
The Screamers - Profile at Perfect Sound Forever