Chalk Circle (band)
Encyclopedia
Chalk Circle were an American punk rock
band formed in 1981 in Washington, DC. Their raw, rhythmic, minimal sound had more in common with post-punk
or art punk
than D.C. hardcore
, a community they initially helped pioneer. Guitarist/vocalist Sharon Cheslow
and drummer Anne Bonafede were joined by guitarist/vocalist Mary Green and alternating bassists Jan Pumphrey, Tamera Lyndsay, and Chris Niblack before the group disbanded in 1983.
, Henry Rollins
, Teen Idles, and Untouchables. After Cheslow saw a Bad Brains rehearsal with Rollins in March 1980, and then survived meningitis that summer, she decided to form a band. In March 1981 Chalk Circle had its first rehearsal as an all-female quartet. The group played their first show in July 1981, opening for Velvet Monkeys
and R.E.M. (later Egoslavia), with Sally Berg from the latter group filling in on bass.
Chalk Circle's original sound was energetic, percussive, angular, and minimal, with Bonafede's drumming style sounding primitive and psychedelic. Mary Green's lyrics were existential and poetic, and she and Cheslow sometimes sang in unison or call and response
. Besides punk and hardcore, their music was influenced by 1960s/70s rock music
, go-go, and jazz
. The group did their first studio demo in early 1982, with Tamera Lyndsay on bass, at Inner Ear Studios
with Don Zientara
and Howard Wuelfing (Slickee Boys
, Nurses, Half Japanese
). Their sound became more noisy and experimental as they progressed, while retaining a sense of melody. They recorded a second Inner Ear session with Chris Niblack on bass, and released two of those songs on the Outside Records LP compilation Mixed Nuts Don't Crack. WGNS cassettes
released Chalk Circle songs on compilations between 1982-84. Although the group later slipped through the cracks of D.C. punk history, except as a sidenote in riot grrrl
histories, at the time they were part of the national/international punk community.
. "Reflection" was a joint effort by Mississippi Records and Post Present Medium, the label headed by Dean Spunt of No Age
. During Chalk Circle's short existence in the heydey of D.C.'s first golden era of hardcore, the group broke through musical and gender barriers to create a sound that captured the joyful excitement of forgoing standard structures.
The group were notable as the first all-female band to emerge from D.C.'s punk scene. Other than vocal girl groups, Chalk Circle were the first all-female group to record and perform in D.C. since the International Sweethearts of Rhythm
in the 1940s.
Sally Berg and Tamera Lyndsay moved to New York and formed SHE with Laura Kennedy (Bush Tetras
) and Claudia Summers. Lyndsay also collaborated with Adele Bertei (Contortions
, Bloods), Lesley Woods (Au Pairs
), Barbara Gogan (Passions
), and Clare Hirst (Belle Stars
). After Chalk Circle disbanded, Sharon Cheslow joined Bloody Mannequin Orchestra
, contributed to Cynthia Connolly's
and Leslie Clague's 1988 book Banned in DC: Photos and Anecdotes From the DC Punk Underground (79–85), collaborated with various musicians including Kathleen Hanna
in Suture, published Interrobang?!, and formed Coterie Exchange
. Chris Niblack toured with No Trend.
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band formed in 1981 in Washington, DC. Their raw, rhythmic, minimal sound had more in common with post-punk
Post-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
or art punk
Art punk
Art punk or avant punk refers to punk rock of an experimental bent, or with connections to art school, the art world, or the avant garde....
than D.C. hardcore
Washington, D.C. hardcore
Washington, D.C. has had one of the first and most influential hardcore punk scenes in the United States since the early 1980s.Among the earliest DC punk bands were the Bad Brains, Slickee Boys, Teen Idles, Minor Threat, S.O.A., Chalk Circle, Velvet Monkeys, Void, The Faith, DC Youth Brigade,...
, a community they initially helped pioneer. Guitarist/vocalist Sharon Cheslow
Sharon Cheslow
Sharon Cheslow is an American musician, composer, and artist. In 1981, she formed Chalk Circle, Washington, D.C.'s first all-female punk band...
and drummer Anne Bonafede were joined by guitarist/vocalist Mary Green and alternating bassists Jan Pumphrey, Tamera Lyndsay, and Chris Niblack before the group disbanded in 1983.
History
Anne Bonafede and Sharon Cheslow began playing music in 1980, after developing friendships through the Bad BrainsBad Brains
Bad Brains is an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C., in 1977. They are widely regarded as among the pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members objected to this term to describe their music. They are also an adept reggae band, while later recordings featured elements of...
, Henry Rollins
Henry Rollins
Henry Rollins is an American singer-songwriter, spoken word artist, writer, comedian, publisher, actor, and radio DJ....
, Teen Idles, and Untouchables. After Cheslow saw a Bad Brains rehearsal with Rollins in March 1980, and then survived meningitis that summer, she decided to form a band. In March 1981 Chalk Circle had its first rehearsal as an all-female quartet. The group played their first show in July 1981, opening for Velvet Monkeys
Velvet Monkeys
Velvet Monkeys is an American rock band currently based in New York City, formed in 1980. The name "Velvet Monkeys" was a combination of The Velvet Underground and The Monkees.-Background:...
and R.E.M. (later Egoslavia), with Sally Berg from the latter group filling in on bass.
Chalk Circle's original sound was energetic, percussive, angular, and minimal, with Bonafede's drumming style sounding primitive and psychedelic. Mary Green's lyrics were existential and poetic, and she and Cheslow sometimes sang in unison or call and response
Call and response (music)
In music, a call and response is a succession of two distinct phrases usually played by different musicians, where the second phrase is heard as a direct commentary on or response to the first...
. Besides punk and hardcore, their music was influenced by 1960s/70s rock music
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
, go-go, and jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
. The group did their first studio demo in early 1982, with Tamera Lyndsay on bass, at Inner Ear Studios
Inner Ear Studios
Inner Ear Studios is a recording studio founded in Arlington, VA by musician and recording engineer Don Zientara. Hundreds of albums, including both independent and major label releases have been recorded at the studio. It has been in continuous operation for over 25 years.- See Also :Don Zientara...
with Don Zientara
Don Zientara
Don Zientara is an American record producer and musician. He owns and runs Inner Ear Studios in Arlington, Virginia, located just outside of Washington D.C., and is most widely known for his production work with Fugazi, Minor Threat and various other Dischord Records artists.-Production...
and Howard Wuelfing (Slickee Boys
The Slickee Boys
The Slickee Boys were a Washington, D.C. area punk-psychedelic-garage rock band whose most-remembered lineup consisted of guitarist Marshall Keith, guitarist Kim Kane, singer Mark Noone, and drummer Dan Palenski. The band has become a legend in the D.C. punk community...
, Nurses, Half Japanese
Half Japanese
Half Japanese is a punk rock band formed by brothers Jad and David Fair in their Coldwater, Michigan bedroom around 1975. Their original instrumentation included a small drum set, which they took turns playing; vocals; and an out of tune guitar...
). Their sound became more noisy and experimental as they progressed, while retaining a sense of melody. They recorded a second Inner Ear session with Chris Niblack on bass, and released two of those songs on the Outside Records LP compilation Mixed Nuts Don't Crack. WGNS cassettes
WGNS Recordings
-History:WGNS was initially started in the early 1980s as a cassette label. Initial recordings were mastered to a cassette and then dubbed from the master to cassettes which were numbered and sold...
released Chalk Circle songs on compilations between 1982-84. Although the group later slipped through the cracks of D.C. punk history, except as a sidenote in riot grrrl
Riot grrrl
Riot grrrl was an underground feminist punk movement based in Washington, DC, Olympia, Washington, Portland, Oregon, and the greater Pacific Northwest which existed in the early to mid-1990s, and it is often associated with third-wave feminism...
histories, at the time they were part of the national/international punk community.
Legacy
A twelve-song collection of Chalk Circle's early 1980s studio material and some live recordings was released on the “Reflection” LP in 2011, with liner notes by Don FlemingDon Fleming (musician)
Don Fleming is an American musician, best known for being the frontman of Velvet Monkeys, B.A.L.L., and Gumball.-Biography:...
. "Reflection" was a joint effort by Mississippi Records and Post Present Medium, the label headed by Dean Spunt of No Age
No Age
No Age is a two-person American indie rock group consisting of guitarist Randy Randall and drummer/vocalist Dean Allen Spunt. The band is based in Los Angeles and is currently signed to Sub Pop records...
. During Chalk Circle's short existence in the heydey of D.C.'s first golden era of hardcore, the group broke through musical and gender barriers to create a sound that captured the joyful excitement of forgoing standard structures.
The group were notable as the first all-female band to emerge from D.C.'s punk scene. Other than vocal girl groups, Chalk Circle were the first all-female group to record and perform in D.C. since the International Sweethearts of Rhythm
International Sweethearts of Rhythm
The International Sweethearts of Rhythm was the first integrated all women's band in the United States. During the 1940s the band featured some of the best female musicians of the day...
in the 1940s.
Sally Berg and Tamera Lyndsay moved to New York and formed SHE with Laura Kennedy (Bush Tetras
Bush Tetras
Bush Tetras are an American post-punk band from New York City, popular in the Manhattan club scene in the early 1980s but never achieving much mainstream success. Their music combined funk rhythms and dissonant guitar riffs.-History:...
) and Claudia Summers. Lyndsay also collaborated with Adele Bertei (Contortions
James Chance and the Contortions
James Chance and the Contortions, led by saxophonist and vocalist James Chance, were one of the original punk jazz groups of the New York No Wave music scene. Their first recording, credited solely as Contortions, was on the 1978 compilation, No New York, produced by Brain Eno...
, Bloods), Lesley Woods (Au Pairs
Au Pairs (band)
The Au Pairs were a British post-punk band that formed in Birmingham in 1979. Music historian Gillian G. Gaar noted in her history of women in rock that the band mingled male and female musicians in a revolutionary collaborative way, as part of its outspoken explorations of sexual...
), Barbara Gogan (Passions
The Passions
The Passions were a British band which formed in 1978, and disbanded in 1983. They were one-hit wonders with their misty song, "I'm in Love with a German Film Star". which was released in early 1981.-Career:...
), and Clare Hirst (Belle Stars
The Belle Stars
The Belle Stars were an all female British rock band, founded in London in 1980 by former members of the 2 Tone ska revival band, The Bodysnatchers.-Career:...
). After Chalk Circle disbanded, Sharon Cheslow joined Bloody Mannequin Orchestra
Bloody Mannequin Orchestra
Bloody Mannequin Orchestra were an influential early 1980s punk band from Bethesda, MD. They formed around a small, but active, scene at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School and were part of the larger D.C hardcore community. The band members were Colin Sears, Roger Marbury, Alex Mahoney, Sharon...
, contributed to Cynthia Connolly's
Cynthia Connolly
Cynthia Connolly is an American photographer, graphic designer, and artist. She graduated from Corcoran College of Art and Design and worked for Dischord Records and d.c. space. In 1988 she published Banned in DC: Photos and Anecdotes From the DC Punk Underground through her small press Sun Dog...
and Leslie Clague's 1988 book Banned in DC: Photos and Anecdotes From the DC Punk Underground (79–85), collaborated with various musicians including Kathleen Hanna
Kathleen Hanna
Kathleen Hanna is an American musician, feminist activist, and punk zine writer. In the early- to mid-1990s she was the lead singer and songwriter of Bikini Kill, before fronting Le Tigre in the late 1990s and early 2000s...
in Suture, published Interrobang?!, and formed Coterie Exchange
Sharon Cheslow
Sharon Cheslow is an American musician, composer, and artist. In 1981, she formed Chalk Circle, Washington, D.C.'s first all-female punk band...
. Chris Niblack toured with No Trend.
Members
- Mary Green – vocals, guitar (1981–1983)
- Sharon CheslowSharon CheslowSharon Cheslow is an American musician, composer, and artist. In 1981, she formed Chalk Circle, Washington, D.C.'s first all-female punk band...
– guitar, vocals (1981–1983) - Anne Bonafede – drums (1981–1983)
- Jan Pumphrey – bass (1981)
- Tamera Lyndsay – bass (1981-1982)
- Chris Niblack – bass (1982-1983)
Tracks on compilations
- 1983 - "The Slap" and "Subversive Pleasure" on Mixed Nuts Don't Crack - Outside Records
- 1983 - "We Got the Beat" (as Crayon Square) on The Christmas Cassette - WGNS cassettesWGNS Recordings-History:WGNS was initially started in the early 1980s as a cassette label. Initial recordings were mastered to a cassette and then dubbed from the master to cassettes which were numbered and sold...
- 1983 - "Uneasy Friend," "Reflection," "Easy Escapes" on Timeclock Equals Hole in Head - WGNS cassettesWGNS Recordings-History:WGNS was initially started in the early 1980s as a cassette label. Initial recordings were mastered to a cassette and then dubbed from the master to cassettes which were numbered and sold...
- 1984 - "Sister Superior," "Scrambled" on We Gots No Station - WGNS cassettesWGNS Recordings-History:WGNS was initially started in the early 1980s as a cassette label. Initial recordings were mastered to a cassette and then dubbed from the master to cassettes which were numbered and sold...
External links
- http://www.mindspring.com/~acheslow/AuntMary/chalkcircle/index.html Chalk Circle official website
- http://www.myspace.com/chalkcircledc Chalk Circle myspace