DA! (band)
Encyclopedia
DA! was formed by 16-year-old singer/bassist Lorna Donley in 1978 with guitarist keyboardist Evelyn Marquis and drummer Dawn Fisher. This lineup performed only once and guitarist Gaylene Goudreau (who had previously played with all-girl punk band Lois Layne) was added in late 1979.
By early 1980 DA! had parted ways with Evelyn Marquis and replaced her with guitarist David Thomas (who had previously played in St. Louis punk bands The Singapores and Cool Jerk). By the summer of 1980 DA! had become a fixture on Chicago's early Punk Rock
music scene performing regularly at O'Banions, Tuts, Waves, Exit, Oz, Space Place and turning up on bills of visiting groups including The Fall, DNA, Bauhaus (band)
and Mission of Burma
.
, and in Madison with X (American band). Kapoulis, a video technician at WGN-TV, produced a music video for the single and "Dark Rooms" went into heavy rotation on 'Rock America' a pre-MTV video cable service available in music clubs.
, Naked Raygun
, Silver Abuse, The Subverts, and The Effigies
.
Following the release of the "Busted at Oz" LP, drummer Dawn Fisher was briefly replaced by Bob Furem, drummer of Strike Under
. DA! recorded the "Time Will Be Kind" EP with Timothy Powell at Sound Impressions in late 1981, but by the time of its release DA! had disbanded.
a/k/a You Weren’t There: A History of Chicago Punk, 1977-1984, a 2007 film about the Chicago punk scene from 1977 through 1984. In 2010, Factory 25 Records released Exclamation Point, a vinyl LP compilation of the band's previously released and unreleased material. DA! played two Chicago shows in 2010 to support the LP, the first show with drummer Bob Furem, the second with new drummer Jason Batchko.
By early 1980 DA! had parted ways with Evelyn Marquis and replaced her with guitarist David Thomas (who had previously played in St. Louis punk bands The Singapores and Cool Jerk). By the summer of 1980 DA! had become a fixture on Chicago's early Punk Rock
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...
music scene performing regularly at O'Banions, Tuts, Waves, Exit, Oz, Space Place and turning up on bills of visiting groups including The Fall, DNA, Bauhaus (band)
Bauhaus (band)
Bauhaus was an English rock band formed in Northampton in 1978. The group consisted of Peter Murphy , Daniel Ash , Kevin Haskins and David J . The band was originally Bauhaus 1919 before they dropped the numerical portion within a year of formation...
and Mission of Burma
Mission of Burma
Mission of Burma is an American post-punk band formed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1979. The band was formed by Roger Miller , Clint Conley , Peter Prescott and Martin Swope...
.
"Dark Rooms"/"White Castles" single
DA!'s manager, Terry Nelson, was a local Punk Rock radio DJ and he, along with producer George Kapoulis, formed Autumn Records. DA! began to record demos in late summer of 1980 with Timothy Powell and Metro Mobile. Their first single, "Dark Rooms" /"White Castles" was produced at Acme Studios by Kapoulis and Mike Rasfeld. With the release of the single in spring 1981 DA! garnered attention outside Chicago performing in Milwaukee with The Ama-Dots, in Minneapolis with Husker DuHusker Du
Husker Du means "Do you remember" in Danish and Norwegian, and may refer to:*Hüsker Dü, American punk band*Hūsker Dū?, a Danish board game*Husker Du, a Danish documentary series about the 1970s...
, and in Madison with X (American band). Kapoulis, a video technician at WGN-TV, produced a music video for the single and "Dark Rooms" went into heavy rotation on 'Rock America' a pre-MTV video cable service available in music clubs.
Busted at Oz compilation and "Time will be Kind" EP
DA! was featured on the next Autumn Records release, a compilation LP entitled "Busted at Oz." Recorded over three nights, it featured live recordings by DA! and other seminal Chicago punk bands including Strike UnderStrike Under
Strike Under was an influential Chicago punk rock band of the early 1980s. It was started by Steve Bjorklund after the demise of The Rabbits. The principal musicians, besides Bjorklund, were his brother Chris , Pierre Kezdy , and Bob Furem .Strike Under was founded in 1979 or 1980...
, Naked Raygun
Naked Raygun
Naked Raygun is a Chicago-based punk rock group. Initially active from 1980 to about 1992, Naked Raygun had several short-lived reunions afterwards and a full-time reformation in 2006....
, Silver Abuse, The Subverts, and The Effigies
The Effigies
The Effigies is an early post-hardcore group from Chicago. The band, first formed in 1980, was active for approximately a decade, undergoing multiple personnel changes, with frontman John Kezdy the only constant, before disbanding in 1990 . The band released 5 LPs and several EPs, most on...
.
Following the release of the "Busted at Oz" LP, drummer Dawn Fisher was briefly replaced by Bob Furem, drummer of Strike Under
Strike Under
Strike Under was an influential Chicago punk rock band of the early 1980s. It was started by Steve Bjorklund after the demise of The Rabbits. The principal musicians, besides Bjorklund, were his brother Chris , Pierre Kezdy , and Bob Furem .Strike Under was founded in 1979 or 1980...
. DA! recorded the "Time Will Be Kind" EP with Timothy Powell at Sound Impressions in late 1981, but by the time of its release DA! had disbanded.
You Weren't There film, debut LP and reunion
DA! and Lorna Donley were featured in You Weren’t ThereYou Weren’t There
You Weren’t There: A History of Chicago Punk, 1977–1984 is a 2007 documentary film about punk subculture in Chicago from 1977 through 1984. The film was written and directed by Joe Losurdo and Christina Tillman, and profiles the punk bars and local bands that gave rise to the city's punk rock...
a/k/a You Weren’t There: A History of Chicago Punk, 1977-1984, a 2007 film about the Chicago punk scene from 1977 through 1984. In 2010, Factory 25 Records released Exclamation Point, a vinyl LP compilation of the band's previously released and unreleased material. DA! played two Chicago shows in 2010 to support the LP, the first show with drummer Bob Furem, the second with new drummer Jason Batchko.
Discography
- Busted at Oz - Various LP (Autumn) 1981 (featured "Fish Shit" and "The Killer")
- "Dark Rooms/"White Castles" 7" single (Autumn) 1981
- Time will be Kind 12" EP (Autumn) 1982
- Exclamation Point LP (Factory 25) 2010
- Busted at Oz - Various LP re-release (Permanent Records) 2011 (featured "Fish Shit" and "The Killer")
External links
- "Dark Rooms" video on YouTube
- "Next to Nothing" video on YouTube
- Da! live at Empty Bottle video on Vimeo, Chicago, 2010
- Interview with Lorna Donley and David Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 1988
- Interview with Lorna Donley and David Thomas, Victim of Time, 2010
- Interview with Lorna Donley, Gapers Block, 2010