M.I.A. (band)
Encyclopedia
M.I.A. was a 1980s punk rock
band from Orange County, California. The band's sound was generally hardcore
and thrasher
, though they produced more melodic and progressive sounds in their later albums. Allmusic called the band "one of the 50 best So-Cal punk bands of the great early-'80s second wave explosion."
During the remainder of 1981 the band played parties and shows, including several at the Cuckoo's Nest in Costa Mesa and the Cathay de Grande in Hollywood. They recorded a nine song demo on 8 tracks at JEL Studios in Newport Beach consisting of songs from their Las Vegas period plus several new songs written in Orange County. They met artist Greg Link, who agreed to be their manager. Link booked a mini-tour through Nevada and Northern California that took them to Reno, where they played a show with The Wrecks and 7 Seconds. They left a demo tape with Kevin Seconds, who later passed a copy to Tim Yohannan from the San Francisco-based fanzine Maximum Rock n Roll. Yohannan decided to include the song "New Left" on the Maximum Rock and Roll compilation "Not So Quiet on the Western Front" on the Alternative Tentacles label. Yohannan passed the tape to Greg Shaw at Bomp Records, who included the song "Tell Me Why" on the punk compilation "American Youth Report
." Shaw passed the tape to Felix Alanis at Smoke Seven records who decided to release the entire demo (excepting "New Left," which Maximum Rock n Roll wanted exclusively) on the split LP "Last Rites for Genocide and M.I.A." in 1982.
As their music was released, the band had to be put on hiatus as Conley had to return to Las Vegas for personal reasons. When Conley returned in 1983 the band picked up where they left off, playing shows and setting out to record another demo. At this time drummer Larry Pearson was recruited by Conley to replace Moon. In 1984 they made a deal with the cult Alternative Tentacles
label, after the label's founder, Dead Kennedys
frontman Jello Biafra
, saw them play at a secret illegal punk nightclub in Las Vegas. Biafra was impressed by Mike Conley's distinctive voice, saying "The minute you hear a song with him singing you know it's him." The band paid for the recording (this time on 16 tracks at JEL Studios), mastering and pressing of "Murder in a Foreign Place" and Alternative Tentacles would distribute the album on their label. "Murder in a Foreign Place" was released in June 1984 and supported by a three month summer tour of the United States and Canada.
In early 1985 the band recorded three songs at Evan Williams Studios produced by Chris Maneckie of the band Abecedarians. Conley was unhappy with the sound, so this demo was not released at this time, but did appear later on the "Lost Boys" retrospective. When Social Distortion had to cancel a tour of the East Coast, the dates were offered to M.I.A. and they undertook the tour in March 1985. On return the band recorded new material with producer Thom Wilson, which was released summer 1985 as Notes From the Underground on National Trust Records. The tour and recording had taken a toll on the band and it broke up with Adams and Schwartz leaving. In 1986 Conley brought back Moon on drums and added bassist Frank Daly and guitarist Mark Arnold. The band released After the Fact on Flipside
Records in 1987. The band split up in 1988.
In 2001, Alternative Tentacles released Lost Boys, a 37-song retrospective of the band's work, including Last Rites, Murder in a Foreign Place, and several additional tracks.
hotel parking lot. Conley was taken to Gottlieb Memorial Hospital in Melrose Park, where he was pronounced dead at 6:25 a.m.
On April 27, 2008, there was a secret warm-up show at Detroit Bar featuring original vocalist Todd Sampson (ex-Self Abuse and Samson's Army) on vocals, Jello Biafra of Dead Kennedys
on guest vocals, Chris Moon and Larry Pearson on drums, Nick Adams on guitar, and Bob Thomson on bass. On April 28, 2008, the "Beautiful Noise" benefit show took place at the Anaheim House of Blues
with Jigsaw, Naked Soul, Cadillac Tramps, Social Distortion
and M.I.A. with the same lineup as the previous night, but adding Kevin Seconds of 7 Seconds on guest vocals. The proceeds of "Beautiful Noise" went to Conley's family.
Todd Sampson died in Las Vegas
, Nevada
, following an M.I.A. concert on July 25, 2010.
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 from Orange County, California. The band's sound was generally hardcore
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
and thrasher
Thrash metal
Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized usually by its fast tempo and aggression. Songs of the genre typically use fast percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work...
, though they produced more melodic and progressive sounds in their later albums. Allmusic called the band "one of the 50 best So-Cal punk bands of the great early-'80s second wave explosion."
History
The band had its origins in Las Vegas, where in 1980 singer Todd Sampson, bassist Mike Conley, and drummer Chris Moon were in a band called The Swell. Guitarist Nick Adams joined and the band changed their name to M.I.A. and played one show on December 31, 1980, New Year's Eve. Adams left the band two weeks later and moved to San Diego, Calif.; later that spring Moon and Conley moved to Orange County. In June 1981 Adams moved to Orange County and the three decided to re-form the band with Conley moving to vocals and bringing in another Las Vegas friend, Paul Schwartz, to play bass.During the remainder of 1981 the band played parties and shows, including several at the Cuckoo's Nest in Costa Mesa and the Cathay de Grande in Hollywood. They recorded a nine song demo on 8 tracks at JEL Studios in Newport Beach consisting of songs from their Las Vegas period plus several new songs written in Orange County. They met artist Greg Link, who agreed to be their manager. Link booked a mini-tour through Nevada and Northern California that took them to Reno, where they played a show with The Wrecks and 7 Seconds. They left a demo tape with Kevin Seconds, who later passed a copy to Tim Yohannan from the San Francisco-based fanzine Maximum Rock n Roll. Yohannan decided to include the song "New Left" on the Maximum Rock and Roll compilation "Not So Quiet on the Western Front" on the Alternative Tentacles label. Yohannan passed the tape to Greg Shaw at Bomp Records, who included the song "Tell Me Why" on the punk compilation "American Youth Report
American Youth Report
American Youth Report is an American punk compilation originally released in 1982 and reissued on CD in 1991.-Track listing:# "One for All" - Modern Warfare# "Only Gonna Die" - Bad Religion# "Catholic Boy" - Channel 3# "Losing Battle" - Adolescents...
." Shaw passed the tape to Felix Alanis at Smoke Seven records who decided to release the entire demo (excepting "New Left," which Maximum Rock n Roll wanted exclusively) on the split LP "Last Rites for Genocide and M.I.A." in 1982.
As their music was released, the band had to be put on hiatus as Conley had to return to Las Vegas for personal reasons. When Conley returned in 1983 the band picked up where they left off, playing shows and setting out to record another demo. At this time drummer Larry Pearson was recruited by Conley to replace Moon. In 1984 they made a deal with the cult Alternative Tentacles
Alternative Tentacles
Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label originally based in San Francisco, California and was established in 1979. It was originally used as the label name by the Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single "California Über Alles", and after realizing the potential for an independent...
label, after the label's founder, Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band formed in San Francisco, California in 1978. The band became part of the American hardcore punk movement of the early 1980s. They gained a large underground fanbase in the international punk music scene....
frontman Jello Biafra
Jello Biafra
Jello Biafra is an American musician, spoken word artist and leading figure of the Green Party of the United States. Biafra first gained attention as the lead singer and songwriter for San Francisco punk rock band Dead Kennedys...
, saw them play at a secret illegal punk nightclub in Las Vegas. Biafra was impressed by Mike Conley's distinctive voice, saying "The minute you hear a song with him singing you know it's him." The band paid for the recording (this time on 16 tracks at JEL Studios), mastering and pressing of "Murder in a Foreign Place" and Alternative Tentacles would distribute the album on their label. "Murder in a Foreign Place" was released in June 1984 and supported by a three month summer tour of the United States and Canada.
In early 1985 the band recorded three songs at Evan Williams Studios produced by Chris Maneckie of the band Abecedarians. Conley was unhappy with the sound, so this demo was not released at this time, but did appear later on the "Lost Boys" retrospective. When Social Distortion had to cancel a tour of the East Coast, the dates were offered to M.I.A. and they undertook the tour in March 1985. On return the band recorded new material with producer Thom Wilson, which was released summer 1985 as Notes From the Underground on National Trust Records. The tour and recording had taken a toll on the band and it broke up with Adams and Schwartz leaving. In 1986 Conley brought back Moon on drums and added bassist Frank Daly and guitarist Mark Arnold. The band released After the Fact on Flipside
Flipside
Flipside, flip side, or flipsyde may refer to:* The B-side of a gramophone record.* An opposite, reverse, or sharply contrasted side or aspect of something or someone.-Print:...
Records in 1987. The band split up in 1988.
In 2001, Alternative Tentacles released Lost Boys, a 37-song retrospective of the band's work, including Last Rites, Murder in a Foreign Place, and several additional tracks.
Death of Mike Conley
On February 28, 2008 vocalist Mike Conley was found dead in a ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
hotel parking lot. Conley was taken to Gottlieb Memorial Hospital in Melrose Park, where he was pronounced dead at 6:25 a.m.
On April 27, 2008, there was a secret warm-up show at Detroit Bar featuring original vocalist Todd Sampson (ex-Self Abuse and Samson's Army) on vocals, Jello Biafra of Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band formed in San Francisco, California in 1978. The band became part of the American hardcore punk movement of the early 1980s. They gained a large underground fanbase in the international punk music scene....
on guest vocals, Chris Moon and Larry Pearson on drums, Nick Adams on guitar, and Bob Thomson on bass. On April 28, 2008, the "Beautiful Noise" benefit show took place at the Anaheim House of Blues
House of Blues
House of Blues is a chain of 13 live music concert halls and restaurants in major markets throughout the United States. House of Blues first location was in Cambridge's Harvard Square. It was opened in 1992 by Isaac Tigrett, co-founder of Hard Rock Cafe, and Dan Aykroyd, star of The Blues Brothers...
with Jigsaw, Naked Soul, Cadillac Tramps, Social Distortion
Social Distortion
Social Distortion is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Fullerton, California. The band currently consists of Mike Ness , Jonny Wickersham , Brent Harding and David Hidalgo, Jr...
and M.I.A. with the same lineup as the previous night, but adding Kevin Seconds of 7 Seconds on guest vocals. The proceeds of "Beautiful Noise" went to Conley's family.
Todd Sampson died in Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
, Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
, following an M.I.A. concert on July 25, 2010.
Discography
- Last Rites for Genocide / MIA (split LP, 1982, BOMPBomp! RecordsBomp! Records is an Los Angeles-based indie label formed in 1974 by fanzine publisher and music historian Greg Shaw.-History:The label has featured punk, pop, powerpop, garage rock, new wave, old school rock, neo-psychedelia among other genres, and its roster has included artists such as The Modern...
/Invasion Records) - Murder in a Foreign Place (LP, 1984, Alternative TentaclesAlternative TentaclesAlternative Tentacles is an independent record label originally based in San Francisco, California and was established in 1979. It was originally used as the label name by the Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single "California Über Alles", and after realizing the potential for an independent...
) - Notes From the Underground (LP, 1985, National Trust Records)
- After the Fact (LP, 1987, Flipside Records)
- Lost Boys (CD, 2001, Alternative Tentacles)
Compilation appearances
- Maximum Rock N Roll's Not So Quiet on the Western Front (1982)
- Includes "New Left"
- American Youth ReportAmerican Youth ReportAmerican Youth Report is an American punk compilation originally released in 1982 and reissued on CD in 1991.-Track listing:# "One for All" - Modern Warfare# "Only Gonna Die" - Bad Religion# "Catholic Boy" - Channel 3# "Losing Battle" - Adolescents...
(1982)- Includes "Tell Me Why"
- "Half Skull" 7" EP (1984)
- Includes "Turning Into What You Hate"
- Flipside Vinyl Fanzine Vol. 2 (1985)
- Includes "Just A Dream"
- O.C.'s 5400 Day Revolution (1999)
- Includes "Boredom is the Reason"