Search - Magnolia Thunderpussy :: Starin' Down The Sun

On the surface it seems like an old-age story: a promising young band, on the verge of fulfilling their dreams, self-destructs before they are realized. This was the case for Magnolia Thunderpussy, the first teenage band ostensibly signed to SST Records, which imploded just prior to inking their deal. Yet MTP's context, legacy, and music marks their uniqueness as evidenced on the new CD ?Starin' Down the Sun? -- a definitive collection of the group's previously unreleased 1985 studio and live recordings, available on Mar Vista Records. Magnolia Thunderpussy formed in 1984 in the aftershock of Los Angeles' punk and underground rock explosion. Ex-members of absurdist/hardcore band the Killer Gumbys -- guitarist Chris Hundley, bassist David Jones and singer Dale Nixon -- teamed up with drummer Patrick Palma of ska/funk specialists Da Kine Boys. The group gleaned its name from an ex-burlesque dancer who started her own erotic dessert store (of the same name) in San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury district during the height of the Psychedelic era. MTP provided a study in contrasts. Drummer Patrick wore sweater vests, glasses and had a small moustache, earning him comparisons to Cheap Trick drummer Bun E. Carlos. Like Bun E, however, Pat's mild-mannered look belied a powerhouse player with monster chops. Singer Dale and bassist David oscillated between shaving their heads and growing out long, unkempt manes. Guitarist Chris towed a middle line, looking not unlike Black Flag's guitarist Greg Ginn, whose playing his was often likened to. Musically, too, Magnolia exhibited diverging extremes. In a June 1985 write-up the LA Weekly called Magnolia Thunderpussy a ?cross between Blood Sweat and Tears and the Minutemen.? The band ran the stylistic gamut, fusing myriad influences in a non-pretentious, natural manner. MTP alternated adeptly between heavy, Black Flag sounding punk such as ?Walls? and ?Song Number One,? Prince/James Brown inspired funk such as ?Outside Inside,? Meat Puppets styled alt country as in ?Circle,? Ventures-like instrumental surf riffs in ?Serendipity,? and plaintive, Dylan-esque balladry in the group's magnum opus ?Starin' Down the Sun.? Vocalist Dale Nixon's lyrics plumbed existential depths: alienation, heartbreak and a search for identity.