Art Punk Bands

From its beginnings at Pumps Gallery, punk in Vancouver has been closely tied to the art school/gallery scene. Here are some of the bands most closely identified with the “art punk” scene.

The Generators grew out of an earlier combo, The Rest, who played at the Japanese Hall in 1977. Led by Randy Pandora and Gary Bourgeois (aka Gary Middleclass), the Generators played a handful of shows in the first half of 1978 and recorded a proposed single, but it was never released (until I Wanna Be A Girl surfaced on Zulu Records’ Last Call compilation in 1991).

Exxotone (originally The Detectives) was Randy Pandora’s post-Generators band, formed in early 1979. Exxotone had two tracks on the Vancouver Complication album.

[e?] was the intentionally-enigmatic moniker of Gary Bourgeois’s post-Generators project. The lineup varied during the band’s existence, but the nucleus was always Gary and his wife Gina Daniels.

AKA formed in late '78 or early '79 and lasted until early 1981. Fronted by singer/saxophonist Dennis Mills, they released the Red Therapy 12-inch EP in 1980, and played in Seattle and San Francisco. In 1981, core bandmembers formed Rhythm Mission, who existed until 1989; their career overlapped with the Jazzmanian Devils, featuring Mills and company supporting various guest vocalists (including Vanessa Richards, of Bolero Lava, and Madeline Morris, of Moev and Family Plot).