Suicide Commandos Biography
Before Prince, Hüsker Dü, Soul Asylum, and the Replacements dominated and defined the Minneapolis rock scene of the '80s, three guys, Chris Osgood, Steve Almaas, and Dave Ahl, had a swinging little punk rock combo called the Suicide Commandos. They made only two records, one of them a live one, but they were one of, if not the first and most influential, honest-to-god faster 'n' louder punk rock band to come out of the Twin Cities. Along with giving the Minneapolis punk scene a jump-start, the Commandos, along with Pere Ubu, were the first (and, as it turned out, only) bands signed to Mercury Records punk label Blank. While Ubu was art-punk, the Commandos were revved up and ready to rock, leaving hooks and riffs buried under a speedy wall of distortion. But the accent on simplicity shouldn't detract from your enjoyment of Chris Osgood's guitar playing, one of the best and most underrated axeslingers (and all-around nice guys) the Twin Cities has ever produced. After their debut Make a Record went largely unnoticed, the Commandos toured a bit (with Ubu) and called it quits when Almaas decided to follow his power-pop urges to New York and form the Crackers and later Beat Rodeo. Perhaps not the greatest of the early Minneapolis punk rockers, it would have been hard to imagine the excitement of the Minneapolis rock scene of the '80s happening without the Suicide Commandos providing the impetus. ~ John Dougan, All Music Guide
Popular Biographies:
Negramaro Biography: Their name derived from a local grape, the negro amaro (meaning bitter black), six-man Italian rock band Negramaro met in Lecce, Puglia, where some of the members were attending the...
Internecine Biography: Delivering a savage, unholy sound that is often seen in extreme metal, Internecine is one of the many metal acts appearing at the turn of the century that takes its aggressiveness to a new level....
Tame one Biography: A fervent supporter of graffiti art and a graf writer himself, Tame One broke into rap music with the New Jersey rap group the Artifacts in the early '90s. He and El Da Sensei were enthusiastically...
Aeoliah Biography: New age multi-instrumentalist Aeoliah (Ay-oh-lee-ya) is well-known among celebrities for his powerful healing techniques through music. His belief that sound and light are spiritually energized...
It dies today Biography: Formed in 2001 when most of their members were still in their teens, Buffalo, NY's It Dies Today have one foot in the realm of bruising death metal and another in post-hardcore, combining the two...
Beseech Biography: The flamboyantly dressed Swedish quintet Beseech delves in what they like to call "symphonic goth metal" -- a mixture of doom, death, and, well, symphonic and gothic elements which, if it doesn't...
Omarion Biography: There's no doubting the ripple effect caused by the phenomenal success stories of newly-minted solo chart-toppers, like Beyonce and Justin. Next up to the plate is Omarion, who is primed to make his...
Free design Biography: The commercial failure of the Free Design remains one of the most baffling mysteries in the annals of pop music -- with their exquisitely celestial harmonies, lighter-than-air melodies and blissful...