!!! ( ), also known as Chk Chk Chk, is an American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band from

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

, formed in 1996 by lead singer

Nic Offer Nicholas Joseph Offer (born 1972) is a New York City–based musician. He is best known as the vocalist of the dance-punk band !!!, which he helped form in Sacramento, California, in 1996. Offer played bass and keyboards for the electronic ban ...

. Members of !!! came from other local bands such as the Yah Mos, Black Liquorice and Pope Smashers. They are currently based in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. The band's ninth album, ''Let It Be Blue'', was released in May 2022.

Background and history

!!! was formed in the fall of 1996 by the merger of members of the groups Black Liquorice and Pope Smashers, while on tour. After a successful joint tour, the two bands decided to mix the disco-funk with more aggressive sounds and integrate the

hardcore Hardcore, hard core or hard-core may refer to: Arts and media Film * ''Hardcore'' (1977 film), a British comedy film * ''Hardcore'' (1979 film), an American crime drama film starring George C Scott * ''Hardcore'' (2001 film), a British documen ...

singer Nic Offer from the Yah Mos. The band's name was inspired by the subtitles of the movie ''

The Gods Must Be Crazy ''The Gods Must Be Crazy'' is a 1980 comedy film written, produced, edited and directed by Jamie Uys. An international co-production of South Africa and Botswana, it is the first film in ''The Gods Must Be Crazy'' series. Set in Southern Africa ...

'', in which the clicking sounds of the

San people The San peoples (also Saan), or Bushmen, are members of various Khoe, Tuu, or Kxʼa-speaking indigenous hunter-gatherer cultures that are the first cultures of Southern Africa, and whose territories span Botswana, Namibia, Angola, Zambia, ...

Juǀʼhoan language Juǀʼhoan (, ), also known as Southern or Southeastern ǃKung or ǃXun, is the southern variety of the ǃKung dialect continuum, spoken in northeastern Namibia and the Northwest District of Botswana by San Bushmen who largely identify themselv ...

were represented as "!". However, as the bandmembers themselves say, !!! is pronounced by repeating thrice any monosyllabic sound. "Chk Chk Chk" is the most common pronunciation, and the URL of their official website and the title of their Myspace page suggest it is the preferred pronunciation. Offer cites

Depeche Mode Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in Basildon, Essex, in 1980. The band currently consists of Dave Gahan (lead vocals and co-songwriting) and Martin Gore (keyboards, guitar, co-lead vocals and main songwriting). Depeche ...

and

Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD) are an English electronic music, electronic band formed in Wirral Peninsula, Wirral, Merseyside, in 1978. The group consists of co-founders Andy McCluskey (vocals, bass guitar) and Paul Humphreys (keyboar ...

(OMD) as influences. The band's full-length debut record came out in 2000 as a self-titled album on the label

Gold Standard Laboratories Gold Standard Laboratories or GSL was an independent record label which was founded in 1993 in Boulder, Colorado by Sonny Kay. In 2000, it was relocated to San Diego, California, United States, and two years later, to Los Angeles. It was headqu ...

. This was followed in 2003 by the single "Me and Giuliani Down By the School Yard", a lengthy track combining

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

beats with sinewy

bassline Bassline (also known as a bass line or bass part) is the term used in many styles of music, such as blues, jazz, funk, Dub music, dub and electronic music, electronic, traditional music, traditional, or classical music for the low-pitched Part ( ...

psychedelic Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary states of consciousness (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips").Pollan, Michael (2018). ''How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of ...

guitars, and simple lyrics which quote the title song of the musical ''

Footloose Footloose may refer to: * ''Footloose'' (1984 film), a musical film ** ''Footloose'' (1984 soundtrack) ** "Footloose" (song), performed by Kenny Loggins * ''Footloose'' (2011 film), a remake of the 1984 film ** ''Footloose'' (2011 soundtrack) ...

''. A second full-length, ''

Louden Up Now ''Louden Up Now'' is the second studio album by American dance-punk band !!!. Released on July 27, 2004, through Touch and Go Records in the United States and Warp Records in the rest of the world, the album was greeted by mainly positive reviews ...

'', was released on Touch and Go in America and on

Warp Records Warp Records (or simply Warp) is a British independent record label founded in Sheffield in 1989 by record store employees Steve Beckett and Rob Mitchell and record producer Robert Gordon.Southern, Richard (2003) "Label of Love: WARP", X-RAY, A ...

in Europe in June 2004. In June 2005 !!! released a new EP covering " Take Ecstasy with Me" by

The Magnetic Fields The Magnetic Fields (named after the André Breton/Philippe Soupault novel ''Les Champs Magnétiques'') are an American Band (rock and pop), band founded and led by Stephin Merritt. Merritt is the group's primary songwriter, producer, and vocali ...

, and "Get Up" by

Nate Dogg Nathaniel Dwayne Hale (August 19, 1969 – March 15, 2011), known professionally as Nate Dogg, was an American singer and rapper. He gained recognition for providing guest vocals for a multitude of hit rap songs between 1992 and 2007, earning the ...

. The following December, the original drummer for the band, Mikel Gius, was struck and killed by a car while riding his bike. They released their third album, ''

Myth Takes ''Myth Takes'' is the third album by !!!. The album was released on March 5, 2007. It was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee, United States, and features drummer Jerry Fuchs. Early limited edition copies of the CD version of t ...

'' in 2007. Coachella2004 ChkChkChk

!!! is composed of Mario Andreoni (guitar), Dan Gorman (

horns Horns or The Horns may refer to: * Plural of Horn (instrument), a group of musical instruments all with a horn-shaped bells * The Horns (Colorado), a summit on Cheyenne Mountain * ''Horns'' (novel), a dark fantasy novel written in 2010 by Joe Hill ...

/percussion/

keys Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

), Nic Offer (vocals), Rafael Cohen (bass/various electronic devices), Chris Egan (drums) and Meah Pace (vocals). Vocalist and drummer John Pugh officially left the band in July 2007 to concentrate on his new band Free Blood. Vocalist Shannon Funchess stood in for Pugh during much of their 2007 tour. The band also shared membership with the similar, defunct group

Out Hud Out Hud was an American electronic band formed in 1996 in the Bay Area of California and later based in New York City. The band consisted of guitarist Nic Offer, bassist Tyler Pope, cellist Molly Schnick, vocalist/ drummer Phyllis Forbes and ...

(including Tyler Pope, who has played with

LCD Soundsystem LCD Soundsystem is an American rock band from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2002 by James Murphy, co-founder of DFA Records. The band comprises Murphy (vocals, various instruments), Nancy Whang (synthesizer, keyboards, vocals), Pat Mahoney (dr ...

and written music for

Cake Cake is a flour confection made from flour, sugar, and other ingredients, and is usually baked. In their oldest forms, cakes were modifications of bread, but cakes now cover a wide range of preparations that can be simple or elaborate, ...

Discography

Albums

EPs

* ''GSL26/Lab Series Vol. 2'' (Split with

, 1999, Gold Standard Labs) * ''Live Live Live'' (November 2004, Beat Records, Japan only) * ''Take Ecstasy with Me/Get Up'' (June 7, 2005, Touch and Go Records) * ''Yadnus'' (2007) * ''Jamie, My Intentions Are Bass E.P.'' (November 2010) * ''MEGAMiiiX Vol.1: Shake Shake Shake'' (2018) * ''Certified Heavy Kats'' (July 31, 2020)

Singles

Other projects

* ''!!!'' (1997, tour cassette)

Footnotes

References

* * * * * * * * * * *

External links

*
Profile on Music Agency Website
{{Authority control Indie rock musical groups from California Musical groups established in 1996 Dance-punk musical groups Post-punk revival music groups Warp (record label) artists Musical groups from Sacramento, California 1996 establishments in California Touch and Go Records artists