Neon Hunk was a husband/wife noise music duo from

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...

, composed of Jennifurmium (Mothmaster) - vocals and

analog synthesizer An analog (or analogue) synthesizer is a synthesizer that uses analog circuits and analog signals to generate sound electronically. The earliest analog synthesizers in the 1920s and 1930s, such as the Trautonium, were built with a variety of ...

ring modulator In electronics, ring modulation is a signal processing function, an implementation of frequency mixing, in which two signals are combined to yield an output signal. One signal, called the carrier, is typically a sine wave or another simple ...

, and Pink Diamond (Mossmaster) - Drums, Vocals, and Modular Digital Synthesizer. Neon Hunk formed in the summer of 2000 under the name Abracadaver, but changed their name to Neon Hunk in 2001. Neon Hunk disbanded in 2004. Both members of Neon Hunk have continued to record music independently after halting activity with the band. The music of Neon Hunk featured sparse, drum and synthesizer arrangements, generally non-tonal, and often in non-standard and frequently changing

time signatures The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note valu ...

. Neon Hunk's vocals were processed with a

vocoder A vocoder (, a portmanteau of ''voice'' and ''encoder'') is a category of speech coding that analyzes and synthesizes the human voice signal for audio data compression, multiplexing, voice encryption or voice transformation. The vocoder was ...

with a noise source as the carrier, and were often likened to the sound of a cougar. Their sound combined aspects of progressive and experimental rock, punk, avant-garde electronic/noise music, and at times, free-improvisation. The music is held together with a quirky, cartoonish pop sensibility. Typical Neon Hunk songs rarely exceeded two minutes, though live shows sometimes featured longer improvised jam-sessions (as documented on their tape-only release Neyan Honkies and the self-released tour only release, SECRETS OF THE HUNK). Neon Hunk sited diverse influences including

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...

, Melvins,

Ruins Ruins () are the remains of a civilization's architecture. The term refers to formerly intact structures that have fallen into a state of partial or total disrepair over time due to a variety of factors, such as lack of maintenance, deliberate ...

, Rush,

Blue Cheer Blue Cheer was an American rock band that initially performed and recorded in the late 1960s and early 1970s and was sporadically active until 2009. Based in San Francisco, Blue Cheer played in a psychedelic blues rock or acid rock style, and ...

, early Devo, and Kraftwerk, as well as musical contemporaries such as many of their

Load Records Load Records was an American experimental music-oriented independent record label based out of Providence, Rhode Island. "Load Records might possibly be in possession of the world's most challenging record roster," writes Mark Hensch of Thrash Pi ...

peers and many other artists within the underground noise and punk community. The twosome was known for their lively, high energy shows, disjointed dance moves, and scrapped-together, bright, home-modified masks and costumes. Neon Hunk toured the US and Canada several times in summers and winters from 2001 to 2003 including partial or whole tours with

Hair Police Hair Police is an American band based out of Lexington, Kentucky, that formed in 2001. They have released records through labels such as Troubleman Unlimited, Hanson Records, Gods of Tundra, Freedom From, and Hospital Productions. They have a ...

, Mammal,

Wolf Eyes __NOTOC__ Wolf Eyes is an American experimental music group from Detroit, Michigan, formed in 1996 by Nate Young. Currently a duo, Wolf Eyes are a prominent act within contemporary noise music. They have collaborated with a variety of artists from ...

The Locust The Locust was an American hardcore punk band from San Diego, California, known for their mix of grindcore aggression and new wave experimentation. The band has been noted for their use of insect costumes when performing live. History Prio ...

, Chinese Stars,

Kites A kite is a tethered heavier-than-air or lighter-than-air craft with wing surfaces that react against the air to create lift and drag forces. A kite consists of wings, tethers and anchors. Kites often have a bridle and tail to guide the face ...

, and Black Coitus Family. Neon Hunk's final performance was in 2004 at the De Stijl festival in Minneapolis, MN alongside The Dream Aktion Unit (

Thurston Moore Thurston Joseph Moore (born July 25, 1958) is an American musician best known as a member of Sonic Youth. He has also participated in many solo and group collaborations outside Sonic Youth, as well as running the Ecstatic Peace! record label. Mo ...

/Chris Corsano/Paul Flaherty/ Jim O’Rourke), Devendra Banhart,

Wooden Wand and the Vanishing Voice Wooden Wand is the stage name of singer-songwriter James Jackson Toth, who has recorded under his given name as well as the name WAND. The style of music recorded by Toth and his many incarnations has drawn on a variety of both conventional and ex ...

, Dead Machines, and other noise/freak weirdos. Since the dissolution of Neon Hunk, Mossmaster and Mothmaster have continued recording music under various names. Mossmaster has self-released several solo CDr's, and as of 2009 is working on a full-length album and recording music for various film and video related media.

Discography

*AbraCadaver 7-inch EP ( Liquid Death/Hello Pussy Records 2001) *Split 7-inch EP with My Name is Rar Rar ( Liquid Death/Hello Pussy Records 2002) *SECRETS OF THE HUNK (Self-Released tour only release - two versions with different packaging 2002 & 2003) *Neyan Honkies Cassette ( Heresee 2002) *Smarmymob (

2003) *Split 10-inch EP as Crystal Fantasy with

( Liquid Death/Hello Pussy Records ??)

References

American noise rock music groups Load Records artists {{US-experimental-band-stub