Pansy Division is an American rock band formed in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, United States, in 1991 by singer-songwriter Jon Ginoli and bassist

Chris Freeman Chris Freeman may refer to: Musicians * Chris Freeman (Australian musician) (c. 1950 – 1992), Australian classical and flamenco multi-instrumentalist * Chris Freeman (musician) (born 1961), American bassist, founding member of Pansy Division * Ch ...

. Conceived as the first openly

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

rock band featuring predominantly gay musicians, Pansy Division's music, a mix of

pop punk Pop punk (or punk pop) is a rock music genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop. It is defined for its emphasis on classic pop songcraft, as well as adolescent and anti-suburbia themes, and is distinguished from other pu ...

and

power pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, an energetic performance, and ch ...

, focuses mainly on

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

issues, sex and relationships, often presented in a humorous light. In 1993, the band signed to punk label

Lookout! Records Lookout Records (stylized as Lookout! Records) was an independent record label, initially based in Laytonville, California and later in Berkeley, focusing on punk rock. Established in 1987, the label is best known for having released Operation ...

and received international notoriety touring with

Green Day Green Day is an American rock band formed in the East Bay of California in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, together with bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt. For most of the band's career, they have been a powe ...

in 1994, becoming the most commercially successful band of the

queercore Queercore (or homocore) is a cultural/social movement that began in the mid-1980s as an offshoot of the punk subculture and a music genre that comes from punk rock. It is distinguished by its discontent with society in general, and specifical ...

movement which began in the 1980s. Pansy Division have released seven studio albums and three B-side compilations, among other recordings. In 2008, the band were the subject of the documentary film entitled ''Pansy Division: Life in a Gay Rock Band''.

History

Formation

Frustrated by the lack of openly gay rock musicians, Jon Ginoli started performing solo sets under the moniker Pansy Division (a pun on

Panzer division A Panzer division was one of the armored (tank) divisions in the army of Nazi Germany during World War II. Panzer divisions were the key element of German success in the blitzkrieg operations of the early years of World War II. Later the Waffe ...

and the word "

pansy The garden pansy (''Viola'' × ''wittrockiana'') is a type of large-flowered hybrid plant cultivated as a garden flower. It is derived by hybridization from several species in the section ''Melanium'' ("the pansies") of the genus ''Viola'', p ...

") around

.Frequently Asked Questions
, PansyDivision.com, accessed 30 July 2016. Shortly after this, in 1991, Ginoli placed an ad in the

San Francisco Weekly ''SF Weekly'' was a free alternative weekly newspaper founded in the 1970s in San Francisco, California. It was distributed every Thursday, and was published by the San Francisco Print Media Company. The paper has won national journalism awards, ...

looking for “gay musicians into the

Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first true punk rock group. Despite achieving a limited commercial appeal in the United ...

Buzzcocks Buzzcocks are an English punk rock band formed in Bolton, England in 1976 by singer-songwriter-guitarist Pete Shelley and singer-songwriter Howard Devoto. They are regarded as a seminal influence on the Manchester music scene, the independen ...

and early

Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developme ...

”. This caught the attention of

, who joined on as a bassist. Ginoli and Freeman then recruited drummer Jay Paget, forming the first all gay rock band that any of them had known. They hoped to defy the

stereotype In social psychology, a stereotype is a generalized belief about a particular category of people. It is an expectation that people might have about every person of a particular group. The type of expectation can vary; it can be, for example ...

that gay men preferred pop divas and showtunes, by playing punk rock music.

Lookout! years (1993-2000)

In 1993, following extensive Californian touring, several 7" singles and compilation appearances, Pansy Division signed to

, released their first album, ''

Undressed ''Undressed'' is an American anthology series that aired on MTV from July 26, 1999, to September 5, 2002. The series was created and executive produced by British director Roland Joffé. Synopsis The series follows the relationships (both roma ...

'', and embarked on their first national tour. In 1994, with the release of their second album ''

Deflowered ''Deflowered'' is the second studio album by American queercore band Pansy Division, released in 1994 on Lookout! Records. The cover features a photograph of Mark Ewert (left) and Moon Trent (right), taken by Marc Gellar. The two men also appear ...

'' and an appearance on Outpunk's seminal compilation ''

Outpunk Dance Party Outpunk enjoys the distinction of being the first record label entirely devoted to queer punk bands. The label was run out of San Francisco and began as an extension of Matt Wobensmith's fanzine, ''Outpunk''. ''Outpunk'' ran for seven issues, fr ...

'', the band had proven themselves to be one of the more prolific and well-known artists to spring from the budding

movement. Also catching the wave of pop punk's mainstream explosion, Pansy Division were asked to tour with

on the band’s 1994 ''

Dookie ''Dookie'' is the third studio album and the major label debut by American rock band Green Day, released on February 1, 1994, by Reprise Records. The band's first collaboration with producer Rob Cavallo, it was recorded in late 1993 at Fantasy ...

'' tour, thus introducing the group and queercore to a much larger audience. During the tour's New York stop, the band caught the attention of

Howard Stern Howard Allan Stern (born January 12, 1954) is an American radio and television personality, comedian, and author. He is best known for his radio show, ''The Howard Stern Show'', which gained popularity when it was nationally syndicated on terre ...

, who met them backstage, and spent a segment talking about them on his nationally syndicated radio show. While signed to Lookout!, the band continued to release an album a year: 1995's ''

Pile Up A multiple vehicle collision (colloquially known as a pile-up, multi-car collision, multi-vehicle collision, or simply a multi) is a road traffic collision involving many vehicles. Generally occurring on high-capacity and high-speed routes such ...

'' (notable for its various cover songs, including Ned Sublette's "

Cowboys Are Frequently, Secretly Fond of Each Other "Cowboys Are Frequently, Secretly Fond of Each Other" (1981) is a song by Latin country musician Ned Sublette, whose music, according to Howard Cohen, features a "lilting West Texas waltz (3/4 time at about 60–90 beats per minute) feel".Cohen ...

" and Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" (covered as "Smells Like Queer Spirit")), 1996's ''

Wish I'd Taken Pictures ''Wish I'd Taken Pictures'' is the third studio album, fourth album overall, by American queercore band Pansy Division, released on February 13, 1996 by Lookout! Records and Mint Records. The front and back covers feature photographs of Mark Ewer ...

'' (featuring the single "I Really Wanted You", the music video of which played once on

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

) and the 1997 B-sides compilation ''

More Lovin' From Our Oven More or Mores may refer to: Computing * MORE (application), outline software for Mac OS * more (command), a shell command * MORE protocol, a routing protocol * Missouri Research and Education Network Music Albums * ''More!'' (album), by Booka S ...

''. During this time, Pansy Division primarily performed as a trio, with Freeman and Ginoli being the only constant members amid a slew of perpetually rotating drummers, both gay and straight. In 1996, the band finally found a permanent gay drummer in the form of Luis Illades and became a quartet in 1997 with the addition of lead guitarist Patrick Goodwin. 1998 saw the release of their fifth studio album ''

Absurd Pop Song Romance ''Absurd Pop Song Romance'' is the fourth studio album, sixth album overall, by American queercore band Pansy Division, released on September 8, 1998 by Lookout! Records. ''Absurd Pop Song Romance'' saw a major stylistic shift from the punk rock ...

'', which was a departure from earlier Pansy work, featuring less humorous, more introspective lyrics and a darker, two-guitar layered

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

sound. The band was again taken on tour by a mainstream punk band, when they opened for Rancid on their 1998 ''

Life Won't Wait ''Life Won't Wait'' is the fourth studio album by the American punk rock band Rancid. It was released on June 30, 1998 through Epitaph Records. It was released as the follow-up to '' ...And Out Come the Wolves'' (1995). Writing and production ...

'' tour.

Alternative Tentacles years (2001-present)

In 2001, Pansy Division was finally ready to record another album, but the lack of support from Lookout! caused the band to leave their long-time label and sign with

Alternative Tentacles Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label established in 1979 in San Francisco, California. It was used by Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single " California Über Alles". After realizing the potential for an independent label, t ...

later that year. What resulted was 2003's ''

Total Entertainment! ''Total Entertainment!'' is a studio album by American queercore band Pansy Division. It was released in 2003 by Alternative Tentacles. Critical reception ''Now'' called the album "a goofy alt-rock amusement park ride of a record, with more hooks ...

'', an album that the band described as a meeting point between the lighthearted humor of their early work and the introspective rock of their previous album. Goodwin left the band the following year, being temporarily replaced by Bernard Yin and then by former

Mr. T Experience The Mr. T Experience (sometimes abbreviated MTX) is an American punk rock band formed in 1985 in Berkeley, California, United States. They have released eleven full-length albums along with numerous EPs and singles and have toured international ...

member Joel Reader. In 2006, Alternative Tentacles released ''

The Essential Pansy Division ''The Essential Pansy Division'' is a compilation album by American queercore band Pansy Division, released on January 24, 2006 by Alternative Tentacles Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label established in 1979 in San Francisc ...

'', a comprehensive 'best-of' compilation featuring thirty tracks hand-picked by Ginoli and a DVD of various video footage. Following the release of ''Total Entertainment'', Pansy Division's active touring and recording schedule declined as most of the members relocated to different parts of the country. The band continued to perform sporadically, usually at various gay pride festivals or local shows in San Francisco. In 2007, Pansy Division launched their first national tour since 2003 with reformed San Francisco punk band

The Avengers Avenger, Avengers, The Avenger, or The Avengers may refer to: Arts and entertainment In the Marvel Comics universe * Avengers (comics), a team of superheroes ** Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe), a central team of protagonist superheroes o ...

, whose current line-up features both Illades and Reader. In 2008, the band became the subject of a documentary film entitled ''Pansy Division: Life in a Gay Rock Band'', directed by Michael Carmona. The film has been touring internationally, playing at various LGBT film festivals, and was released on DVD in 2009. 2009 saw the release of their seventh studio album, titled ''

That's So Gay ''That's So Gay'' is an album by the American queercore band Pansy Division. It was released on March 31, 2009, by Alternative Tentacles. Critical reception ''Exclaim!'' called the album "the band's most natural commingling of music and message y ...

'', a live DVD, another national tour, and Ginoli's

memoirs A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobiog ...

, a biography of the band entitled ''Deflowered: My Life in Pansy Division''. After a seven-year break from recording, Pansy Division returned in 2016 with Quite Contrary.

Members

; Current members * Jon Ginoli –

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

(1991–present) *

–

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

, vocals (1991–present) *Joel Reader – lead guitar, vocals (2004–present; also of

, formerly of

The Mr. T Experience The Mr. T Experience (sometimes abbreviated MTX) is an American punk rock band formed in 1985 in Berkeley, California, United States. They have released eleven full-length albums along with numerous EPs and singles and have toured international ...

and The Plus Ones) *Luis Illades –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

(1996–present; also of The Avengers) ; Former members *Patrick Goodwin – lead guitar (1997–2004; currently of Dirty Power, formerly of

Hammers of Misfortune Hammers of Misfortune is an American heavy metal band from San Francisco, California. The band's style has varied from album to album, at times incorporating different elements of folk metal, doom metal, NWOBHM, black metal, 1970s rock, and th ...

) *Bernard Yin – lead guitar (2004; currently of Astra Heights) *Jay Paget – drums (1991–1992; formerly of

Thinking Fellers Union Local 282 Thinking Fellers Union Local 282 were an American experimental indie rock group, which was formed in 1986 in San Francisco though half of its members are from Iowa. Their albums combine lo-fi noise rock and ambient sounds (referred to as "Felle ...

) *David Ward – drums (1992–1994) *Liam Hart – drums (1994) *David Ayer – drums (1994) *

Dan Panic Dan Sullivan, also known as Dan Panic or Danny Panic, is an American punk rock drummer from Chicago, Illinois. Career Dan Sullivan began his musical career with Ivy League, a quartet from Chicago's western suburbs who released one 7" EP in 19 ...

– drums (1994) *Patrick Hawley – drums (1995) *Dustin Donaldson – drums (1995–1996; currently of

I Am Spoonbender I Am Spoonbender is an American/Canadian multimedia group formed in San Francisco in early 1997 by composer/multi-instrumentalist/producer Dustin Donaldson, with Brian Jackson and cub guitarist Robynn Iwata (a.k.a. 'Cup', who joined halfway thro ...

)

Discography

Studio albums *''

'' (1993) *''

'' (1994) *''

'' (1996) *''

'' (1998) *''

'' (2003) *''

'' (2009) *'' Quite Contrary'' (2016)

References

External links

The Official Pansy Division Website

Pansy Division’s page
on their label,

website. {{Authority control 1991 establishments in California Alternative Tentacles artists LGBT culture in San Francisco LGBT-themed musical groups Mint Records artists Musical groups established in 1991 Musical groups from San Francisco Pop punk groups from California Punk rock groups from California Queercore groups