Spazz was an American

powerviolence Powerviolence (sometimes written as power violence) is an extremely dissonant and fast subgenre of hardcore punk which is closely related to thrashcore and grindcore. In contrast with grindcore, which is a "crossover" idiom containing musical ...

band active between 1992 and 2000. The trio released numerous records within this time, many of which are now highly collectible due to their relative rarity. The band's releases often showcased their unusual sense of humour: absurdly long and nonsensical song titles, audio samples from

B movie A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feature ...

s and

kung fu Chinese martial arts, often called by the umbrella terms kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (), are multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater China. These fighting styles are often classified according to common ...

films between songs and the occasional use of hip hop beats as well as saxophones, banjos and other instruments rarely associated with

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier punk ...

. All three of the members shared vocal duties, usually changing in sequence from line to line. The group would typically play at all ages venues. 2015 saw the release of a tribute LP to Spazz by Scottish record label Mind Ripper Collective titled "Spazzin' To The Oldies - A Tribute To Spazz". In 2016, it was announced that Tankcrimes will reissue the out-of-print Spazz albums ''Sweatin' To The Oldies'' and ''Sweatin' 3: Skatin', Satan & Katon''.

After Spazz

Spazz vocalist and bassist Chris Dodge's record label,

Slap-a-Ham Records Slap a Ham Records was an independent label from San Francisco owned and operated by Chris Dodge, bassist of the band Spazz as well as others. The label is generally seen as a highly influential entity within the hardcore punk scene in California ...

, was a fixture during the rapid rise and decline of powerviolence in the late '80s and early '90s, releasing influential records by the likes of

Man Is the Bastard Man Is the Bastard was an American hardcore punk band based in Claremont, California. The band existed from 1990 to 1997, releasing mostly vinyl splits, extended plays, and albums on obscure labels from around the world. By 1997, the group ended ...

No Comment No comment is a phrase used as a response to journalistic inquiries which the respondent does not wish to answer. Public figures may decline to comment on issues they are questioned or have nothing to say about the issue at the time. ''No commen ...

Crossed Out Crossed Out was a powerviolence band from Encinitas, California. The band was active from early 1990 until late 1993. The group is considered to be a very important band that helped define powerviolence with a style that incorporated political lyr ...

, Infest and Spazz, amongst others. The label's Fiesta Grande was an annual power violence festival held at

924 Gilman Street The Alternative Music Foundation located at 924 Gilman Street, often referred to by its fans simply as "Gilman", is a non-profit, all-ages, collectively organized music club. It is located in the West Berkeley area of Berkeley, California, about ...

during its heyday, from 1992 to the band's demise in 2000. Since then, he has been involved in several musical projects, most notably East West Blast Test with highly regarded

extreme metal Extreme metal is a loosely defined umbrella term for a number of related heavy metal music subgenres that have developed since the early 1980s. It has been defined as a "cluster of metal subgenres characterized by sonic, verbal, and visual tran ...

drummer

Dave Witte Dave Witte (born August 11, 1971) is an American drummer. He is known for his work in numerous extreme metal or hardcore punk bands including Municipal Waste, Melt-Banana, Discordance Axis, Black Army Jacket, Birds of Prey, Burnt by the Sun, a ...

, formerly of

Discordance Axis Discordance Axis was an American grindcore band from East Brunswick, New Jersey. Biography Frontman Jon Chang stated on the history of the band: "Discordance Axis was a three piece grindcore band that started in NJ around 1992. The band st ...

Melt-Banana Melt-Banana is a Japanese noise rock band that is known for playing extremely fast noise rock mixed with experimental, electronica and pop-based song structures. Since forming in 1992 the band has released ten albums and toured worldwide extens ...

and many others. In recent years, he has performed with bands like

Despise You Despise You are an American powerviolence band from Inglewood, California, formed in 1994. The group is noted for helping influencing the powerviolence movement and for their bleak lyrics about topics such as gang violence, misanthropy, and self-h ...

, Lack Of Interest, Infest, and To The Point. Spazz vocalist and drummer Max Ward's label,

625 Thrashcore Max Ward, occasionally playing under the moniker of Hirax Max, is an American power violence and thrashcore musician, playing for such bands as Spazz, Plutocracy, Capitalist Casualties, What Happens Next?, Bombs of Death, and Scholastic Deth. ...

, has started their own festival, 'Super Sabado Gigante', in a similar vein. Spazz vocalist and guitarist Dan Bolleri makes hip hop music under the alias DJ Eons One.

Discography

;Studio albums *''Dwarf Jester Rising'' (1994, Clearview) *''La Revancha'' (1997, Sound Pollution) *''Crush Kill Destroy'' (1999, Slap-a-Ham) ;Extended plays *''Blasted In Bangkok'' demo tape (1993, Self-released) *''Spazz'' 7-inch (1993, Slap-a-Ham) *''Funky Ass Lil' Platter'' 1-inch (1996, Slap-a-Ham) (Unplayable toy 1-inch with no actual music)www.discogs.com
notes on this say it is "completely unplayable with no sound on it". Retrieved 24 February 2015. *''Tastin' Spoon'' 5-inch (1997, Clean Plate) *''The Jeb'' 7-inch (2002, Jeb Records) ;Split records *Spazz/Floor 7-inch (1994, Bovine) *Spazz/Brutal Truth 7-inch (1995, Bovine/Rhetoric) *''Bible Studies'' split CD with Subversion (1995, Deported) *Spazz/Romantic Gorilla 7-inch (1996, Sound Pollution) *Spazz/Toast 7-inch (1996, HG Fact) *Spazz/Jimmie Walker 7-inch (1996, Slap-a-Ham) *''The Network Of Friends Project Part 1'' split 7-inch with Öpstand (1997, Coalition) *Spazz/Black Army Jacket 7-inch (1997, Dogprint) *Spazz/Slobber 7-inch (1997, Sacapuntas) *Spazz/Monster X 7-inch (1997, Reservoir) *''Raging Violence'' split 7-inch with

Hirax The Hydrogen Intensity and Real-time Analysis eXperiment (HIRAX) is an interferometric array of 1024 6-meter (20 ft) diameter radio telescopes, operating at 400-800MHz, that will be deployed at the Square Kilometer Array site in the Karoo regi ...

(1997, Theologian/Pessimiser) *''Skinny Top, Heavy Bottom'' split 5-inch with Gob (1997, 702/Satans Pimp) *''Double Whammy'' split 7-inch with Lack Of Interest (1997, Deep Six) *Spazz/25 Ta Life 7-inch (1999, Edison Recordings) ;Compilation albums *''Sweatin' To The Oldies'' (1997, Slap-a-Ham) *''Sweatin' 2: Deported Live Dwarf'' (2001,

) *''Sweatin' 3: Skatin', Satan & Katon'' (2001, Slap-a-Ham) ;Compilation appearances *''Cry Now, Cry Later Vol. 1'' - "Loach" (1993, Theologian/Pessimiser) *''El Guapo'' - "Enterslavement", "Hardboiled", and "Burning Tongue" (1994, 625 Thrashcore) *''Audio Terrorism'' - "Gas Pump", "MPS", "Running Man", and "Slow Death" (1994, Chaotic Noise Productions) *''Antisocial People Underground Compilation #1'' - "No Thought" (1995) *''Pigs Suck'' - "In The Name Of.../Might For Right" (1995, Clean Plate) *''Kamakazi Attacked America/America Bombed Hiroshima, Nagasaki'' - "DJ Tinkle Fingers/Diplomatic Services" (1995, MCR/Sound Pollution) *''Left Back/Let Down'' - "Spudboy", "Smoking Don's Crack Hole", "Dirt The Purity", "Knuckle Scraper", and "Box II (Yates Goes To Africa)" (1995, Theologian/Pessimiser) *''Reality'' - "Gnome Servant" (1996, Deep Six) *''Better Read Than Dead (A Benefit For AK Press)'' - "Mighty Morphin Power Violence" (1996,

Epitaph An epitaph (; ) is a short text honoring a deceased person. Strictly speaking, it refers to text that is inscribed on a tombstone or plaque, but it may also be used in a figurative sense. Some epitaphs are specified by the person themselves be ...

) *''Cry Now, Cry Later Vol. 4'' - "White Glove Test" (1996, Theologrian/Pessimiser) *''Tomorrow Will Be Worse'' - "Sanrio Soldier", "Connie The Mack", "Plastic Grandma Cackling At The Frozen Lemonade Fishbowl, Baby", "Bastard Tomb Ride", and "Beattie And The Beat" (1997, Sound Pollution) *''

Gummo ''Gummo'' is a 1997 American experimental drama film written and directed by Harmony Korine, starring Jacob Reynolds, Nick Sutton, Jacob Sewell, and Chloë Sevigny. The film is set (but was not filmed) in Xenia, Ohio, a Midwestern American tow ...

'' - "Gummo Love Theme" (1997,

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

) *''Fiesta Comes Alive!'' - "Might For Right" (1997, Slap-a-Ham) *''Reality Part 2'' - "Animal Liberation Now" (1997, Deep Six) *''Possessed To Skate'' - "Billy Pepper's Fist In The Glass Eye Of Jake Phelps", "Sir War Alot", "Skatin' And Satan Go Hand In Hoof", "Town Center", "Crazy Eddie", "B-Street Butta" (1997, 625 Thrashcore/Theologian/Pessimiser) *''A Product Of Six Cents'' - "Danliftingbanner (Live)" (1997, A Product Of Six Cents) *''Audio Terrorism: The Soundtrack For Weirdness And Blind Hostility'' - "Caught In The Net" (1998, Chaotic Noise Production/Satans Pimp/Heartplug Records) *''Reproach: 8 Modern Hardcore Bands Cover Negative Approach'' - "Lost Cause" (1998, Ugly Pop) *''Ham Slappin' Hits!'' - "Gertie", "Hardboiled", "4 Times A Day" (1998, Slap-a-Ham) *''The Good, The Bad And The Ugly'' - "7 Deadly Finns" (1998, Insolito) *''

Short Music For Short People ''Short Music for Short People'' is a 1999 compilation album released on the Fat Wreck Chords record label. It features 101 bands playing songs averaging approximately 30 seconds in length. With a few exceptions, most of the album's tracks wer ...

'' - "A Prayer For The Complete And Utter Eradication Of All Generic Pop-Punk" (1999,

Fat Wreck Chords Fat Wreck Chords (pronounced "Fat Records") is a San Francisco, California-based independent record label, focused on punk rock. It was started by NOFX lead singer Michael Burkett (better known as Fat Mike) in 1990. The label has released mater ...

) *''Question Of Tolerance?'' - "Let's Fucking Go" (2002, Front Rock) *''Necrotardation'' - "Raise Your Sword To The Dark Lord" (2002, Deplorable/Ghostmeat) *''You Call This Music?! Vol. 2'' - "Typical Hardcore Song #1" (2002, Geykido Comet) *''Bay Area Checking In With The World'' - "Crocket" (2007, Coldfront) *''A Product Of Sex Cents 2'' - "Jeb Song (Live At Last Show)" (2009, A Product Of Six Cents)

References

External links

625Thrash, Max Ward's record labelDJ Eons One, Dan Bolleri's current Hip Hop project
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spazz Hardcore punk groups from California Musical groups established in 1992 Powerviolence groups American musical trios