The Enigmas are a Canadian

garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...

band formed in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, in 1981. Although initially short-lived, the band is still renowned for its live performances, showcasing a style combining influences from 1960s

and Detroit's

proto-punk Proto-punk (or protopunk) is rock music played mostly by garage bands from the 1960s to mid-1970s that foreshadowed the punk rock movement. The phrase is a retrospective label; the musicians involved were generally not originally associated wit ...

scene. In the mid-1980s, the Enigmas released two EPs, appeared on the

cult classic A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

'' It Came from Canada, Vol. 1'' and the

''It Came From The Pit''. Following their disbandment, the group continues to reunite for occasional shows. Paul McKenzie (

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...

), Mike Davies (

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...

) and Brian Olinek (

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

) originally came together in Vancouver's blossoming punk rock scene with a shared interest in

and sixties instrumentals. At first, they busked outside liquor stores as the Bone-a-Partes. However, when the band discovered a French

act had already appropriated the name, McKenzie suggested renaming themselves the Enigmas. In March 1982 they hired Cam Beck (

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 ...

) and the band played their debut gig at the Smilin' Buddha with the Greasy Spoons, one of McKenzie's former groups. During the peak of their popularity, the Enigmas were one of the most frequented attractions in Vancouver's

underground music Underground music is music with practices perceived as outside, or somehow opposed to, mainstream popular music culture. Underground music is intimately tied to popular music culture as a whole, so there are important tensions within underground ...

scene. The group developed a blend of

and Detroit

sensibilities with a repertoire that encompassed

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s of classic 1960s garage songs by

the 13th Floor Elevators The 13th Floor Elevators was an American rock band from Austin, Texas, United States, formed by guitarist and vocalist Roky Erickson, electric jug player Tommy Hall, and guitarist Stacy Sutherland. The band was together from 1965 to 1969, a ...

the Sonics The Sonics are an American garage rock band from Tacoma, Washington that formed in 1960. Their aggressive, hard-edged sound has been a major influence on punk and garage music worldwide, and they have been named inspirations to the White Str ...

, and

the Balloon Farm The Balloon Farm, an American musical act from New Jersey, took its name from a New York City nightclub. It is best known for its sole hit song, "A Question of Temperature," which made the ''Billboard'' charts in February 1968, peaking in the ...

among others, as well as some self-penned material. In concert, the Enigmas' act was highlighted by

frontman The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

McKenzie's high-energy theatrics, having adopted a similar style to

Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of ...

. Beck left the band in May 1982, but was replaced by veteran drummer Randy Bowman, who arrived shortly after his former group, the Subhumans, disbanded. By late 1982, the Enigmas began touring into

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

, and

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

, garnering a wider following as the group performed in front of new audiences. The band self-produced a five-song, eponymous EP in 1983, which included unusually high-quality production and the cult-favorite track ''Teenage Barnacle''. More of a "learning process" than a serious project, the Enigmas were eager to record another EP. After touring the West Coast they recorded ''Strangely Wild'' in 1985, after enticing

Zulu Records Zulu Records is a Canadian record store and independent record label, based in Vancouver, British Columbia, that sells new and used CDs, LPs, 45s, turntables and concert tickets and is currently located at 1972 West 4th Avenue. One of the most famo ...

to release the record. To promote the release, the Enigmas toured out to Montreal with

NoMeansNo Nomeansno (sometimes stylized as NoMeansNo or spelled No Means No) was a Canadian punk rock band formed in Victoria, British Columbia and later relocated to Vancouver. They issued 11 albums, including a collaborative album with Jello Biafra, a ...

and appeared on the compilation albums '' It Came from Canada, Vol. 1'' and ''It Came From The Pit''. However, by 1986 after Olinek left the band the group disbanded to work on other projects including The Scramblers, Earthling and TT Racer. As early as 1987, the Enigmas performed reunion gigs with the original recording line-up. By 1989 a new song about

Charles Manson Charles Milles Manson (; November 12, 1934November 19, 2017) was an American criminal and musician who led the Manson Family, a cult based in California, in the late 1960s. Some of the members committed a series of nine murders at four loca ...

recorded to tape at rehearsal was released on

Nardwuar John Ruskin (born July 5, 1968), better known as Nardwuar, or Nardwuar the Human Serviette, is a Canadian interviewer and musician from Vancouver, British Columbia.Doug Ward, "Trudeau rolled by Human Serviette", ''Vancouver Sun'', November 17, 1 ...

The Human Serviette's compilation ''Oh God, My Mom's On Channel 10!''. In 1992, McKenzie formed the successful

Celtic punk Celtic punk is punk rock mixed with traditional Celtic music. Celtic punk bands often play traditional Irish, Welsh or Scottish folk and political songs, as well as original compositions.P. Buckley, ''The Rough Guide to Rock'' (London: Rough Gu ...

band

the Real Mckenzies The Real McKenzies is a Canadian Celtic punk band founded in 1992 and based in Vancouver, British Columbia. They are one of the founders of the Celtic punk movement, albeit 10 years after The Pogues. In addition to writing and performing origin ...

. In 2010 the Enigmas reunited without Olinek, who had relocated, but with Stephen Hamm (

Slow In everyday use and in kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude (mathematics), magnitude of the change of its Position (vector), position over time or the magnitude of the change of its position per ...

, Tankhog) on Bass and released a

live album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

of the show on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

. More reunions followed, including a DVD release party in 2014 and the Khatsahlano Festival Main Stage in 2015. with Adam Payne from The Badbeats on bass. More shows are planned for the fall of 2019.

References

External links

Official ENIGMAS website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Enigmas, The Canadian punk rock groups Musical groups from Vancouver Musical groups established in 1982 Musical groups disestablished in 1986 Canadian garage rock groups