Urinals (band) - History

History

The band's first performance, in 1978, was a parody of punk rock performed for a talent show at their UCLA dorm. Though none could play their instruments well, the three founding members -- John Talley-Jones, Kjehl Johansen, and Kevin Barrett -- continued to perform in on-campus venues. Their songs were usually short, seldom utilizing more than two chords.

The band’s first off-campus show was at Raul’s in Austin, Texas. Returning to L.A., they appeared with such groups as The Go-Go's and Black Flag. A roughly-recorded, four-song EP produced by Vitus Matare (of L.A.'s The Last and later Trotsky Icepick) followed. After developing a somewhat more sophisticated sound, the band changed its name to 100 Flowers (inspired by Chairman Mao Zedong's famous quote), but disbanded in 1983.

In 1996, the band reformed as the Urinals, releasing a CD of new material in 2003. They later took the name Chairs of Perception (a reference to Aldous Huxley's The Doors of Perception) before again becoming the Urinals in 2008.

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