- DA! (band)
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DA! 
L-R: Gaylene Goudreau, David Thomas, Dawn Fischer, Lorna DonleyBackground information Origin Chicago, IL, USA Genres Post-punk Years active 1979–1982
2010-presentLabels Autumn, Factory 25/Regressive Members Lorna Donley
Gaylene Goudreau
David Thomas
Jason BatchkoPast members Dawn Fischer
Bob FuremDA! was formed by 16-year-old singer/bassist Lorna Donley in 1978 with guitarist keyboardist Evelyn Marquis and drummer Dawn Fisher. This lineup performed only once and guitarist Gaylene Goudreau (who had previously played with all-girl punk band Lois Layne) was added in late 1979.
By early 1980 DA! had parted ways with Evelyn Marquis and replaced her with guitarist David Thomas (who had previously played in St. Louis punk bands The Singapores and Cool Jerk). By the summer of 1980 DA! had become a fixture on Chicago's early Punk Rock music scene performing regularly at O'Banions, Tuts, Waves, Exit, Oz, Space Place and turning up on bills of visiting groups including The Fall, DNA, Bauhaus (band) and Mission of Burma.
Contents
"Dark Rooms"/"White Castles" single
DA!'s manager, Terry Nelson, was a local Punk Rock radio DJ and he, along with producer George Kapoulis, formed Autumn Records. DA! began to record demos in late summer of 1980 with Timothy Powell and Metro Mobile. Their first single, "Dark Rooms" /"White Castles"[1] was produced at Acme Studios by Kapoulis and Mike Rasfeld. With the release of the single in spring 1981 DA! garnered attention outside Chicago performing in Milwaukee with The Ama-Dots, in Minneapolis with Husker Du, and in Madison with X (American band). Kapoulis, a video technician at WGN-TV, produced a music video for the single and "Dark Rooms" went into heavy rotation on 'Rock America' a pre-MTV video cable service available in music clubs.
Busted at Oz compilation and "Time will be Kind" EP
DA! was featured on the next Autumn Records release, a compilation LP entitled "Busted at Oz."[2][3] Recorded over three nights, it featured live recordings by DA! and other seminal Chicago punk bands including Strike Under, Naked Raygun, Silver Abuse, The Subverts, and The Effigies.
Following the release of the "Busted at Oz" LP, drummer Dawn Fisher was briefly replaced by Bob Furem, drummer of Strike Under. DA! recorded the "Time Will Be Kind"[4] EP with Timothy Powell at Sound Impressions in late 1981, but by the time of its release DA! had disbanded.
You Weren't There film, debut LP and reunion
DA! and Lorna Donley were featured in You Weren’t There a/k/a You Weren’t There: A History of Chicago Punk, 1977-1984,[5] a 2007 film about the Chicago punk scene from 1977 through 1984. In 2010, Factory 25 Records released Exclamation Point,[6] a vinyl LP compilation of the band's previously released and unreleased material. DA! played two Chicago shows in 2010 to support the LP, the first show with drummer Bob Furem, the second with new drummer Jason Batchko.
Discography
- Busted at Oz - Various LP (Autumn) 1981 (featured "Fish Shit" and "The Killer")
- "Dark Rooms/"White Castles" 7" single (Autumn) 1981
- Time will be Kind 12" EP (Autumn) 1982
- Exclamation Point LP (Factory 25) 2010
- Busted at Oz - Various LP re-release (Permanent Records) 2011 (featured "Fish Shit" and "The Killer")
References
- ^ "Da "Dark Rooms"". Discogs. http://www.discogs.com/Da-Dark-Rooms/release/1398291. Retrieved 11 March 2011.
- ^ "Various - Busted at Oz LP". Discogs. http://www.discogs.com/Various-Busted-At-OZ/release/802811. Retrieved 11 March 2011.
- ^ "Various - Busted at Oz re-release". Discogs. http://www.discogs.com/Various-Busted-At-OZ/release/2753896. Retrieved 11 March 2011.
- ^ "Da - Time will be Kind EP". Discogs. http://www.discogs.com/Da-Time-Will-Be-Kind/release/1366597. Retrieved 11 March 2011.
- ^ "You Weren't There: A History of Chicago Punk 1977 to 1984". IMDB.com. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1340142/. Retrieved 11 March 2011.
- ^ "DA - Exclamation Point - [Unreleased Recordings 1980-81"]. Discogs. http://www.discogs.com/Da-Exclamation-Point-Unreleased-Recordings-1980-81/release/2251879. Retrieved 11 March 2011.
External links
- "Dark Rooms" video on YouTube
- "Next to Nothing" video on YouTube
- Da! live at Empty Bottle video on Vimeo, Chicago, 2010
- Interview with Lorna Donley and David Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 1988
- Interview with Lorna Donley and David Thomas, Victim of Time, 2010
- Interview with Lorna Donley, Gapers Block, 2010
Categories:- American post-punk music groups
- American punk rock groups
- American girl groups
- Female punk rock singers
- Musical groups from Chicago, Illinois
- Musical groups established in 1978
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