Gabba (band)

Gabba is a London-based British tribute band performing ABBA songs in the stripped down punk style of the Ramones, a style of pop punk they dubbed discopunk and claim to have invented [http://www.gabba.co.uk/archive.html Gabba claiming to be "the inventors of Discopunk"] in the October 1999 item. They formed in 1996 and took their name in 1999. They have released three albums as of 2006.

History

Gabba was informally formed in 1996 [http://web.archive.org/web/20000510172207/http://www.gabba.co.uk/bjoey.html An old version of Bjöey's profile mentions he went to Osaka in 1996] - cached in 2000 at Archive.org by Stig Honda, alleged "professor at the Osaka Rock 'n' Roll High School", who enrolled five students from all over the world to fuse the disco pop of Abba and the punk rock of the Ramones, creating "disco-punk".

In 1999, the band took its name of "GABBA, The Discopunk Sensation". The name is an acrostic on the members' nicknames, echoing both the Ramones' "Gabba Gabba Hey" and the name of Abba.

Their second recording and official debut album, the CD "Leave Stockholm" (1999), was produced by Stigma Records (UK) and sub-distributed by Rough Trade Records.

According to a band statement [http://www.gabba.co.uk/disco.html] , " [In 2001] GABBA release their complex 3rd album, the Spanish language "Tijuana Dance". However, the album was banned and withdrawn from sale after just 1 week for being "Anti-Establishment", due to some confusion over Bee Bee's appalling Spanish translations which inadvertently accused the Queen of England of being a Nazi Stormtrouper (in a stupor, no less). It is unclear if the album will ever be released again. "

Media attention

They have been aired mostly in the UK [http://web.archive.org/web/20050212181525/http://www.alternative-links.co.uk/upandcoming/ "Up and coming music bands"] at Alternative-Links - cached in 2005 at Archive.org [http://www.gabba.co.uk/archive.html Gabba's list of TV, radio, and live tour shows] , on Steve Lamacq's BBC Radio 1 "The Evening Session" [http://web.archive.org/web/20001026202839/http://www.gabba.co.uk/radio1.html Photos of Gabba live in 1999 on BBC Radio 1's "Evening Session"] - cached in 2000 at Archive.org (JavaScript required for images), on BBC Television's "The Beat Room" [http://web.archive.org/web/20001025201402/www.gabba.co.uk/beatroom.html Photos of Gabba live in 1999 on BBC Television's "The Beat Room"] - cached in 2000 at Archive.org (JavaScript required for images), on BBC Radio Scotland's "The Beat Patrol" [http://web.archive.org/web/20010119131700/http://www.gabba.co.uk/patrol.html Photos of Gabba live in 1999 on BBC Radio Scotland's "The Beat Patrol"] - cached in 2001 at Archive.org (JavaScript required for images), and webcast on Virtue TV [http://web.archive.org/web/20010210143545/www.virtuetv.com/music/concerts/gabba/index.html Gabba live on a 2000 webcast on VirtueTV] - cached in 2001 at Archive.org (JavaScript required for images) (now Interoute TV).

They have been written about in magazines such as "Mojo" [http://web.archive.org/web/20010619075359/http://www.gabba.co.uk/temp/MOJO.jpgScreen copy of the article in "Mojo"] (September 1999) by Jim Irvin - cached in 2001 at Archive.org, "Melody Maker" [http://web.archive.org/web/20050318025345/http://www.gabba.co.uk/temp/MM.jpgScreen copy of the article in "Melody Maker"] (July 10 1999) - cached in 2001 at Archive.org, "NME" "NME" (August 14 1999), "Time Out", "Music365.com" [http://web.archive.org/web/20040712181439/www.gabba.co.uk/gig1/365.jpgScreen copy of the article in "Music365.com"] (June 10 1999) by Steve Jelbert (from "The Independent") - cached in 2004 at Archive.org, "CMJ New Music Monthly" [http://web.archive.org/web/20030823205804/www.gabba.co.uk/temp/CMJ.jpgScreen copy of the article in "CMJ New Music Monthly"] (Issue 83, July 2000) - cached in 2003 at Archive.org, "The Ramones UK Fan Club Newsletter" [http://web.archive.org/web/20010619080057/http://www.gabba.co.uk/temp/rukfc.jpgScreen copy of the article in "The Ramones UK Fan Club Newsletter"] (Number 24, February 2000) - cached in 2001 at Archive.org, and the "London Evening Standard".

They have played along bands such as Negativland, The Rezillos, and Chicks on Speed, in various outlets in London, and at the 1999 Xmas parties of Rough Trade Records [http://web.archive.org/web/20001026214725/www.gabba.co.uk/roughtrade.html Gabba live at the 1999 Xmas party of Rough Trade Records] - cached in 2000 at Archive.org (JavaScript required for images) and Fierce Panda Records [http://web.archive.org/web/20001025223301/http://www.gabba.co.uk/bullgate.html Gabba live at the 1999 Xmas party of Fierce Panda Records] - cached in 2000 at Archive.org (JavaScript required for images).

In related media, their autobiographical musical short film "Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment" (written and directed by Cliff Homow [http://imdb.com/name/nm1435799/] , alias "Cliffy Hormone" , and Midge Devitt) won the 2003 "Special Independent Film Award" at London's counterculture Portobello Film Festival [http://web.archive.org/web/20040202185312/http://www.portobellofilmfestival.com/2003/2003report.html Portobello Film Festival report of the 2003 awards] - cached in 2004 at Archive.org.

Members

; On stage, acrostically

* Geeky (Japan) - guitar (represents Johnny Ramone)
* Anneky (Sweden) - vocals, chorus (represents Agnetha Fältskog)
* Bjöey (US) - lead vocals (represents Björn Ulvaeus and Joey Ramone)
* Bee Bee (Germany) - bass, vocals (represents Benny Andersson and Dee Dee Ramone)
* Abby (German from Thailand) - drums, vocals, chorus (represents Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Tommy Ramone)

; Backstage

* Stig Honda (Japan) - business manager, lyrics (represents Stig Anderson, ABBA manager)
* Phil Smegma (UK) - production manager (represents Phil Ramone and Phil Spector, Ramones producers)
* Monte Malmönik (Sweden) - road manager (represents Monte Melnick, Ramones roadie)

(The countries of origin are alleged by the members, who could possibly be all British.)

Discography

; Albums

* (199?) Missile to Malmö (deleted)
* (1999) Leave Stockholm (CD out-of-print, now in MP3s and BitTorrent)
* (2001) Tijuana Dance (banned)

; Singles and songs on compilations

* (2001) "Gabba Gabba" on "Life's a Gas" (international tribute album [http://web.archive.org/web/20011212134048/http://www.gabba.co.uk/gas.html Track listing of "Life's a Gas"] - cached in 2001 at Archive.org (JavaScript required for images) to Joey Ramone)
* (2005) "Gabba Gabba" single on iTunes UK

References

External links

; Official links
* [http://www.gabba.co.uk/ Gabba.co.uk] - official website: news, history, bios, discography, videos, free MP3s, forum, etc.
* [http://www.gabba.co.uk/film.html Gabba's short film "Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment"] - infos and free download (4 mins, WMV and QuickTime)

; Resource links
* [http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:6kq2g44ptvnz~T0 Gabba's profile] at Allmusic
* [http://www.ukscreen.com/band/gabba Gabba's profile] at UK Screen

; Crazy fans links
* [http://freespace.virgin.net/abba.gabba/ Benji's Gabba page] - alleged fan page from Sweden (in English)
* [http://freespace.virgin.net/cliff.homow/ Yuko & Toshiro's Gabba world] - alleged fan page from Japan (in English) (However, the address echoes the name of their short movie's director)