Kevin Dunn’s new wave gets new again

Tuesday, May 18th, 2010 | musiX

The late-’70s and early-’80s was an interesting period in music—that weird transition from disco and punk rock to hip hop and new wave. Bell-bottoms gave way to skinny ties. Sideways haircuts replaced Afros … and keytars were mysterious and cool. Oh it was a magical time, kids!

A lot of great music came out of those awkward years. And while MTV was instrumental in fostering a new visual age there were—as is usually the case—a lot of artists that remained in the shadows for one reason or another.

The name Kevin Dunn probably won’t ring a bell with a lot of people (myself included up until a month ago). His band The Fans were making a racket in Athens, Georgia years before R.E.M. put it on the map. Peter Buck loved the band, although they didn’t last very long. Dunn went on to produce a number of records from slightly better-known Athens bands, including The B-52s‘ “Rock Lobster” and the first releases from seminal rock band Pylon. Meanwhile Dunn was making music as a member of the Regiment of Women, which released The Judgment of Paris in 1981. He also released a handful of solo LPs and 7-inches, making spiky, new wave power pop that was weird, catchy as hell and way ahead of its time.

All of Dunn’s loose ends have all just found their way on to No Great Lost: Songs, 1979-1985 (Casa Nueva Industries), and I must say it’s been fun sifting through this record’s 21 songs. Each one’s a schizophrenic gem. They’ll fuck with your emotions a little—floaty vocals and gloomy synths collide with cheery dub beats and reggae strums—you never really know if you want to go running merrily through golden fields or crawl between the cushions of your couch. I chose the latter.

“20,000 Years in Sing Sing” and “Cars and Explosions” are good entry points, though I recommend diving into the entire disc. I do not, however, recommend crawling between the cushions of your couch.

“Cars and Explosions” - Kevin Dunn

“20,000 Years in Sing Sing” - Kevin Dunn

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