Betrayal. Power. Defeat. Sex. Obliteration. Love. For the abrasive, acerbic Canadian trio Nomeansno, which coalesced on the fringes of the anti-Reagan punk scene of the 1980s, political songs were boorish. The grotesque nature of human existence, though? Bring it on — and add a wry twist.
As the recent book Nomeansno: From Obscurity to Oblivion (PM Press; $29.95) details, here in the Bay Area, Nomeansno were swiftly adopted as one of our own. An early Nomeansno show at a Berkeley pizza parlor inspired the creation of famed punk collective 924 Gilman. San Francisco’s Alternative Tentacles Records quickly signed them. They developed kinship with local bands like Victims Family, and, on short jaunts from their native Victoria, played shows with Bay Area favorites including Neurosis, Jawbreaker and Green Day.
An excellent oral history compiled by Jason Lamb, From Obscurity to Oblivion also shows Nomeansno’s less definable connection with the Bay Area, and its renegade, experimental spirit. “Doing something wrong until it’s right” could be an apt motto for the band. (See also: their just-reissued landmark 1989 album, titled Wrong.) In this, they retain a special status in the area code that produced punk outsiders like Flipper, the Residents, the Beatnigs, Primus and Negativland.
Nomeansno formally broke up in 2016, but drummer John Wright has a new band, Dead Bob, whose 2023 LP Life Like has scratched the itch of longtime fans. Dead Bob is currently out on a tour of the American West playing originals and Nomeansno songs alike, and for their Bay Area show, expect a special sort of homecoming.
Dead Bob, with John Wright from Nomeansno, performs on Thursday, May 30, at the Great American Music Hall. Opening the show are Lung, The Freak Accident and Moms with Bangs. Details here.
