LF: queer musicians into the Buzzcocks, Ramones and early Beatles

June 9, 2015 10:15 AM

Pansy Division: Life In A Gay Rock Band, a documentary chronicling the history of the pop-punk group from 1991 to the present.
posted by frimble (20 comments total)

Saw you in a mag, kissing a man
Saw you in a mag, kissing a man
Smoking a fag, kissing a man
Saw you in a mag, kissing a man

I've got you in a corner
posted by Cosine at 10:25 AM on June 9, 2015 [1 favorite]

I had no idea they were still around.
posted by josher71 at 10:28 AM on June 9, 2015

Homo Christmas has become a holiday standard at our house for quite some time.
posted by dr_dank at 10:33 AM on June 9, 2015 [1 favorite]

Jon's a friend of ours, and is still all kinds of awesome.

They're playing in NY on the 26th and Boston on the 27th (fb link) - get your tickets now!
posted by rtha at 10:36 AM on June 9, 2015 [3 favorites]

Deflowered: My Life in Pansy Division was a decent read and also goes along the same drummer-centric tack, interestingly.
posted by a lungful of dragon at 11:20 AM on June 9, 2015 [1 favorite]

Big fan of the Outnumbered so I'm enjoying this story.
posted by Harvey Kilobit at 11:40 AM on June 9, 2015 [1 favorite]

I've never had a chance to see them live, but their music and attitude was eye-opening for me when I first heard it.
posted by Dip Flash at 11:52 AM on June 9, 2015

Back in the day, there was a cable public access show in NYC called "The Wild Record Collection." It was, I kid you not, hosted by Snuffles the Gund Bear, and the show was a guy playing his record collection while he and at least one other person (it appeared, anyway) held up his stuffed animals (including Snuffles) and had them dance to songs. (You could only see the people's hands occasionally.) It was the best thing I've ever seen on public access. (It may still be on, but I moved out of Manhattan, so.)

Anyway, once Snuffles and company danced to "Bad Boyfriend" by Pansy Division, which started me on a from-then-onward love of Pansy Division. I mean, Snuffles and Pansy Division -- best combination EVER. If I go see them on the 26th, I guess I should bring Snuffles along.
posted by holborne at 12:04 PM on June 9, 2015 [3 favorites]

Holborne, a clip from The Wild Record Collection is actually in the documentary. Unexplained. I had no idea at all what it was.
posted by frimble at 12:11 PM on June 9, 2015

James, James Bondage
He has me tied up like a hostage!

Guess who was spending a lot of time at the Seattle Eagle.
posted by Dreidl at 12:36 PM on June 9, 2015

Holborne, a clip from The Wild Record Collection is actually in the documentary. Unexplained. I had no idea at all what it was.

Oh, cool! Looking forward to seeing it.
posted by holborne at 1:30 PM on June 9, 2015

Oooof! When I was a kid it was so heartening to see pansy division 7"s at the local stores, see their name on wheatpasted posters, etc.
I cringed at the music (I was more in to DK & Crass & Team Dresch stuff,) but as a young queer appreciated their visibility greatly.
posted by Theta States at 1:48 PM on June 9, 2015

Homo Christmas has become a holiday standard at our house for quite some time.

mine too!
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 4:06 PM on June 9, 2015

One time at Pride in SF Rob Halford jumped on stage with them to sing their cover/remake 'Breaking The Law (The Sodomy Law)".

There's a video, but it's pretty bad.

I love this band so much.


BUNNIES! BUNNIES! BUNNIES! BUNNIES! BUNNIES!
posted by lumpenprole at 5:22 PM on June 9, 2015

I saw them live several times as a youngster, and loved them to bits, still listen to their albums regularly.

But I don't wear the the ill-advised t-shirt I purchased at the last of their shows I attended. I don't think I've been somewhere that would have been appropriate attire, like, ever.
posted by asperity at 8:42 PM on June 9, 2015 [3 favorites]

holborne, Wild Record Collection was the creation of Tony and Ron. Tony is aka Anonymous Boy, who had art in primal queer zine JDs and also has done art for Pansy Division flyers and record inserts.
posted by larrybob at 10:19 AM on June 10, 2015

I thought the Trouser Press review of Pansy Division (by founder Ira Robbins himself) had one of the best descriptions of Jon Ginoli: "a regular Modern Lover of sodomy"
posted by larrybob at 10:27 AM on June 10, 2015

Speaking of which, there's a gender-switched Pansy Division cover of a rare Jonathan Richman song - their title is A Song of Remembrance For Old Boyfriends (the original was A Song of Remembrance For Old Girlfriends.)
posted by larrybob at 10:36 AM on June 10, 2015

holborne, Wild Record Collection was the creation of Tony and Ron. Tony is aka Anonymous Boy, who had art in primal queer zine JDs and also has done art for Pansy Division flyers and record inserts.

Ah, now I know! Back when I used to watch (I left Manhattan in 2003) I don't know whether that information was readily available. Either that or I never looked very hard.
posted by holborne at 11:28 AM on June 10, 2015

Pansy Division and the Evolution of Openly Queer Bands
posted by rtha at 6:04 AM on July 9, 2015 [1 favorite]