The F.U.'s
Encyclopedia
The F.U.'s were an early-mid 1980s Boston
hardcore punk
band, who later changed their name to Straw Dogs, moving toward heavy metal
and reformed under their original moniker in 2010.
in an interview in which she said something to the effect that "Punk rock is a way of saying 'F you' to society." The F.U.'s started out playing fast, thrashy hardcore punk, and their first recorded output was on the 1982 Modern Method
compilation, This Is Boston, Not L.A.
, which also featured tracks by Gang Green
, Jerry's Kids
and The Freeze
. A companion 7-inch EP
, Unsafe At Any Speed, included another F.U.'s track.
Later the same year, their debut album, Kill For Christ, was released on X-Claim Records, featuring cover artwork by Septic Death
frontman Brian 'Pushead' Schroeder
, depicting Jesus
with a machine gun
.
Their second album, also on X-Claim, My America, saw them labelled as right wing nationalists
due to its patriotic lyrics (which were half-sarcastic), and artwork. The satirical punk band The Dead Milkmen poked fun at the band's supposed right-wing views on their song "Tiny Town" from the album Big Lizard in My Backyard
.
The band's final album as The F.U.'s, Do We Really Want To Hurt You? followed in 1984, on Gasatanka/Enigma. With this album, the band had begun to take a more heavy metal direction, which was taken further when the band changed name to Straw Dogs, with guitarist Steve Martin and drummer Chris "Bones" Jones added to the line-up. As Straw Dogs, the band released an EP followed by three albums. Drummer Jones died in a car crash the day after the debut Straw Dogs EP was released.
The F.U.'s material has been re-released on Classy Records and more recently on Taang! Records
.
John Sox reintroduced the music of F.U.'s and Straw Dogs by forming the band Payload! in 2006 with Richie Rich, Bobby Frankenheim (who later joined the reunited DYS), Jack Snyder, and Mick Stunt. When approached by Katie Goldman of Gallery East
to participate in an upcoming documentary called xxx ALL AGES xxx Sox decided to reunite all of the original members with members of Payload! to form the first hardcore supergroup for lack of a better term. Sharing the stage for a live show (as mentioned in the press release) at Club Lido in Revere were, Sox, Grimes, Furapples, Maestri, Rich, and Stunt.
The F.U.'s performed a reunion show in the Boston area on August 29, 2010 along with fellow Boston pioneer hardcore punk bands DYS
, Jerry’s Kids
, and Gang Green
as well as New York City’s Antidote
. The show was in support of xxx ALL AGES xxx, a documentary about the original hardcore punk scene in Boston in the early 1980s, being produced in association with Stone Films NYC.
Having had a good deal of fun at the Club Lido show, The F.U.'s have become an ongoing concern, playing gigs in New England, recording a song for a compilation called Cashing in on Christmas Vol. III for Black Hole Records and contemplating a European mini-tour in 2012. The current lineup is John Sox, vocals, Rockin' Bob Cenci (formerly of Jerry's Kids), lead guitar, Jonesey Stunt (son of Mick Stunt), secnd guitar, Richie Rich, Bass, and Bob Furapples, drums.
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
hardcore punk
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
band, who later changed their name to Straw Dogs, moving toward heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
and reformed under their original moniker in 2010.
History
The band initially consisted of John Sox, Steve Grimes, Bob Furapples, and Wayne Maestri. The band name was taken from a comment made by Wendy O. WilliamsWendy O. Williams
Wendy Orlean Williams , better known as Wendy O. Williams, was the lead singer for the American punk band the Plasmatics, as well as a solo artist...
in an interview in which she said something to the effect that "Punk rock is a way of saying 'F you' to society." The F.U.'s started out playing fast, thrashy hardcore punk, and their first recorded output was on the 1982 Modern Method
Modern Method Records
Modern Method Records was a record label that helped to document the Boston hardcore scene in the early 80's. Modern Method was an offshoot of the Newbury Comics retail store and also the Boston Rock magazine. The label was located at 268 Newbury ST. in Boston....
compilation, This Is Boston, Not L.A.
This Is Boston, Not L.A.
This Is Boston, Not L.A.is a hardcore punk compilation album released in 1982. It is considered the definitive album from the Boston hardcore scene, as several of the bands that were prominent in that scene appear on the album...
, which also featured tracks by Gang Green
Gang Green
Gang Green is a band originally from Braintree, Massachusetts. Chris Doherty , Bill Manley and Mike Dean started the band in 1980 and broke up in 1984...
, Jerry's Kids
Jerry's Kids
Jerry's Kids is one of the earliest Boston hardcore bands, formed in 1981, from Braintree, Mass.. Their first recorded output was on the Modern Method This Is Boston, Not L.A. compilation LP in 1982. They contributed six tracks along with other early Boston Hardcore band Gang Green.Frontman Bryan...
and The Freeze
The Freeze
The Freeze are a hardcore punk rock band from Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The Freeze formed in late 1978. At the time all members were in high school. The Freeze are generally considered to be a Boston hardcore band, but they never truly fit into the typical Boston mold. Like most hardcore groups, the...
. A companion 7-inch EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
, Unsafe At Any Speed, included another F.U.'s track.
Later the same year, their debut album, Kill For Christ, was released on X-Claim Records, featuring cover artwork by Septic Death
Septic Death
Septic Death was a hardcore punk band fronted by artist Brian "Pushead" Schroeder on vocals. Septic Death's music became a major influence on bands like Integrity, Citizens Arrest, Infest, and many other bands tied to the hardcore punk, thrashcore, crust punk etc. scenes...
frontman Brian 'Pushead' Schroeder
Pushead
Pushead is an artist, record label owner, and writer within the hardcore punk and heavy metal field. He has created artwork for many bands, artists, and athletes including Metallica, the The Misfits, Dr. Dre, Travis Barker, and Craig Johnson. He has designed many record covers, T-shirts,...
, depicting Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
with a machine gun
Machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
.
Their second album, also on X-Claim, My America, saw them labelled as right wing nationalists
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
due to its patriotic lyrics (which were half-sarcastic), and artwork. The satirical punk band The Dead Milkmen poked fun at the band's supposed right-wing views on their song "Tiny Town" from the album Big Lizard in My Backyard
Big Lizard in my Backyard
Big Lizard in My Backyard is the debut album by The Dead Milkmen, released by Restless Records in 1985.Although the album yielded no singles, it achieved enough notoriety to create a fan base for the band...
.
The band's final album as The F.U.'s, Do We Really Want To Hurt You? followed in 1984, on Gasatanka/Enigma. With this album, the band had begun to take a more heavy metal direction, which was taken further when the band changed name to Straw Dogs, with guitarist Steve Martin and drummer Chris "Bones" Jones added to the line-up. As Straw Dogs, the band released an EP followed by three albums. Drummer Jones died in a car crash the day after the debut Straw Dogs EP was released.
The F.U.'s material has been re-released on Classy Records and more recently on Taang! Records
Taang! Records
Taang! Records is an American independent record label founded by Curtis Casella in Boston, Massachusetts which is currently based in San Diego...
.
John Sox reintroduced the music of F.U.'s and Straw Dogs by forming the band Payload! in 2006 with Richie Rich, Bobby Frankenheim (who later joined the reunited DYS), Jack Snyder, and Mick Stunt. When approached by Katie Goldman of Gallery East
Gallery East
Gallery East is an art and performance network based in Boston, Massachusetts notable for being one of the first venues to host hardcore punk rock shows for an all ages audience. Founded in 1979 by Duane Lucia and Al Ford, it closed its location at 24 East St...
to participate in an upcoming documentary called xxx ALL AGES xxx Sox decided to reunite all of the original members with members of Payload! to form the first hardcore supergroup for lack of a better term. Sharing the stage for a live show (as mentioned in the press release) at Club Lido in Revere were, Sox, Grimes, Furapples, Maestri, Rich, and Stunt.
The F.U.'s performed a reunion show in the Boston area on August 29, 2010 along with fellow Boston pioneer hardcore punk bands DYS
DYS (band)
DYS is an American straight edge hardcore band from Boston, Massachusetts who were part of the notorious "Boston Crew" in the 1980s, along with contemporaries such as SSD and Negative FX...
, Jerry’s Kids
Jerry's Kids
Jerry's Kids is one of the earliest Boston hardcore bands, formed in 1981, from Braintree, Mass.. Their first recorded output was on the Modern Method This Is Boston, Not L.A. compilation LP in 1982. They contributed six tracks along with other early Boston Hardcore band Gang Green.Frontman Bryan...
, and Gang Green
Gang Green
Gang Green is a band originally from Braintree, Massachusetts. Chris Doherty , Bill Manley and Mike Dean started the band in 1980 and broke up in 1984...
as well as New York City’s Antidote
Antidote (band)
Antidote are a punk band from the Netherlands.The band formed in 1996 and has released several records. The band has toured extensively in Europe, North America and Russia.-Studio albums :...
. The show was in support of xxx ALL AGES xxx, a documentary about the original hardcore punk scene in Boston in the early 1980s, being produced in association with Stone Films NYC.
Having had a good deal of fun at the Club Lido show, The F.U.'s have become an ongoing concern, playing gigs in New England, recording a song for a compilation called Cashing in on Christmas Vol. III for Black Hole Records and contemplating a European mini-tour in 2012. The current lineup is John Sox, vocals, Rockin' Bob Cenci (formerly of Jerry's Kids), lead guitar, Jonesey Stunt (son of Mick Stunt), secnd guitar, Richie Rich, Bass, and Bob Furapples, drums.
The F.U.'s
- Kill For Christ (1982), X-Claim
- My America (1983), X-Claim
- Do We Really Want to Hurt You (1984), Gastanka/EnigmaEnigma RecordsEnigma Records was a popular rock and alternative American record label in the 1980s. It was initially a division of Greenworld Distribution, an independent music importer/distributor, which it split-off from in 1985 to become its own company...
Straw Dogs
- Straw Dogs EP (1986), Restless
- We Are Not Amused (1986), Restless 1986
- Your Own Worst Nightmare (1990), Lone Wolf
External links
- Flipside Interview – The F.U.'s interview from 1984
- Maximumrocknroll Interview – The F.U.'s interview from 1983