The Tomorrowpeople
Encyclopedia
The Tomorrowpeople were a psychedelic rock
band based in Dallas, TX
featuring former members of Brutal Juice
and Toadies
.
They took their name from a cult British
science fiction
show (The Tomorrow People
) that aired on ITV
in the early '70s.
During their career, The Tomorrowpeople played and toured with such groups as Tripping Daisy
, Spoon
, Centro-matic
, Sixteen Deluxe and Third Eye Blind
.
They formed in 1996 and broke up in 2000.
The group's Gordon Gibson, Ben Burt and Jody Powerchurch reformed in 2008 with two new members, Gary Parks and Hayes Smith, ostensibly to promote the release of their catalog on iTunes.
Their reunion show was on May 17, 2008 at the Double-Wide in Dallas, TX.
Gordon Gibson formed The Tomorrowpeople in 1996 with his roommate Erich Scholz in Denton
, TX
while on a break from touring with hardcore heroes Brutal Juice
. Following a move to Dallas, the two hooked up with former New Bohemian
guitarist Wes Martin who brought them into Steve Curry's SRC Studios in Garland
, TX
. Along with Brutal Juice drummer Ben Burt, the group—with Martin on bass—recorded a clutch of songs that would come to be known as Scuzzy Ports. Although never released, the eight-track demo soon attracted the attention of major labels on the West Coast. Enlisting the aid of recently departed Toadies
guitarist Darrel Herbert and Chomsky keyboardist John Norris, Gibson and Scholz—who took the nom de rock "Jody Powerchurch" -- quickly wrote enough songs for a set and played their first show at Club Dada in Dallas on November 18, 1996.
Their wildly erratic stage shows featured liberal use of old 16mm films and projections courtesy of Gordon and Jody's neighbor Michael Allen as well as live deployment of electronics and samples.
The group signed with Geffen Records
, home of Nirvana
, Sonic Youth
and Beck
, in 1998 and recorded an album's worth of material with former Brave Combo
and Tripping Daisy
drummer Mitch Marine. However a shift in power at the label resulted in the group departing Geffen before the album was mastered.
Following the departure of Ben Burt, Bill Shupp officially took over drumming chores. Multi-instrumentalist Don Cento was recruited when Herbert and Norris left in 1999. For the group's 2008 incarnation, musicians Gary Parks and Hayes Smith came aboard on guitar and bass, respectively.
The group released two CDs, 1997's Golden Energy on Last Beat/Slab records and 1999's Marijuana Beach -- a mini album of demos and unreleased tracks from their aborted 1998 Geffen set. Several other songs have appeared on compilations and promos. In 2008 they released their catalog on iTunes, Rhapsody, Napster, Yahoo and Amazon and issued a third official album, Bounced and Renounced which as of this writing is exclusively available as a download.
Hidden tracks
Psychedelic music
Psychedelic music covers a range of popular music styles and genres, which are inspired by or influenced by psychedelic culture and which attempt to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues-rock bands in the...
band based in Dallas, TX
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
featuring former members of Brutal Juice
Brutal Juice
Brutal Juice was a self-proclaimed "acid punk" band from Denton, Texas.The band formed in 1991. The band initially met in the music school at the University of North Texas...
and Toadies
Toadies
Toadies are an alternative rock band from Fort Worth, Texas, best known for the song "Possum Kingdom." The band's classic lineup consisted of Todd Lewis on vocals/guitar, Mark Reznicek on drums, Lisa Umbarger on bass, and Darrel Herbert on guitar. It formed in 1989 and disbanded in 2001 after...
.
They took their name from a cult British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
show (The Tomorrow People
The Tomorrow People
The Tomorrow People is a British children's science fiction television series, devised by Roger Price. Produced by Thames Television for the ITV Network, the series first ran between 1973 and 1979. The series was re-imagined in 1992, Roger Price acting as executive producer...
) that aired on ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
in the early '70s.
During their career, The Tomorrowpeople played and toured with such groups as Tripping Daisy
Tripping Daisy
Tripping Daisy was a neo psychedelic pop rock band that was formed in Dallas, Texas, USA by lead singer/guitarist Tim DeLaughter in 1990 along with Jeff Bouck , Wes Berggren and Mark Pirro .-History:...
, Spoon
Spoon (band)
Spoon is an American rock band formed in Austin, Texas. The band is composed of Britt Daniel ; Jim Eno ; Rob Pope and Eric Harvey .-History:...
, Centro-matic
Centro-Matic
Centro-Matic is an alternative country band based in Denton, Texas. It started in 1995 as a side-project for Will Johnson. It released a few singles that year and grew into a full-fledged group in 1997. The initial 60 songs recorded in a Millstadt, Illinois studio supplied the material for the...
, Sixteen Deluxe and Third Eye Blind
Third Eye Blind
Third Eye Blind is an American alternative rock band formed in the early 1990s in San Francisco. The songwriting duo of Kevin Cadogan and Stephan Jenkins signed the band's first major label recording contract with Elektra records in 1996 resulting in two multi platinum albums. The band's lineup...
.
They formed in 1996 and broke up in 2000.
The group's Gordon Gibson, Ben Burt and Jody Powerchurch reformed in 2008 with two new members, Gary Parks and Hayes Smith, ostensibly to promote the release of their catalog on iTunes.
Their reunion show was on May 17, 2008 at the Double-Wide in Dallas, TX.
Band members
- Gordon Gibson - lead vocals, guitar, programming
- Jody Powerchurch (ne Erich Scholz) - guitar, bass
- Ben Burt - drums
- Darrel Herbert - bass, guitar
- John Norris - keyboards, vocals
- Bill Shupp - drums, vocals
- Don Cento - guitar, keyboards
- Michael Allen - lights, visuals
Background
Denton, Texas
The city of Denton is the county seat of Denton County, Texas in the United States. Its population was 119,454 according to the 2010 U.S. Census, making it the eleventh largest city in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex...
, TX
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
while on a break from touring with hardcore heroes Brutal Juice
Brutal Juice
Brutal Juice was a self-proclaimed "acid punk" band from Denton, Texas.The band formed in 1991. The band initially met in the music school at the University of North Texas...
. Following a move to Dallas, the two hooked up with former New Bohemian
Edie Brickell & New Bohemians
Edie Brickell & New Bohemians is an alternative rock jam band that originated in Texas in the mid-1980s. The band is best known for their 1988 hit "What I Am" from the album Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars. Their music contains elements of rock, folk, blues, and jazz...
guitarist Wes Martin who brought them into Steve Curry's SRC Studios in Garland
Garland
A garland is a class of decoration, of which there are many types.Garland may also refer to:-Places:*Garland, Arkansas, a town in Miller County*Garland County, Arkansas*Garland, Maine, a town in Penobscot County...
, TX
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. Along with Brutal Juice drummer Ben Burt, the group—with Martin on bass—recorded a clutch of songs that would come to be known as Scuzzy Ports. Although never released, the eight-track demo soon attracted the attention of major labels on the West Coast. Enlisting the aid of recently departed Toadies
Toadies
Toadies are an alternative rock band from Fort Worth, Texas, best known for the song "Possum Kingdom." The band's classic lineup consisted of Todd Lewis on vocals/guitar, Mark Reznicek on drums, Lisa Umbarger on bass, and Darrel Herbert on guitar. It formed in 1989 and disbanded in 2001 after...
guitarist Darrel Herbert and Chomsky keyboardist John Norris, Gibson and Scholz—who took the nom de rock "Jody Powerchurch" -- quickly wrote enough songs for a set and played their first show at Club Dada in Dallas on November 18, 1996.
Their wildly erratic stage shows featured liberal use of old 16mm films and projections courtesy of Gordon and Jody's neighbor Michael Allen as well as live deployment of electronics and samples.
The group signed with Geffen Records
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...
, home of Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
, Sonic Youth
Sonic Youth
Sonic Youth is an American alternative rock band from New York City, formed in 1981. The current lineup consists of Thurston Moore , Kim Gordon , Lee Ranaldo , Steve Shelley , and Mark Ibold .In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City...
and Beck
Beck
Beck Hansen is an American musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, known by the stage name Beck...
, in 1998 and recorded an album's worth of material with former Brave Combo
Brave Combo
Brave Combo is a polka/rock band based in Denton, Texas. Founded in 1979 by guitarist/keyboardist/accordionist Carl Finch, they have been a prominent fixture in the Texas music scene for more than twenty-five years...
and Tripping Daisy
Tripping Daisy
Tripping Daisy was a neo psychedelic pop rock band that was formed in Dallas, Texas, USA by lead singer/guitarist Tim DeLaughter in 1990 along with Jeff Bouck , Wes Berggren and Mark Pirro .-History:...
drummer Mitch Marine. However a shift in power at the label resulted in the group departing Geffen before the album was mastered.
Following the departure of Ben Burt, Bill Shupp officially took over drumming chores. Multi-instrumentalist Don Cento was recruited when Herbert and Norris left in 1999. For the group's 2008 incarnation, musicians Gary Parks and Hayes Smith came aboard on guitar and bass, respectively.
The group released two CDs, 1997's Golden Energy on Last Beat/Slab records and 1999's Marijuana Beach -- a mini album of demos and unreleased tracks from their aborted 1998 Geffen set. Several other songs have appeared on compilations and promos. In 2008 they released their catalog on iTunes, Rhapsody, Napster, Yahoo and Amazon and issued a third official album, Bounced and Renounced which as of this writing is exclusively available as a download.
Golden Energy
Last Beat/Slab Recordings, 1997- "Theme Allison"
- "Youth in Orbit"
- "Beneath the Valley of the 3rd World Sugardaddies"
- "Something 4 Joey"
- "Queen of Earthly Delights"
- "Psyched by the 4-D Witch"
- "Mercitron"
- "Favorite Song"
- "Gidget Goes to Court"
Hidden tracks
- "Windows Wide"
- "Psychic Friends"
Marijuana Beach
Olivia Records, 1999- "By My Side"
- "Marijuana Beach"
- "America's Deathrow Sweetheart"
- "Get Norris"
- "Love That Yer Making"
- "Shiny Mutation"
- "Squeaky Fromme"
Bounced and Renounced
Olivia Records, 2008- "America's Deathrow Sweetheart (Remix)"
- "Youth in Orbit"
- "Vacation Destination: Earth"
- "Mercitron"
- "Windows Wide"
- "Psychic Friends (Return)"
- "Cruel"
- "Incarnation"
- "Theme Allison"
- "Razorblades"
- "Heady Days"
- "Kids Are People Too"
- "Awful Secret (Demo)"
External links
- Is There Another Tomorrow for the Tomorrowpeople? DC9 at Night 5/20/08 http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/dc9/2008/05/is_there_another_tomorrow_for.php