July Fourth Toilet
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July Fourth Toilet is a band from Vancouver, Canada. They are an experimental act that can be loosely described as rock, although they incorporate elements of several styles of music.
They were founded in late 1993 by zine publisher Robert Dayton (best known now for Canned Hamm) and cartoonist Julian Lawrence. Their name was bestowed upon them by the Zip Code Rapists from a list of band names that was used to name several bands on the Amarillo Records label. They have had a loose cast of dozens of members throughout the years; long-time stalwarts of note include Stephen Hamm (Slow, Canned Hamm), Andre Lagace (Young and Sexy), Jody Franklin (MungBeing), and Clancy Dennehy.
July Fourth Toilet is unique in that every live performance is a themed show that is different every time. They have done improvised sets, song-poems and covered entire albums by artists in tribute shows. They are also known for outlandish "bargain basement" theatrical costumes, audience confrontation and performance art antics. Their oeuvre has made it difficult for critics to pin them down and make comparisons. As they have played shows with the Zip Code Rapists, Sun City Girls, Three Day Stubble, Caroliner and Old Time Relijun, one can perhaps draw out an affinity underlying the spirit of all of these groups.
In 2004, July Fourth Toilet celebrated their tenth anniversary doing a live stage performance of Rock Fantasy, an obscure, generic K-Tel children's record from the 1970s. In 2006, they performed a tribute set to composer Paul Williams that he attended. They finished recording July Fourth Toilet Presents Balls Boogie Featuring Me And Bobby McGee, a new studio album that is set to be released sometime in 2007. In 2007, MungBeing magazine released their "long-lost" seven-inch record Childhood Will End online.
[edit] Discography
- White (Trash) Album, cassette, Trackshun Industries 1994
- Lovebeads, Turtlenecks and Overalls, cassette, 1995
- Something For Everyone, CD, Pro-Am 2002
- Rock Fantasy Live, CD & DVD, Pro-Am 2004
- Childhood Will End EP, download, MungBeing 2007
- July Fourth Toilet Presents Balls Boogie Featuring Me And Bobby McGee, to be released in 2007
They have also appeared on several compilations.
