Clinton McKinnon

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For the U.S. politician, see Clinton D. McKinnon.
Clinton McKinnon
Background information
Birth name Clinton McKinnon
Also known as Bär
Born December 24, 1969
Genres Experimental, experimental rock, avant-garde, pop, roll
Occupations Musician
Instruments Saxophone, keyboards, various woodwind instruments and vocals
Years active 1986–present
Labels Amphead (Distribution)
Associated acts Mr. Bungle, Secret Chiefs 3, Eyvind Kang, Barefoot Hockey Goalie, Umläut
Website Umläut MySpace
McKinnon MySpace

Clinton "Bär" McKinnon (born December 24, 1969) is an American musician, perhaps best known playing saxophone in San Francisco based band Mr. Bungle.

Bär, pronounced 'bear', is a childhood nickname, given to him by his older sisters. In 1989 Bär joined Mr. Bungle and studied music at Humboldt State University. His primary instrument is the saxophone, but he plays a number of other instruments including flute, keyboards, guitar, drums, percussion, bass and other assorted woodwinds.

He was a member of Mr. Bungle from 1989 to their disbandment in 2000, and has written and performed with Secret Chiefs 3, Dieselhed and Humboldt County hip hop/reggae/rock fusion band Lakota. He has also appeared on the Melt-Banana album Charlie, on the Carl Hancock Rux album Rux Revue, on the Ray's Vast Basement album On the Banks of the Time, on the Eyvind Kang's album The Story of Iceland and on the Barefoot Hockey Goalie album One Part Thomas Edison. Bär McKinnon is currently gigging around Melbourne with a band called Umläut.

Biography

Early years

Bär grew up in Crescent City, Northern California and was the middle child in a family of nine. In 1989, Bär joined San Francisco based band Mr. Bungle and studied music and Humboldt State University. He was a member of Mr. Bungle from 1989 to their disbandment in 2000. Towards the end of the '80s, Bär appeared on Mr. Bungle's cassette-only demo OU818 (featuring tracks that would appear on their first Warner Brothers album), and as a result, the band earned a small local following.

Bär and Mr. Bungle

Bungle's lead singer Mike Patton had by the start of the '90s achieved success in mainstream rock and metal with his other band Faith No More, which ultimately helped secure Mr. Bungle a record deal with Warner Bros. The band released a self-titled album (produced by John Zorn) in 1991, followed by the highly surreal Disco Volante in 1995. Their final album was California. As a multi-instrumentalist, Bär provided a distinct style both as a player and songwriter, most notably on Mr. Bungle's final album, California. The album takes inspiration from Burt Bacharach and The Beach Boys, influences close to Bär's heart. The album allowed more freedom for all members of Bungle in the songwriting process. California blended lounge, pop, jazz, funk, thrash metal, Hawaiian, Middle Eastern, kecak and avant-garde music.[1] The band did 5 tours to support this record. For the most part, perhaps with the exception of the Sno-Core 2000 tour where they were often booed, the band did have success attracting an audience.[2][3]

Umläut

Clinton's self-titled project Umläut was released with guest vocals from Mike Patton on one of the tracks titled "Atlas Face". Umläut is the culmination of years of work for McKinnon, after moving to Melbourne, Australia. The current lineup includes vibraphone and keyboards as well as Bär on saxophone and flute and is available on Amazon.com

Track Listing

  1. "Kitty Puppy" - 3:26
  2. "Atlas Face" - 2:53
  3. "The Mistaken Power" - 3:05
  4. "Dirty Dishes" - 2:28
  5. "Living The Dream" - 2:26
  6. "Bigfoot Is Real" - 3:36
  7. "Work Truck" - 2:17
  8. "The Horrible Things We Say" - 2:25
  9. "Chill Pill (Soy Ta Lahtoe)" - 3:56
  10. "Buttons" - 6:25
  11. "Dain Bramage" - 4:40

Discography

Mr. Bungle

Secret Chiefs 3

Songwriting credits

  1. Untitled[4]
  2. "After School Special" (words: Dunn/McKinnon/Patton, music: McKinnon) – 2:47
  3. "The Bends" (music: Patton/McKinnon/Spruance) - 10:28
    1. "Man Overboard"
    2. "The Drowning Flute"
    3. "Aqua Swing"
    4. "Follow the Bubbles"
    5. "Duet for Guitar and Oxygen Tank"
    6. "Nerve Damage"
    7. "Screaming Bends"
    8. "Panic in Blue"
    9. "Love on the Event Horizon"
    10. "Re-Entry"
  1. "The Air-Conditioned Nightmare" (words: Patton music: Patton/McKinnon) - 3:55
  2. "Goodbye Sober Day" (words: Patton music: Patton/McKinnon) - 4:29

Guest appearances

References

  1. ↑ Paluzzi, Nick (27 April 2004). "California Review". Ground and Sky. Retrieved 2007-05-16. 
  2. ↑ Fernandez, Roger. "Mr. Bungle Biography". Bungle Grind. Retrieved 2007-04-28. 
  3. ↑ Fong, Erik (July 1–14, 2003). "Trey Spruance Interview". Perfect Pitch Online. Retrieved 2007-05-16. 
  4. ↑ This song is often titled "The Secret Song" (the working title of the song) or "Spy" (the title that appears on various concert setlists). Credits: words: Dunn, music: Uncredited (but assumed to be Patton/McKinnon/Spruance). Bungle Fever FAQ

External links

Mr. Bungle
Studio albums
Demos
  • The Raging Wrath of the Easter Bunny
  • Bowel of Chiley
  • Goddammit I Love America!
  • 0U818
Singles
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