DMZ

Boston’s late-‘70s rock scene exploded after a what’s now considered a “big-bang” event: the release of Live at the Rat, a double disc recorded in September 1976. From the seminal bands on that album and their breeding ground, The Rathskeller in Boston’s Kenmore Square, a beachhead was established that would mark the city as a major source of new music for decades.

One of the first bands out of the gate was DMZ, weighing in with a pair of tracks on Live at the Rat and quickly releasing a 7” single on the Bomp! label in ’77. Fronted by the wildly excitable vocalist-organist-songwriter Monoman (aka Jeff Conolly), most of the material was based on ‘60s-era psychedelic poppers like The 13th Floor Elevators, Chocolate Watchband, Sonics and The Pretty Things. Indeed, the band regularly covered tunes from all those groups, with the Elevators’ “You’re Gonna Miss Me” being a particular standout.

In 1978, after signing with Warner Brothers’ imprint Sire, the band went in the studio with the psycho-pop singing team of Flo and Eddie (The Turtles’ Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan) and emerged with the long-player DMZ. Although songs like “Mighty Idy” and “Out of Our Tree” found local favor, there simply wasn’t enough of a market yet for thunderous pop-oriented rock ‘n’ roll, so the LP disappeared and the band blew apart before the end of the year. Monoman formed the ‘60s-roots group Lyres and guitarist Peter Greenberg later found success with Barrence Whitfield & The Savages. One footnote: drummer David Robinson of The Modern Lovers powered the skins for DMZ until his departure for The Cars in ’76.

(by Carter Alan)

Carter Alan is a former WBCN deejay now heard on WZLX-FM in Boston. He’s the author of Radio Free Boston: The Rise and Fall of WBCN (University Press of New England, 2013).