The Urinals
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The Urinals were a three-piece punk rock band formed in 1978 in Los Angeles. They had a severely pared-down, frenetic sound, sometimes opting for no more than two chords in a song (for example, "Hologram" and "Ack Ack Ack Ack"). They played shows with proto-hardcore luminaries such as Black Flag and Middle Class, and inspired the very influential Minutemen,
They released three 7-inch records on their own Happy Squid label over the next two years, which remained relatively rarely heard until the re-release of this material on 1996's Negative Capability CD retrospective on Happy Squid/Amphetamine Reptile. In 1981, they changed their name to 100 Flowers, but continued to play music in the minimalist vein of their early songs.
In addition to their influence on early punk, the Urinals/100 Flowers' songs were also redone by later indie bands like Halo of Flies and Yo La Tengo.
The Urinals were:
- John Talley-Jones - vocals, bass;
- Kevin Barrett - drums, vocals;
- Kjehl Johansen - guitar, vocals
The Urinals are still active and continue to give performances in the Los Angeles area.