Biography
Boston's Big Dipper earned a reputation as an outstanding act that ultimately fell short of its considerable promise, boasting strong indie roots and a knack for sharp post-post-punk guitar pop whose early recordings outshone everything that followed.
The group came together in 1985 after guitarists Gary Waleik and bassist Steve Michener departed the first version of Volcano Suns, the band they had started alongside drummer and vocalist Peter Prescott once Prescott's prior outfit Mission of Burma dissolved. Waleik and Michener, both reluctant to handle lead vocals, brought in singer and guitarist Bill Goffrier, who had relocated to Boston following the 1983 breakup of his earlier Lawrence, KS-based indie pioneers the Embarrassment. They completed the lineup with local drummer Jeff Oliphant, previously of an early Dumptruck configuration, and spent time playing shows throughout Boston and Cambridge before entering the soon-to-be-renowned Fort Apache Studios to cut their debut EP, 1987's Boo-Boo. The record opened with the standout "Faith Healer," a track Goffrier had carried over from the Embarrassment's final days that became one of the band's signature numbers and later received a cover by Shonen Knife; Boo-Boo found favor on both regional and national indie circuits. Still in 1987, the full-length Heavens appeared without any shared tracks from the EP, which was added to the CD edition, drawing even stronger praise. An accomplished blend of bright power pop, neo-psychedelia, and indie-rock tension that included standouts such as "She's Fetching" and "All Going Out Together," Heavens ranks among the strongest American indie albums of the period.
By contrast, 1988's Craps proved noticeably less consistent, marked by softer songcraft and a calmer atmosphere, possibly because Goffrier was then splitting his attention between Big Dipper and a short-term Embarrassment reunion. After that album, the band made the unexpected move to Epic Records. Much like fellow Boston act O-Positive, who joined the same label around the same time, Big Dipper's sole major-label effort, 1990's Slam, suffered from overly polished production, prominent horn arrangements, and an overemphasis on the rhythm section. Discouraged by the album's modest critical and commercial reception, the group disbanded soon afterward. Michener relocated to California, collaborated briefly with Barbara Manning, and eventually left music to work as a nurse. Apart from the short-lived supergroup Crush, Sr., which issued one album in 1993, Waleik also stepped away from performing to become a producer for National Public Radio.
The group came together in 1985 after guitarists Gary Waleik and bassist Steve Michener departed the first version of Volcano Suns, the band they had started alongside drummer and vocalist Peter Prescott once Prescott's prior outfit Mission of Burma dissolved. Waleik and Michener, both reluctant to handle lead vocals, brought in singer and guitarist Bill Goffrier, who had relocated to Boston following the 1983 breakup of his earlier Lawrence, KS-based indie pioneers the Embarrassment. They completed the lineup with local drummer Jeff Oliphant, previously of an early Dumptruck configuration, and spent time playing shows throughout Boston and Cambridge before entering the soon-to-be-renowned Fort Apache Studios to cut their debut EP, 1987's Boo-Boo. The record opened with the standout "Faith Healer," a track Goffrier had carried over from the Embarrassment's final days that became one of the band's signature numbers and later received a cover by Shonen Knife; Boo-Boo found favor on both regional and national indie circuits. Still in 1987, the full-length Heavens appeared without any shared tracks from the EP, which was added to the CD edition, drawing even stronger praise. An accomplished blend of bright power pop, neo-psychedelia, and indie-rock tension that included standouts such as "She's Fetching" and "All Going Out Together," Heavens ranks among the strongest American indie albums of the period.
By contrast, 1988's Craps proved noticeably less consistent, marked by softer songcraft and a calmer atmosphere, possibly because Goffrier was then splitting his attention between Big Dipper and a short-term Embarrassment reunion. After that album, the band made the unexpected move to Epic Records. Much like fellow Boston act O-Positive, who joined the same label around the same time, Big Dipper's sole major-label effort, 1990's Slam, suffered from overly polished production, prominent horn arrangements, and an overemphasis on the rhythm section. Discouraged by the album's modest critical and commercial reception, the group disbanded soon afterward. Michener relocated to California, collaborated briefly with Barbara Manning, and eventually left music to work as a nurse. Apart from the short-lived supergroup Crush, Sr., which issued one album in 1993, Waleik also stepped away from performing to become a producer for National Public Radio.
Albums
Club Go Up
2023
The Ham and Cheese EP
2020
Realms of the Unsung: The Vagabond Project
2020
Late Bloomer
2018
Thick Life
2018
Extra Good
2015
SLAM
1990
Singles
