Nixon's Head

Philadelphia garage-pop outfit Nixon's Head openly displays its admiration for Nick Lowe, Elvis Costello, XTC, and both Nuggets compilations, yet the band's new wave-tinged jangle pop steers clear of the rote imitation that hampers comparable acts. Rather than attempting to replicate the 1976 Flamin' Groovies—who in turn emulated the 1965 Beatles—the group charts its own course. The five high-school friends Andy Rosenau on vocals, primary songwriter and lead guitarist Jim Slade, guitarist Mike Frank, bassist Michael Fingeroff, and drummer Seth Baer assembled the oddly titled Nixon's Head in 1985. While drawing from fellow Philadelphia post-post-punk indie outfits such as the Dead Milkmen and the Electric Love Muffin, the members distinguished themselves through an enduring devotion to 1960s pop. Their debut EP, The Doug Factor, appeared in 1986, followed two years later by Traps, Buckshot and Pelts; persistent challenges of independent touring, however, soon fractured the lineup. Rosenau departed first, prompting a temporary rename to Frankenslade and the recording of an unreleased psych-pop album reminiscent of XTC's English Settlement era. By the 1991 single "The New World Over," Nixon's Head had disbanded entirely. Baer later entered the Original Sins, and Slade relocated to Hungary with his spouse.

The story did not conclude there. In an unforeseen development, Nixon's Head reunited in 1997; John Popovics took over for Fingeroff, while Mike Frank's wife Dorothy Haug added organ and shared lead vocals. The 1998 album Gourmet marked the band's first full-length effort, preserving its new wave and British Invasion roots. The stronger and marginally more 1960s-oriented successor, Take It!, followed in 2000.