The Donner Party

In 1987 San Francisco outfit Donner Party issued their debut self-titled album, after which Camper Van Beethoven’s David Lowery discovered the group and placed them on his Pitch a Tent roster for the 1988 follow-up that closed out their discography. The power trio specialized in shrewd pop delivered with deliberate naïveté, chiefly because vocalist Sam Coomes sang his whimsical lyrics in a strained, offhand manner. Drummer-vocalist Melanie Clarin and Reinhold Johnson maintained an intentionally childlike stance that shifted between primitive folk-rock and loud, abrasive indie rock. While active in Donner Party, Clarin simultaneously recorded and toured with another San Francisco guitar band, the Cat Heads. She has since continued session and stage work with numerous Bay Area ensembles, whereas Coomes moved to Portland, where he launched Motorgoat and Quasi. The latter ensemble frequently backed singer-songwriter Elliott Smith, and Coomes contributed to Smith’s Figure 8 (DreamWorks 2000). Innerstate Records issued the two-CD set Complete Recordings 1987-1989 in March 2000; the anthology gathered the Cryptovision and Pitch a Tent albums, one previously unreleased third album, and eight live tracks. The following month the band reunited for a single San Francisco performance, its first appearance together in more than a decade.