Biography
Emerging from Madison, Wisconsin, the Tar Babies occupied an underrecognized slot on the SST roster and cultivated a punk-funk sound frequently likened to labelmates the Minutemen and to the Texas outfit Big Boys. Their approach incorporated threads of psychedelia, jazz, and avant-noise skronk, moving past early hardcore foundations toward a rough yet danceable, groove-oriented hybrid that featured horns alongside George Clinton-style jamming. The group coalesced after the 1982 breakup of local hardcore act Mecht Mensch, with guitarist/vocalist Bucky Pope, bassist Robin Davies, and drummer Dan Bitney issuing their debut, the 1982 EP Face the Music, on the regional independent Bone Air. By the second release, 1985’s Respect Your Nightmares, funk elements had sharpened enough to draw SST’s interest. The band’s initial SST album, 1987’s Fried Milk, marked the point at which their punk-funk synthesis fully took shape. On the follow-up, 1988’s No Contest, they emphasized that connection by incorporating horns—primarily from woodwind player and multi-instrumentalist Tony Jarvis—and by experimenting with Washington, D.C.-style go-go rhythms. Their third and final SST effort, 1989’s Honey Bubble, closed that chapter. After a short break that brought personnel changes, Pope reassembled the Tar Babies with second guitarist Bobby Vienneau and new horn player Andrew Lawton; this configuration recorded the 1991 album Death Trip for the independent Sonic Noise imprint before the band dissolved for good. Bitney relocated to Chicago, where he contributed percussion and effects to the post-rock group Tortoise and performed with Isotope 217 and assorted other area projects. Pope and Davies later performed locally again under the name Bar Tabbies, while Davies’ son Jesse Collins-Davies played in the preteen hardcore band Old Skull.
Albums