Jay Reatard's 1 record of the year
1. Nobunny "love visions"

Every once in a while a record comes my way that I just can't stop listening to you know like an instant classic of sorts. Forget the bunny mask forget the wig forget the kinda corny gimmick . Behind all that lies some of the best lo-fi ramonesy punk slop I have heard in years.For sure the best record I own to jump around in your underwear and and eat pizza in bed to!

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"OH YEAH, I MADE LOVE!" Interview from the LA RECORD by Dan Collins


[i]Art by Emily Ryan[/i]

[b]Were you just at the liquor store?[/b]

No, I was just at a 'collectible toys, vintage clothing, and more!' store.

[b]That seems thematically appropriate. Do you wear the bunny mask all the time? Are you wearing it right now?[/b]

I'm not, but someone's doing a documentary soon, and I'm gonna be Nobunny for a month, and crawl everywhere I go. That's the plan. We're having our first meeting when I get back from tour. I'm stoked.

[b]Have you ever been wearing your mask, and you forget kind of, and you go into a liquor store and they think you're going to rob the place?[/b]

I can't say that's happened. I have gone into stores, but I'm pretty conscious about it. I get a little giggle out of it. People seem to like it for the most part.

[b]Does it work with the ladies? Have you ever gotten busy while wearing the mask?[/b]

Actually, here in Austin, Texas, just last night!

[b]A quick BJ or the full-on bunny treatment?[/b]

Oh yeah, I made love! Rabbits make love! She was wearing one of those Henry Darger masks—he painted those paintings of the Vivian girls, those little girls with the penises and stuff—and she had a Vivian girl mask on and I was wearing the bunny mask.

[b]I need to stop talking about this, because I'm getting turned on! You played Chick-a-go-go in Chicago a couple years ago. You play for kids sometimes?[/b]

Absolutely! I started off wanting to be a children's performer—trying to keep it really PG and stuff—but then, you know, some of my id came out, and it started getting a little creepier. But I still can do PG shows, or G shows. I try to keep it really positive, even when it's not.

[b]What's your favorite G-rated movie?[/b]

Probably Head—the Monkees movie! Probably the only G-rated movie I've ever heard of that has an execution in it. That guy in Vietnam who gets his brains blown out!

[b]And there's a joint in it, too—in the vacuum cleaner! Well, I have less of a question next—more of a statement. The Ramones, the Ramones, the Ramones, the Ramones, the Ramones.[/b]

Absolutely. 100%. I wish I didn't do that cover! Not that I don't love the Ramones—they're the greatest band ever. But I wish I didn't do that cover. In hindsight, it's pretty cheesy. But that's why I totally wanted to be the L.A. RECORD cover! I mean, I still want to be in it either way, but it's like, I already have this fucking Ramones cover…

[b]It's like you're made to order! So you're playing tonight with thee Makeout Party and the Rough Kids?[/b]
Yeah, I'm super excited. I love that Makeout Party so much!

[b]They're pretty good! If they had to do a Ramones cover, what should they do?[/b]

'Danny Says.' Why not?

[b]I've listened to your music, and here's some serious Kasenetz-Katz in there. What's better—punk or bubblegum?[/b]

Punk rock, man, all the way! I'm a punk rocker. But I don't know, that's hard. I dunno—folk! No, I hate folk music. Shit. I couldn't choose. This is going to seem cheesy, but it's all the same difference. Bubblegum, punk rock, country, R&B: it's all rock and roll at the end of the day.

[b]Speaking of country, have you heard of Gram Rabbit? Would you ever play on the same stage with them?[/b]

I don't know who they are, but I would!

[b]I just envision a showcase of all bunny bands. Have you heard of the Goddess Bunny?[/b]

Yes! He's like the tranny with severe MS? I would be so into it. I like trannies. I like bunnies. Why not? I do know there's a bunch of bunny bands. I finally played with the Rhythm Chicken a couple days ago—a one-man rabbit band that plays drum solos in bathrooms for ten minutes for a case of beer. He's the Rhythm Chicken, I'm Nobunny, so neither of us are really rabbits, right?

[b]You both have Easter connotations for sure, though. You both have eggs! So, what's your lineup like right now? Do you have people who play behind you?[/b]

Right now there's a four-piece band, but it's always rotating. Anyone's welcome to do it. It doesn't matter if it's a musician or not. The only rule I have is that I refuse to practice. I hate practice. Practice is like homework—I hate homework, and I hate school. I just want it to be fun, and to me, practicing is not fun. Anyone can play, they just have to learn the songs and show up.

[b]Who are your one-man band heroes? You have any inspirations?[/b]
Hasil for sure. For me, Hasil Adkins and the Ramones. And the Quick—maybe not quite as obvious. I like Bob Log, Elvis, you know. I like strong personalities, whether they're a one-man band or not. I like Sly Stone, Brian Wilson—you know, that kind of mad genius thing. Not to say I'm a mad genius, but I'm mad.

[b]You said you like to keep positive and stuff. Have you ever gotten into the G.G. Allin area where you're poopin' and peein' on people?[/b]

Yeah, but I think that can be a positive thing too. It's fine to just let it all hang loose, so to speak. It's often times bloodshed, and urine and kisses and all that fun stuff. We had blood in Flagstaff, we had blood in Vegas…

[b]What happened?[/b]

Oh, just sort of kicks. I sometimes put razors in our prop bags. Some fun bloodshed. Mix it up a little. More colors, make it more colorful.

[b]Have you ever carved Bugs Bunny into your arm?[/b]

I have not! It's been mostly words, but it's been mostly illegible. At this point my chest looks like a map. I come from a long line of cutters. I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing. We all have to figure out what's wrong for ourselves, and it's certainly not bad to bleed or pee.

[b]Have you ever gotten any horrible diseases while on tour?[/b]

Nothing too horrible. My mouth gets pretty beat up. I'd be shocked and amazed if I don't have herpes. I've never actually seen a cold sore, but I do split my lip with the mike a lot, so I'm assuming I'll get it any day now.

[b]Have you ever been hauled away by the police, with a bunny mask on?[/b]

No, I'm a good person. I don't bother them, they don't bother me. I have love and respect for their police. They're just doing their job. I'm okay with cops. I'm not punk rock like that.

[b]Somebody's got to take care of the bad guys.[/b]

I've definitely experienced more of them being jerks than cool, but I'm okay with that. I believe there are some people there who really want to make a difference and do the right thing. And I think that's really admirable. I don't judge anyone on their job, I judge people person to person, one at a time.

[b]Any special surprises for the L.A. show? Any tricks you're going to pull out of your hat?[/b]

Yeah, but you know I can't let them out. But I will have a special surprise treat for L.A. I want to show off for thee Makeout Party!

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"LOVE WAS IN THE AIR"
By Jason Gelt
LA Examiner

He crossed Sunset Boulevard at Laveta Terrace, a young man in a slinky black dress, high heels, a tousled blonde wig and a snow white bunny mask. As he entered the venue, art collective Echo Curio in Echo Park, I noticed that he had pretty nice legs for a guy. And a lo-fi rock 'n' roll tattoo on his right calf. How he could be traipsing around like that in fifty degree weather was beyond me, but that's show business. Nobunny had arrived.
His debut LP, "Love Visions," originally saw release early this year on San Francisco's Bubbledumb Records. The limited pink vinyl with hand-pasted, hand-colored cover art vanished in the wink of an eye. Such was the early reception for the artist known as Nobunny. He had a gimmick for sure: his creepy mask. But he also had the musical chops to back it up and word spread quickly. The album is a primitive-but-beautiful little garage pop gem, bursting with delicious hooks and manic power. The songs are funny, sad, jubilant and most of all, irreverent. The demand was such that Oakland's 1-2-3-4 Go! Records acquired the rights and is now releasing a much larger pressing of the album, plus a CD version.

He's a busy bunny: His resume sports not only the sold-out album, but also an action figure (no joke!), an animated music video, and several new singles in the offing. It's easy to see why Nobunny's hippity-hopping his way into the hearts of new admirers every day.

Plus, his live show is something to see. Strutting the floor, eyes twinkling behind the matted fur of his mask, he unleashed a tight set that included hits from "Love Visions" such as "Nobunny Loves You," "I Am a Girlfriend," and the anthemic "Chuck Berry Holiday." There were even a couple of new numbers to keep the audience on its toes. The enthusiastic crowd -- juiced up with brown bagged beer and liquor -- surged and shook, sometimes overtaking Nobunny like a human tide, then spitting him back out, mike in hand. The atmosphere of jubilation was so keen that a portly, punky couple interrupted the show at one point for a harried proposal of marriage with a borrowed microphone. Love was in the air.

Hey Honkers,
NOB went and got himself interviewed in the ALIBI (Albuquerque) and in PLASTIQUE POP (Milwaukee). Peep 'em peepers!
Love,
Nobunny


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from
PLASTIQUE POP

(the one line I crossed out was a mistake and from a different part of the magazine)





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From the ALIBI
NOBUNNY LOVES YOU!
By Simon McCormack


Several years ago, NOBUNNY was hoping to travel the country as an animal Elvis impersonator. "I figured I could fill the animal niche since there's already like a Thai-Elvis and an extreme-Elvis and all that stuff," he explains.

NOBUNNY--who keeps his true identity secret--found a bunny mask and began practicing the pelvic shake. He started writing his own songs. Eventually, NOBUNNY decided to give up on the impersonator dream and try to make it playing his own stuff. He began busking to no avail. "I never got a single penny tossed my way," NOBUNNY admits. "People really didn't seem to like it at all. But I didn't stop."

Then, on April 15, 2001, NOBUNNY scored a slot at the Fireside Bowl punk club in Chicago. It was there that NOBUNNY gave his first performance to a sizable crowd on the same day Joey Ramone died.

Seven years later, NOBUNNY put out his first album, Love Visions. It was recorded in his friends' living rooms, but it sounds like the tracks were laid down inside a tin can under a pile of dirt. The plunky guitar, oftentimes programmed beats and NOBUNNY's subdued snarls come off as abrasive at first. After a few listens, a punk simplicity and a buried one-four-five chord base hit some kind of sweet spot. It's a little bit punkabilly and a tiny bit blues, but it's essentially one big party animal.

NOBUNNY told the Alibi about his fur fetish and shy recording style. He also let us in on how seriously he takes his on-stage persona, all in his never-wavering deadpan delivery.

What attracted you to the bunny mask?

It seems kind of appealing. For the most part, people like bunnies. But the mask is really great because bunnies are generally thought of as cute and cuddly and the mask is ... not so much. It's kind of creepy.

You mentioned your first album was recorded in your friends' houses. How is your new record coming along?

It's not going as smooth as I had hoped. I'm recording it in my parents' basement. I have to be completely alone when I record and my mom is almost always home. I'll record a little when she's home, but I certainly can't sing when she's home, even though she probably can't hear me. I have to wait for those precious moments when she runs to the grocery store to get anything done.

How can you be shy about having people hear you record but you're willing to perform live?

The mask is huge. It's much easier for me to perform wearing a mask. I wouldn't be comfortable doing what NOBUNNY does without the aid of the bunny mask.

What does NOBUNNY do?

Nothing is every planned, it's all going in the moment. I would like everyone to get in the spirit and the mood to do whatever they want to do. It's a chance to just get weird. That's what I try to do. I can't see anything with the mask on, so I usually just have my eyes closed, drink a lot of booze beforehand and start spinning around in circles.

How seriously do you take the NOBUNNY persona?

Well, I think at the end of the day, people realize that I'm not a rabbit. So it's really not a big deal.

Have you ever gone with the full bunny suit?

Yeah, I've done that, actually. I've had different masks and different costumes. For my birthday, my friend got a full bunny suit. The thing is, it's really, really hot. I do like it, though. I'm a total "furvert," if you will.

Your music seems perfectly suited to parties. Do you play a lot of them?

Yeah. Eighty percent of the places we're playing on this tour are houses. We're also playing an Urban Outfitters, which is weird. But, yeah, house parties all the way. People get into it more and get sweatier and drunker.

From CHOCOLATE COVERED RECORDS' (go buy everything from them!) Chocolate Covered Magazine 2

NOBUNNY - "Love Visions" LP
You've probably already seen this bunny mask clad fellow hopping around someone's tiny living room, splashing sweat and vomit on anyone who dares come near him as he churns out some of the poppiest, catchiest, dirtiest rocknroll you've heard in years.
"That's awesome," you'd say, "but there's no way he's taking himself seriously." Well, Maybe he isn't... but that hasn't stopped him from making this excellent record and touring all over the country.
This LP won't leave your turntable for a long while.

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From CREATIVE LOAFING (Atlanta weekly paper) by Chad Radford.

2 articles!

ALANTA MESS AROUND


ROLL CALL

MESS AROUND

The rabbit-masked, Ramones-esque crooner known as NOBUNNY prefers to conceal his true identity in order to maintain a sense of "fun and secrecy," he says.
He gave birth to his twisted stage persona in a trailer located in the desert about an hour outside of Tucson, Ariz. "I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life," the Bay Area performer explains. "[I wanted to] love what I was doing, while making money. I came up with the idea to be an animal Elvis impersonator.
"There's already fat Elvis, skinny Elvis, extreme Elvis, female Elvis, midget Elvis, etc., so I figured that being a rabbit could fill the gap of novelty Elvises," he says. "I was living in the trailer, practicing my guitar and Elvis stance, and [pretty soon] I started writing my own songs...."
NOBUNNY's point of conception sounds about as random as the impetus behind the fine mess happening in Atlanta this weekend. "We wanted to throw a party for ourselves because we deserve one," boasts Travis Flagel, who co-owns Rob's House Records with temporary New Yorker Trey Lindsay. "This is pretty much a party for us and a chance to get wasted with a lot of bands."
Indeed, the fraternal triad of Atlanta's punk and garage rock labels Die Slaughterhaus, Rob's House and Douche Master Records are throwing a party – just for the hell of it. Between Nov. 14--16, the local bastion of indie rock will host the Atlanta Mess-Around at the Earl and Danger House (formerly Rob's House) that serves as little more than a glorified excuse for all involved to pat themselves on the back.
"Between the three labels, we have released over 100 records, and have accumulated some pretty kick-ass rosters," says Douche Master Records owner Bryan Rackley. "We figured it was time for a homecoming."
The Mess-Around brings 16 bands together from as far away as California, Texas and New York. "There are a lot of bands out there who represent us but wouldn't normally be in the same room together, so we wanted to make that happen," says Rackley. The lineup covers everything from the straight-forward rock of Oxford, Miss.'s Black and Whites to the deranged, garage-rock comedy of NOBUNNY, the irrefutable star of the show.
NOBUNNY's mostly original set of songs came to fruition with the jittery, amphetamine strum of his vinyl-only debut, Love Visions. Throughout the album, songs like "NOBUNNY Loves You," "Chuck Berry Holiday" and "Hippy Witch" take shape with a fuzzy, gutter-pop plod and a gruff sense of Muppet-rock humor.
But it's not all fun and games at the Mess-Around. The labels had to cough up a lot of money to fly in such bands as the Wax Museums (San Francisco) and the Hex Dispensers (Austin, Texas). If they can break even on expenses, they may do it again next year.
Drummer David Rahn faces a different test throughout the three-day fest. He plays shows with the Carbonas, Gentleman Jesse, Baby Shakes and Blade 2 – an updated version of the Gaye Blades that features Jared Swilley of the Black Lips, Bobby Ubangi and Jesse Smith. "I'll probably just sleep really late the day before and the day after," says Rahn.
The one act that Rahn narrowly avoided being roped into for the fest is NOBUNNY. Instead, members of the Wax Museums will step in to back the rabbit during his set.
Though he rarely dips into his animal Elvis repertoire nowadays, the bunny isn't ruling anything out. "I may go back to the original NOBUNNY idea some day," he says. "It may not be a million dollar idea, but at least it's a living wage."


ROLL CALL

For today's installment of Roll Call we call out NOBUNNY. The rabbit-masked and Ramones-esque crooner plays the Atlanta Mess-Around this Sat, Nov. 15th.

Who are you?
I'm nothing special. A dirt dog. Mr. Hyde. Primal screams and refried beans. A boxcar and a jug of wine. A 40 and a skateboard. The American dream. He who talks loud, saying nothing. I am nobody. I am NOBUNNY.

Describe yourself in three words.
Cuddly and Sadistic

Who — dead or alive — would most you like to meet?
I already met Hasil Adkins, so I'll say Alive: Michael Jackson. Dead: Joey Ramone.

Who would you most like to slap in the face?
My little sister Megan. She's a baaaad girl. Yes she is.

What song do you wish you had written?
"I Want You Back" by the Jackson 5ive. Not only do I wish I wrote it, I wish I sang it, recorded it, performed everything on it. Every time I hear it I imagine that it's the opening track off my new record and just how damn satisfying that would be.

Elvis Costello or Elvis Presley?
PRESLEY!!! Anyone who answers Costello just doesn't get it man. Wake up and LIVE people! You have the right to breath fresh air and fuck beautiful women! C'mon!

LP, CD or MP3?
dogshit

If you could start one trend, what would it be?
Compassion. Be kind to fast food workers. For a duck may be somebody's mother.

If you could end one trend, what would it be?
While it's petty, I can't handle those bluetooth ear phone things. Whenever I see someone wearing one, I always want to take a hammer and whack 'em real good in the ear.

With whom would you most like to play a game of spin the bottle?
17 year old Rosanna Arquette.

Another blast from the past, and another unfinished project. This here was done in Late April of 2007 after a not so smooth 6 week tour (tour journal posted yesterday). Many more of you deserved NOBUNNIES, and so much more. You are all winners!. Thank you so much. I love you all!
xo,
NOBUNNY








Stay tuned for more comics.....

and don't forget to check out Nobunzz on his upcoming tour... maybr YOU could win a Nobunnie!

From the November 2008 issue of MAXIMUMROCKNROLL




Armed with only a furry, white bunny mask, a pair of pink panties, and set of knee-pads, Tucson, Arizona's own Nobunny delivers catchy bubblegum punk with a smile and a whole set of spastic dance moves. Nobunny is a seven-year-old jackalope/human that isn't afraid to mingle with the crowd while letting his genitals bounce to the music, which is what he has been doing since his first gig in 2001. Some reports have claimed that Nobunny is actually an alter ego of Justin Champlin, 31, of Okmoniks and Sneaky Pinks fame, though that is yet to be confirmed. When asked about his identity, Nobunny commented, "I have a stupid human mask that I wear sometimes before I go onstage—so I don't get mobbed." While the mystery of his genetics still looms, the music of Nobunny is clearly a pop majesty that could make the Ramones dance in their graves. Non-stop touring and a self-titled, sold out LP later, Nobunny shows no signs of slowing down.



MRR: How would you describe yourself?

Nobunny: I'm that fool in the alley laughing. I'm that body sleeping in the park. I'm a skateboard and a tallboy.



MRR: What city did you grow up in? What did you do to keep busy as a young lad?

Nobunny: I was born in the desert about 45 minutes outside of Tucson, Arizona, on March 3, 2001. Momma was a jackalope and daddy was a human. People think the desert is all death, when in fact there is a lot of life—jackrabbits, wild dogs, rattlers, scorpions, coyotes, and the moon. The moon is my other mother. I used to set up drums in the desert under a full moon and get weird. My childhood: my sister mainly raised me. She fed me peyote and taught me how to kill.



MRR: According to the Chinese proverb, "A sly rabbit will have three openings to its den." Tell us about your den.

Nobunny: My den is groady to the max. I never learned how to take care of myself. I'm surrounded by my own bodily fluids in bottles and cans, on tissues and shirts, on the floor, on plates, on my sheets. The windows are always open, and I do little there other than sleep and creep. I have always had an aversion to home and a need to roam. I'm not a stay-in and watch TV kind of guy. I don't like to speak indoors. Outsider, all the way. The libraries and public parks are my dens.



MRR: When did you first start playing music? What inspired you to get started with the rocking?

Nobunny: I was born an Elvis impersonator. I quickly got bored with the formula and started writing my own songs. The first was "No Bunny Blues." I performed on the street in the big city of Tucson, but my first official show was on Easter 2001 in Chicago. It was the day Joey Ramone died, which was a bummer, but the show had to go on. I did a few originals and covers of the Dictators, Bobbyteens, and the Electric Eels.



MRR: What influences make up Nobunny?

Nobunny: Girls. Girls. Girls. The elements: air, earth, water, and fire. Love. Truth, The moon. As far as music: Hasil Adkins, Lil Bunnies, Albert Ayler, Elvis Presley, the Cramps, Gentleman Jesse, John Battles, ELO.



MRR: Did you ever go to college?

Nobunny: I went for three days. I'm not sure how that happened as I'm only seven and I hate school. It makes me nauseous. To each their own.



MRR: What is a typical day like for you?

Nobunny: I spend most of my time in libraries and public parks. I'm a pretty social fool, but I do spend most of my time alone, either reading, drinking, or sleeping. Or designing my BJ machine.



MRR: What are some records you have been jamming lately?

Nobunny: I only have about twelve records and I never listen to them. I really love music, but I'm really poor and stupid. I almost never listen to music. I don't have a record player, CD player, or even a tape deck. That said, lately I love Cheap Time, Thin Lizzy, and Dreamdate.



MRR: Do you plan to keep playing music? Or do you have other aspirations?

Nobunny: I love playing music, and I don't plan ..ping. I wouldn't say I "need to do it," but it would seem silly to stop. I also love goin' to the bone yard with female humans.



MRR: What's up with the new Nobunny LP on Bubbledumb Records? How did that come about?

Nobunny: The record was easy to get released. I just had to say 'YES!' Bubbledumb Records put out the LP and has really great records coming out. The songs were all home-recorded—some with people, but mostly by myself. I'm really touched that people like it at all. I've had a lot of people asking to put out records, and while I certainly want to put out more it takes me awhile because I'm picky about songs and stuff. I'm pretty burnt on bands that put out a billion records a year with only a few good songs between 'em. That said, look for more Nobunny records coming your way soon. Hopefully I can put out some quality as opposed to quantity.



MRR: How has this recent tour been going for you?

Nobunny: Touring has been awesome. It's all I really want to do lately. Touring and porkin'. Touring and porkin' and getting high. Touring and porkin' and getting high and eating pizza and pork. I've been on three tours in the last few months and they keep getting better and better. Each one has been crazier than the last. I've had a different lineup each trip. With So Cow I had a band that included Mr. So Cow, Jason Testasecca, and Trent "Dirt Turd" Purdy. When I was out with the Okmoniks I played by myself. On this last tour with the Wax Museums, they backed me up every night. It was so punk you could puke.



MRR: Is there a groupie scene for Nobunny?

Nobunny: Groupies? Sadly, no, but people sure like to grab at my bits and throw spanks at my butt when I'm performing. The closest thing to groupies is probably some fat dudes in Goner shirts. Bless their greasy lil' hearts. Next time I play Portland I've agreed to perform with Dave and Teri's (Slip Its, Tie Reds) new band, the Stuffed Animals, so hopefully we can get some furverts out to that one.



MRR: Being a jackalope, was it harder to get a record released? Is there a Nobunny fan club yet?

Nobunny: Well, I'm not fully a jackalope. I'm not really anything when it comes down to it. The only real trouble I've had as far as releasing records is my inability to send people recordings. I have a bunch of fun projects lined up, but I have a serious self sabotage problem. I could have a bunch of records out already, but I'm real picky, which, honestly, I wish more bands were. While I don't think what I've put out is all that hot, at least I don't put out a half-baked 7" a month. Part of me wants to because I realize that these things come and go in phases, and that a year down the line no one will care about me, but I still don't want to just put out any ol' turd. Just golden turds, or at least bronze—shit, what am I talking about? The Nobunny fan club doesn't actually 100 percent exist, but I'd like it to. I got some awesome friends and fans out there.



MRR: Are there any other jackalope/humans that you have encountered? If not, how do you plan to procreate?

Nobunny: While I'm not 100 percent of their exact heritage, there are a whole mess of bunny jerks on this big blue marble. You got your Lil Bunnies, The Rhythm Chicken, and Bun E. Carlos, to name a few. While I think kids are cool, cool, cool, and I love, love, love to love, love, love the ladies, I have no, no, no plans to have this bloodline continue.



MRR: Have you ever encountered any prejudice?

Nobunny: People think I'm a gimmick, a joke, a pig in the poke. I guess I am, but not any more than most of these other jerks in these other jerky bands. You can still be passionate and express yourself without taking yourself real seriously. I'm quite often too honest and open with people, not in the sense of being mean, but more being honest about what I'm like, which is apparently not for everyone. Deep down, I'm a good person, or I try to be and deep down I'm not, or, shit, no, I don't know… I just know that some fools like me and some sure don't. That's okay though, be it prejudice or not. I get called a "fag" here and there, but I don't really care. Fuck 'em if they can't take a joke. They are the joke. They are the enemy. I am the cookie monster. Only I'm more like the sex monster, the drunk-sex monster, the drunk-sex monster in your closet, the drunk-sex monster in your closet breathing to the beat. I live the life I love, and I love the life I live, c'mon.



MRR: What is Nobunny's ultimate goal in life?

Nobunny: Endless Summer. Ultimate Scummer. No Bummers. But seriously folks, I'd just like to keep touring and playing for peeps, playing for keeps. Know what I mean? Tour, tour, tour.

NOBUNNY and The Wax Museums played LIVE on KDVS in Davis, Ca. You can listen to it or download it here...
http://artforspastics.blogspot.com/2008/08/afs-v-189-feat-nobunny-wax-museums-live.html

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TUCSON WEEKLY
"Love Visons" review
by Mark Beef
http://www.tucsonweekly.com/gbase/Music/Content?oid=oid:114701


What if Little Richard had joined Hasil Adkins and recorded with Bill Spector, Phil's rigoddamndiculous brother, in Sanford and Son's mobile recording unit? Or, what if GG Allin had been the Svengali behind a boufannt-ed girl group, having them out-raunch anybody while maintaining sweetness and light? It might not have sounded exactly like Nobunny, but it definitely would have resembled the spirit.

Handclaps, broken pianos, toilet-bowl guitars and whisky bottles full of piss used as maracas make up just a portion of this irresistible infection created for the wino in the alley, as well as the kids just discovering the joys of masturbation and drugs. Songs are about giving girls what they really want, prostitution, laughing instead of crying about failed relationships, and fun, fun, fun like the Beach Boys never knew.

When you're used to life in a rubbish heap, you can adapt and overcome, or become part of the junk landscape. Nobunny has found the true path: do both--not just overcoming the detritus that society produces, but lifting it up and showing the beautiful side of it--and, no, I don't mean in an ironic, kitschy way; I mean in the same way you'd view a perfect sunset or ass. You see the beauty in trash in the way a Buddhist koan could never teach you.

Nobunny loves you and Nobunny cares, and the next time he's in town, if you've never been hugged by a horny, drunken Muppet, you should seek him out. He's better than anything you'll find in the self-help section of Bookmans.

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REAL DETROIT WEEKLY
"Nobunny: Easter Comes Early"
by Eric Allen
http://www.realdetroitweekly.com/article_4527.shtml

An oft-quoted line in life is that beautiful gem from Risky Business, "Sometimes you have to say 'What the fuck?'" It's just a good one to have in your back pocket. It shows you are up for anything. And it's also a line that could sum up just about everything that is NoBunny.

Hailing from the land that claims to have "the best weather in the United States," Oakland's NoBunny is essentially a mindfuck multiplied by a clusterfuck. Imagine four dudes running around in long flowing hippie shirts with little to no clothes on underneath. As if that isn't freaky enough, the band also wears extremely creepy bunny masks befitting of their name. "NoBunny started as an Elvis Impersonator seven years ago in the desert outside of Tucson, AZ," vocalist/guitarist Justin NoBunny says. "The first show was in Chicago at the Fireside Bowl on Easter 2001."

The sound of the band is a unique one. Slightly more cleaned up than other garage popsters like Cheap Time and Jay Reatard, NoBunny plays melodic punk that harkens back to '50s R&B and The Ramones. "I like oldies and punk: Hasil Adkins, The Coasters, The Donnas," Justin says of the band's inspirations. "We sound like rusty sunshine or a milkshake shower. Like a southern ding-dong. Salty duck sauce."

It's obvious that the name of the game is "ridiculous" with NoBunny. They are funny guys that play little funny pop jams, but really, what's with the masks? "It's not a gimmick. It's an enabler. It brings out the beast and allows things to get weird," Justin states. "I feel more like I wear a stupid human mask most of the day and am happy to slip into some fur at night." Although it was just admitted the masks aren't just schtick, it certainly doesn't do anything but help grab your attention.

Now in the middle of their whirlwind nationwide tour with Chicago's Johnny and the Limelights, NoBunny will be coming into town for the fifth incarnation of the infamous Panic in Hamtramck festival. If the intentions of NoBunny, which are summed up as "a means to scream, a chance to dance, a world to get weird with girls," are parlayed at all into their live show, watch out!

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Z-GUN
"Love Visions" review
by "Wild" Mitch Cardwell
http://zgun.blogspot.com/

How many times are novelty records REALLY pulled off the shelf? I'm talking about intentionally wacky novelties and parodies, not the "everything is parody" ideology we sometimes subscribe to. In the current punk landscape, I know there are plenty of folks out there that define their existence almost exclusively in terms of Twizzlers, polka dots and finger-banging, and for them, novelty is their norm. But at my house, on my turntable, goofy is infrequent at very best. The last punko repeat-spin novelty that I can think of is the Donny Denim 45, a record that transcends novelty and moves into full-blown hit…and back again, gleefully (still spun almost fortnightly on my end, years later). Love Visions has that same DD quality: funny as hell with a concept to boot, yet executed in a manner far better than what the joke even calls for. The result is an LP of completely over-the-top poppy punk performed by a half-naked hobo in a fucking bunny mask, using whatever was at his disposal at the particular time. Founded essentially on fake punk, power-pop piss-take and bubblegum inappropriateness, the greatest strength of the LP is its mutant take on these genres and the inept attempts to replicate them. Instead we end up with something much more fucked…and funny. The fact that countless would-be power-poppers are currently trudging away at a number that won't hold a fucking candle to "I Am a Girlfriend", a song NoBunny probably thought up during a single bus station deuce session, brings me such enormous fucking joy, I can barely contain myself. The song is ridiculous any way you slice it, but it's fantastic song…and not alone in its greatness on this LP. Not only has the schtick yet to grate, I can barely pry the fucker off the player. Never in my life did I think I'd fall for a gutter-brained, cartoon swipe artiste, but I have. Hard.

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Nobunny "Love Visions"
by Billups Allen
http://billupsallen.com/?p=113

Occasionally, a reminder that rock and roll will never die waltzes by and sticks with you. Nobunny's Love Visions is easily one of the best records to come out in the past five years. Not only does Love Visions successfully fuse low-fi rock with 60's pop riffs, but it is packaged with what might be one of the only five cool album cover rip-offs that there ever was. I hate ironic album art, but NoBunny standing in front of a brick wall dressed as a Ramone is keeping in spirit of the sounds within. When the album moves, it moves in all the right places. The slow numbers are often the gems on this one. In the style of an even more demented Beach Boy, NoBunny makes sincerely melodic tunes on what sounds like minimal equipment. Love Visions sounds a bit stapled together in that exciting way that the first Clash record does. As though the whole thing could become unhinged at thirty five miles an hour. And that is where the charm is. Let us all make a pact to never fund NoBunny too much and we'll never hear his version of Cut the Crap. Or maybe, yea sure, why not. Love Visions is a must have.

RAZORCAKE
Stickerguy's 15th Anniversary Party!
http://www.razorcake.org/site/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=14515
By Josh Benke

We hit the bar for a beverage and skipped into the Showroom with high positive anticipation for everybody's favorite bucktoothed, barefoot, and often pantless entertainer, Nobunny. The event MC, Zac Damon (ex-Zoinks, Big In Japan, Screeching Weasel), stepped to the mic and did the honors of the introductions. I'm not sure how many people in the audience were wise to the hip bubble gum sounds and improbable appearance of this greasy rabbit-human hybrid, but it took no time for the crowd to warm to his elegant banter (I read online that he got so high before the set he could barely speak) and asses were shake-a-lakin' a few bars into the opening number, "Nobunny But Me," a cleverly retooled cover of the Human Beinz classic. There is a timelessness to Nobunny tunes, their aural aesthetic somewhere between Milk'n'Cookies and Chuck Berry. I cheered for the good-time, sugary, '70s keg party sounds of "Mess Me Up," and Attila and I screamed in abject glee when the guitar rang out the opening notes of the Okmoniks' cover, "Not That Good." The band, half of whom were incognito adorning brightly colored Lone Ranger masks, laid back, kicking the appropriate amount of ass, leaving Nobunny to his hopping about. And, goddamn, can that bunny hop!


PAPER THIN WALLS
http://www.paperthinwalls.com/singlefile/item?id=1759
"I Am A Girlfriend" Song Review
By Jessica Suarez

Along with the bunny mask he wears during performances, on "I Am A Girlfriend" Nobunny asks whether the performance—as a bunny, as a girlfriend—is a joke or a sign that something is deeply wrong. We might ask if Bubbledumb Records, who released this track, is hiding something as well. This one-man band from Oakland via Tucson, held together by throwaway drum machines and Salvation Army guitars, is defiantly lo-fi and nostalgic—witness the the two bass notes and the "papa-oom-mow-mow" breakdown. Trash-garage-bubblegum is can be unnervingly sweet, but Justin Nobunny's intentions are not. "You look sad, girl" he declares at the song's start, before he promises to "do bad things with you all night." If the title line means a promise of best/girlfriend-like sympathy, then the second verse breaks it: "I will wrap a chain around your neck," he deadpans, before requesting total silence. This could be jokey pop, or maybe something more sinister. It probably depends on whether he leaves the mask on.



RIOT IN THE CRATES
http://riotinthecrates.blogspot.com/2008/07/nobunny-loves-you.html
By Mellisa Geils

My mind has been semi-permanently stuck on the Nobunny show, recently attended on June 27 at the Empty Bottle. Nobunny is a very dear old friend of mine who long ago left Chicago for the old west. Well shit, all of the western heat must have done a number on him, as he ended up creating the ultimate persona of a shy, twisted, mad genius, freakish bunny rocknroller slash one-man-band of sorts! His live performance at the Bottle consisted of vocals over a CD backing track, cute underpants, and insanely frenetic dancing. He's doing a lot of touring this summer (even an upcoming tour with Chicago's ultimate party band Johnny & the Limelights!), so check him out if ya can. Also be sure to grab the Nobunny LP, "Love Visions," on Bubbledumb records. Almost worth it just for the great nod to the Ramones that is the cover...this album is chock-full of some of the greatest twisted, lo-fi bubblegum-pop-punk-rock'n'roll your ears will ever hear.

VICTIM OF TIME
www.victimoftime.com

The Okmoniks and Nobunny just headed out on tour this month. As their tour van, which is probably one of the funnest places on Earth, rolls down the tarred surface of the US interstate highway system, they will spread their collective gospel of acrid bubblegum pop to the hungry masses aching for a reason to crack open a beer. Both bands armed with new albums, and their shared enthusiasm for bring out the party, will certainly make for some of the most memorable shows of the summer.

The drummer for the Okmoniks, Justin Champlin is quickly becoming known for being attached to the most recognizable nutsack in underground music. His work with the Sneaky Pinks and Nobunny have certainly perpetuated the recent rise of grubby bubblegum we're all knee deep in recently. Nobunny is certainly on the right track updating the formula left by the founding fathers, GG Allin and of course the Ramones. He incorporates infectious and intoxicating pop songs with lyrical content that exude the sort of idiotic brilliance that turns everyone into the life of the party. He proves so on his debut album "Love Visions," out on Bubbledumb Records, as he stuffs pop sentiment in a brown paper bag and leaves it ablaze on the doorstep of modern underground music. - Brett Cross


SAILOR JERRY
http://blog.sailorjerry.com/post/philly_rock_n_roll_okmoniks_love_city_and_no_bunny/


Nobunny's stuff is both incredibly inventive and totally purged from the greats all at the same time. The record is lo-fi as hell yet the mixing was done creatively and, combined with the electronic drums, really proves to be something that stands high above the rest of the garage pack (of dorks).


RAVEN SINGS THE BLUES
http://ravensingstheblues.blogspot.com/2008/06/nobunny.html

Not that it ever went away and maybe until recently I haven't been looking hard enough but the excellent marriage of lo-fi pop and garage seems to be in fine form this year. One case for both these points is the latest from Oakland's (via Touscon, et.al) Nobunny, entitled Love Visions. NB's been tearing at the fringes of scenes for years but it seems that with the popularity of gutter fuzzed punk ala In The Red/Siltbreeze and the rest of the nth wave of garage has brought deserving attention down upon the unshackled bubblegum scratch of Mr. Bunny's catchy as crap new record. Propelled by thrift store drum-machine beats and duct taped couplets of string strangled gutter-pop that'll have you bobbing your and more likely moving your feet; Love Visions is not one to miss out on.

WEEKLY VOLCANO
"Leave it to a guy in a bunny mask"
http://www.weeklyvolcano.com/article/2212

Nobunny is a masked man, or rocker rather, with a penchant for the genre's formative years — think Chuck Berry guitar and soda fountain hand claps, spliced with the fuzzy edge of '70s Ramones sensibilities. Aided by a Flying V guitar and an unmistakable rabbit mask, Nobunny is a sight to be seen, and more importantly heard.

THE WALRUS
"The BoneYard"
http://walrusmusicblog.com/blog/on_repeat_all_day_nobunny_boneyard/

Nobunny's "Boneyard" is the stuff that your fuzzed-out new-wave, garage rock, etc etc dreams are made of. A naive surf riff, a drum-machine that sounds like it's about to break any second, and an insane, bunny masked dude from Oakland with a vocal drenched in tremolo effects. Irresistibl