The Brown Cuts Neighbors (BCN) was formed by Jason and Colleen Martin (AKA Lady Starlight) in Schenectady, New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

 in 1980, and included an army of stuffed animals, imaginary people, and other entities. Their first tape, "Should Could Would" was recorded in September 1980. Early performances included broadcasting toy guitars / vocals / percussion into the street, via the stereo. Throughout the '80's BCN made about 10 tapes with hand drawn covers. Variety shows were produced to accompany some of these tapes, using dad's Sony Beta Porta-Pak video camera and light from slide projectors.

BCN later became an experimental rock

Experimental rock

Experimental rock or avant-garde rock is a type of music based on rock which experiments with the basic elements of the genre, or which pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique....

 band whose music combined Captain Beefheart

Captain Beefheart

Don Van Vliet January 15, 1941 December 17, 2010) was an American musician, singer-songwriter and artist best known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. His musical work was conducted with a rotating ensemble of musicians called The Magic Band, active between 1965 and 1982, with whom he recorded 12...

-esque stylings with garage rock

Garage rock

Garage rock is a raw form of rock and roll that was first popular in the United States and Canada from about 1963 to 1967. During the 1960s, it was not recognized as a separate music genre and had no specific name...

 and tape manipulations. Formed in 1980, the primary human members were Jason Martin, James Kopta, and Marc Arsenault, with several others participating. They also did street theatre

Street theatre

Street theatre is a form of theatrical performance and presentation in outdoor public spaces without a specific paying audience. These spaces can be anywhere, including shopping centres, car parks, recreational reserves and street corners. They are especially seen in outdoor spaces where there are...

 and created more than 50 films, many of which were shown on public access

Public Access

Public Access is a 1993 American drama film directed by Bryan Singer in his feature film debut. Singer also wrote the screenplay with Christopher McQuarrie and Michael Feit Dougan. The film was shot in 18 days for US$250,000. It was screened at the 1993 Sundance Film Festival, where it was...

 but a few were aired on national television. They released many audio tapes and two 7" vinyl records. Dara, the drummer on the second 7", was also a member of His Name Is Alive

His Name Is Alive

His Name Is Alive is an experimental rock band/project from Livonia, Michigan. After several self-released cassettes, they debuted on 4AD Records in 1990, starting a long run at the label...

 and had solo material released on Ecstatic Peace

Ecstatic Peace

Ecstatic Peace! is a record label based in Easthampton, Massachusetts, founded in 1981 by Sonic Youth member Thurston Moore. The premiere release was a split cassette featuring spoken word performances from Michael Gira of Swans and Lydia Lunch...

. The Brown Cuts Neighbors also covered the song "I'm a Mensch" on "The Necessary Effect - Screamers Songs Interpreted" double CD tribute to The Screamers

The Screamers

The Screamers were a punk rock group active in the Los Angeles, California area in the late 1970s. The Screamers were pioneers of a genre now known as "synthpunk," and can also be classified as art punk....

. James Kopta died on August 9, 2002 due to an unknown accident.

External links

• [ Brown Cuts Neighbors on All Music Guide]
• Brown Cuts Neighbors bio
• Brown Cuts Neighbors discography
• Brown Cuts Neighbors film guide