M.I.R.V.
Encyclopedia
M.I.R.V. is a band based in the San Francisco, California
, Bay Area. Founded in 1994, it initially consisted of the band's namesake guitarist and singer Marc "Mirv" Haggard, bassist Craig McFarland, drummer Jeff Gomes, and guitarist Bryan Kehoe, who also contributed vocals and keyboards. Kehoe left the band in 2001 to form The Kehoe Nation and was replaced by Spent Poets singer Adam Gates, aka The Filthy Ape.
Their musical style is diverse, and includes elements of hard rock
, heavy metal
, funk
, country
, opera
, experimental
, electronica
, and polka
.
Kehoe era M.I.R.V shows often featured songs punctuated by interludes of lunacy
, usually featuring a verbal interchange between Haggard and Kehoe. Often Haggard would announce a contest for the women in the audience, after which the winner would be cajoled into grabbing Kehoe's groin
, causing him to sing in a high pitched operatic voice. Kehoe would often sing the Neapolitan standard "'O Sole Mio" following the antics. M.I.R.V. shows would regularly feature Haggard playing an electric saw during portions of the concerts.
M.I.R.V.'s first album "Cosmodrome" was written and recorded mostly by Haggard and featured a character named Grandpa, later revealed to be Primus
' Les Claypool
, who also put the record out on his own Prawn Song label. The album features songs interspersed with skits and is generally regarded as a concept album. The next two records were released on Poison Eye, M.I.R.V.'s own label, and feature primarily music. It was these later two albums that saw the band form into a four piece touring outfit, as opposed to a studio project.
The band has toured worldwide alongside acts like Jerry Cantrell
, Fishbone
, Primus
, and has played with groups like Cheap Trick
, Run DMC, Papa Roach
and Nuclear Rabbit
.
http://cdbaby.com/cd/mirv2
The band's song "Monkey Boy" was featured in a Sega game console tv ad.
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, Bay Area. Founded in 1994, it initially consisted of the band's namesake guitarist and singer Marc "Mirv" Haggard, bassist Craig McFarland, drummer Jeff Gomes, and guitarist Bryan Kehoe, who also contributed vocals and keyboards. Kehoe left the band in 2001 to form The Kehoe Nation and was replaced by Spent Poets singer Adam Gates, aka The Filthy Ape.
Their musical style is diverse, and includes elements of hard rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...
, heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
, funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
, country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
, opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
, experimental
Experimental music
Experimental music refers, in the English-language literature, to a compositional tradition which arose in the mid-20th century, applied particularly in North America to music composed in such a way that its outcome is unforeseeable. Its most famous and influential exponent was John Cage...
, electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
, and polka
Polka
The polka is a Central European dance and also a genre of dance music familiar throughout Europe and the Americas. It originated in the middle of the 19th century in Bohemia...
.
Kehoe era M.I.R.V shows often featured songs punctuated by interludes of lunacy
Lunacy
Lunacy may refer to:* Lunacy, the condition suffered by a lunatic, now used only informally* Lunacy , a 2005 Jan Švankmajer's film* Lunacy , a video game for Sega Saturn* Luna Sea, a Japanese rock band originally named Lunacy...
, usually featuring a verbal interchange between Haggard and Kehoe. Often Haggard would announce a contest for the women in the audience, after which the winner would be cajoled into grabbing Kehoe's groin
Groin
In human anatomy, the groin areas are the two creases at the junction of the torso with the legs, on either side of the pubic area. This is also known as the medial compartment of the thigh. A pulled groin muscle usually refers to a painful injury sustained by straining the hip adductor muscles...
, causing him to sing in a high pitched operatic voice. Kehoe would often sing the Neapolitan standard "'O Sole Mio" following the antics. M.I.R.V. shows would regularly feature Haggard playing an electric saw during portions of the concerts.
M.I.R.V.'s first album "Cosmodrome" was written and recorded mostly by Haggard and featured a character named Grandpa, later revealed to be Primus
Primus (band)
Primus is an American rock band based in San Francisco, California, currently composed of bassist/vocalist Les Claypool, guitarist Larry "Ler" LaLonde and drummer Jay Lane. Primus originally formed in 1984 with Claypool and guitarist Todd Huth, later joined by Lane, though the latter two departed...
' Les Claypool
Les Claypool
Leslie Edward "Les" Claypool is an American musician and writer, best known as the lead vocalist and bassist in the band Primus. Claypool's playing style on the electric bass mixes tapping, flamenco-like strumming, whammy bar bends and slapping.Claypool has also self produced and engineered his...
, who also put the record out on his own Prawn Song label. The album features songs interspersed with skits and is generally regarded as a concept album. The next two records were released on Poison Eye, M.I.R.V.'s own label, and feature primarily music. It was these later two albums that saw the band form into a four piece touring outfit, as opposed to a studio project.
The band has toured worldwide alongside acts like Jerry Cantrell
Jerry Cantrell
Jerry Fulton Cantrell Jr. is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter best known for his work with the grunge/metal band Alice in Chains, as lead guitarist, backing and co-lead vocalist, and co-lyricist. He performs lead vocals on his solo projects, and is part of Alice in Chains' harmonizing...
, Fishbone
Fishbone
Fishbone is a U.S. alternative rock band formed in 1979 in Los Angeles, California, which plays a fusion of ska, punk rock, funk, hard rock and soul. Critics have noted of the band: "Fishbone was one of the most distinctive and eclectic alternative rock bands of the late '80s...
, Primus
Primus (band)
Primus is an American rock band based in San Francisco, California, currently composed of bassist/vocalist Les Claypool, guitarist Larry "Ler" LaLonde and drummer Jay Lane. Primus originally formed in 1984 with Claypool and guitarist Todd Huth, later joined by Lane, though the latter two departed...
, and has played with groups like Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick is an American rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973. The band consists of members Robin Zander , Rick Nielsen , Tom Petersson , and Bun E...
, Run DMC, Papa Roach
Papa Roach
Papa Roach is an American rock band from Vacaville, California. Their first major-label release was the triple-platinum album Infest . The group's success continued with their gold album Lovehatetragedy , their platinum album Getting Away with Murder , The Paramour Sessions , and Metamorphosis...
and Nuclear Rabbit
Nuclear Rabbit
Nuclear Rabbit is a California band, started in Novato. The band's music has been called metal, more specifically "avant-garde" metal, but incorporates a variety of other styles, making classification difficult. Known for its unusual sound and lyrics, as well as bassist Jean Baudin's 11-string bass...
.
http://cdbaby.com/cd/mirv2
The band's song "Monkey Boy" was featured in a Sega game console tv ad.
Discography
- Cosmodrome (1993)
- Feeding Time on Monkey Island (1997)
- Dancing Naked in a Minefield (1999)
- Million Pound Bomb (in production)