Me Mom and Morgentaler
Encyclopedia
Me Mom and Morgentaler were a 1990s Canadian
third wave ska band from Montreal
, Quebec
, Canada
.
They were one of the most popular and influential alternative rock
bands on the live music scene in Canada of their era, although they only released one studio album, 1993's Shiva Space Machine. The band members included Gus Coriandoli
(also known as Gus van Go
), Kim Bingham
, John Jordan, Adam "Baltimore Bix" Berger, Kasia Hering, Sid Zanforlin, Matt Lipscombe, Noah Green and John "JB" Britton. Following Shiva Space Machine, the band broke up. They subsequently played a reunion show at the Montreal International Jazz Festival in 1999.
They gained renowned for their elaborate live performances - spectacles of vaudevillian-styled performance art
with decidedly leftist leanings.
The name "Morgentaler" refers to Canadian Dr. Henry Morgentaler
, an abortion activist. According to their saxophone player, John Jordan, the band chose their name before performing at a talent show at Marianopolis college in Montreal in order to offend the nuns who worked there.
Noah Green went on to join NYC-based hip-hop/nrrrd-core band, 2 Skinnee J's
, re-naming himself J Guevara.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
third wave ska band from Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
They were one of the most popular and influential alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
bands on the live music scene in Canada of their era, although they only released one studio album, 1993's Shiva Space Machine. The band members included Gus Coriandoli
Gus Van Go
Gus Van Go is the stage name of Gustavo Coriandoli , a Canadian musician and record-producer best known for his work with the Montreal band The Stills. He has also produced and mixed material for The Trews, Hollerado, Priestess, Low Level Flight, The Junction, Neverending White Lights, and many more...
(also known as Gus van Go
Gus Van Go
Gus Van Go is the stage name of Gustavo Coriandoli , a Canadian musician and record-producer best known for his work with the Montreal band The Stills. He has also produced and mixed material for The Trews, Hollerado, Priestess, Low Level Flight, The Junction, Neverending White Lights, and many more...
), Kim Bingham
Kim Bingham
Kim Bingham is a Canadian singer-songwriter.She began her career in music as a member of the Montreal, Quebec third wave ska band Me Mom and Morgentaler...
, John Jordan, Adam "Baltimore Bix" Berger, Kasia Hering, Sid Zanforlin, Matt Lipscombe, Noah Green and John "JB" Britton. Following Shiva Space Machine, the band broke up. They subsequently played a reunion show at the Montreal International Jazz Festival in 1999.
They gained renowned for their elaborate live performances - spectacles of vaudevillian-styled performance art
Performance art
In art, performance art is a performance presented to an audience, traditionally interdisciplinary. Performance may be either scripted or unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous or otherwise carefully planned with or without audience participation. The performance can be live or...
with decidedly leftist leanings.
The name "Morgentaler" refers to Canadian Dr. Henry Morgentaler
Henry Morgentaler
Henry Morgentaler, CM is a Canadian physician and prominent pro-choice advocate who has fought numerous legal battles for that cause.-Early life:...
, an abortion activist. According to their saxophone player, John Jordan, the band chose their name before performing at a talent show at Marianopolis college in Montreal in order to offend the nuns who worked there.
Noah Green went on to join NYC-based hip-hop/nrrrd-core band, 2 Skinnee J's
2 Skinnee J's
2 Skinnee J's is the name of a musical band characterized as nerdcore hip hop. The band was founded in 1991 by Special J , Rabbi J-Slim , Joey Viturbo , Sammy B , DJ Casper , and Andy Action . With numerous line-up changes, the band was active through the 1990s until 2003, when they officially...
, re-naming himself J Guevara.
2007 reunion
The band reunited in late 2007 for a series of four Montreal shows in support of the re-release of their Shiva Space Machine album. The new CD offers remixed versions of all of the band's classics along with a different song order. Unreleased live tracks complete the package.Discography
- Clown Heaven and HellClown Heaven and HellClown Heaven and Hell was the debut EP by Me Mom & Morgentaler, released in 1991.-Track listing:# "Your Friend"# "Heloise"# "Laura"# "Auparavant"# "Spittle on My Chin"...
(1991, EPExtended playAn EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
) - Shiva Space MachineShiva Space MachineShiva Space Machine was an album by Me Mom & Morgentaler, released in 1993 on Chooch Records. It was the band's sole full-length studio album.-Track listing:# "Are You Really Happy? "# "Jacqueline"# "Oh Well"# "Everybody's Got AIDS"...
(1993) - We Are Revolting: Live & Obscure 1990-1994We Are Revolting: Live & Obscure 1990-1994We Are Revolting: Live & Obscure 1990-1994 was a compilation album by Me Mom & Morgentaler, released in 1994 on Chooch Records. It was the band's final release, and compiled several live and rare tracks from the band's catalogue...
(1994, liveLive albumA live album is a recording consisting of material recorded during stage performances using remote recording techniques, commonly contrasted with a studio album...
) - Shiva Space Machine: Gone FissionShiva Space Machine: Gone FissionShiva Space Machine: Gone Fission is an album by Me Mom & Morgentaler, released in 2007 by Éditions Musiart. It features remixed and remastered versions of the band's classic songs from their 1993 Shiva Space Machine album, along with some never-before-released live tracks.The song order is...
(2007)