Active until 1986 | Active from 1983 | |
The numbskulls take it
The Numbskulls (aka HyperzombieNumbSkulls) were an influential acid house band from Boulder, Colorado in the early to mid-1980s. Influenced by the Madchester style of music of The Stone Roses and Happy Mondays, as well as punk/new wave bands New Order and The Cure, the Numbskulls catalogue included whimsical lyrics juxtaposed against repetitive keyboards, trance-like drumming, melodic vocals and quirky punk guitar hooks. They referred to their musical style as "danceable dirge". The band was a four piece with band leader, Mike Harris Bacidore on keyboards, bass, and vocals, Mateo Juarez (Matthew Harris Sullivan) on lead guitar and vocals, Mike Tomich on guitars and vocals, and Scuz Roland (Don Adydan) on drums. The Numbskulls were founded by Bacidore and Sullivan in Longmont, Colorado in 1983. The band often dressed up in leisure suits and rubber masks, reggae attire, or as hippies and played under a variety of inane monikers, most notably "Happy World Beat" — thus, only their most rabid fans were aware of their true identity. They enjoyed playing techno punk jams, an antithetical punk style whereby their songs would often last fifteen minutes or more and were a spontaneous combination of funk, punk, reggae, jazz, techno, and new wave. The Madchester style to which their music is often associated was not yet popular in the United States, and as fervent followers, the Numbskulls ushered the era of ecstasy laden rave culture of the late eighties in the Boulder and Denver area of Colorado. The band released several underground albums including HyperzombieNumbSkuLLs (1983), Rubberface (1984), Big Bowel Movement (1985), Get in the Groove (1985), and Red Light (1986).
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In 1985, problems with substance abuse began affecting the band, with members fighting at rehearsals and at live performances. It was not uncommon for vocalist Mike Tomich to storm out in the middle of performances after taunting, ridicule and fisticuffs between him and guitarist Mateo Juarez (Sullivan). Fans would bet MDMA tablets as to which song Tomich and Sullivan would begin their quarreling squabbles. After disagreeing about the direction the band was heading, Mateo Juarez (Sullivan) quit the band in 1986. Soon after, the band broke, and each member engaged in new projects. Mike Bacidore and Scuz Roland (Don Adydan) went on to form jazz jam bands, the Red Cactus Trio, the Jazz Combo Platter and currently both play in the Chicago-based Gam Squad. Mike Tomich continues to perform primarily as a folk rock artist in the Boulder area. Due to health problems, Sullivan (Mateo Juarez) has dropped from the music scene.
Given their propensity for unstructured improvised jamming, their catalogue often turns up as fan trade tapes at various jam band concerts including Grateful Dead, Widespread Panic, The String Cheese Incident, and Phish concerts. This represents their largest claim to fame as the band chose to give away their albums at no cost. Their influence can be heard in many Madchester influenced techno house bands and rock jam bands of the nineties up to today. The band was rumored to reform 2002, with Sullivan, Bacidore and Tomich in 2002; however, Tomich and Sullivan failed to reconcile their past differences.