GENTLEMEN OF HORROR/DOGS OF WAR

DISCOGRAPHY Releases SPERLING DEATH 7" (1981) Reissues SMASH THE STATE vol. 3 LP (No Exit, 1998 - includes their 7") Compilations CHARRED REMAINS tape (Version Sound, 1981) "Crime Watch/Block Parents" " INFO -

Discography compiled by James Cornell, Band History from the Smash the State vol. 3 LP written by Frank Manley
It's 1980 in small town British Columbia. Imagine Kelowna, a postcard-pretty middle class town nestled in the interior of the province - a seven hour drive from Vancouver. Now imagine out of this unlikely locale one of Canada's most vibrant punk scenes. A gang of 10 or 15 kids formed around eight bands, did mail order, put on shows, including Gentlemen Of Horror's Tom Hooper doing a fanzine called Indecent Exposure, and exchanging tapes and letters with labels and bands across North America. The Hooper brothers were at the center of this energized bunch of teenagers, feeding on the Clash, X-Ray Spex and Stiff Little Fingers records, plus disks by fellow B.C. punkers D.O.A. and the Subhumans.

Still, this wasn't even the beginning of the Kelowna punk scene. Before Gentlemen Of Horror the Hooper brothers were in a band called Kill Pigs, which had a phenomenal 50 songs. Tom was 12, Chris was 14 and the singer of this outfit was some crazed 25 year-old guy from Scotland who believed he was the reincarnation of Jim Morrison. However, after playing one house party, Kill Pigs evaporated, not even leaving any tapes for posterity.

The Hooper brothers were through with self-deluding old-timers and drafted a friend, Donny Walchuk to play bass in October 1980. They started rehearsing in their basement. "Mom kindly wore earmuffs while we raged downstairs. Our parents didn't get it, but they thought it was cool that we were into music." They named themselves after a horror film, and each of them took a nom de punk: Casey Casem (the idiotic American host of a pop-music television show), Nigel Watts (a character in a Monty Python skit), and the Friendly Giant (a ludicrous stalwart of 1960's and 70's Canadian children's television). Soon they were making cassettes and sending them out from their thriving punk outpost in Kelowna.

Too young to play the bars the band rented a community centre called Kadac Hall. Around 10-20 people would come to the shows plus a few drunks eager to beat up the local punks.

One incredible gig took place in the Kelowna's main park in the summer of 1981. Tom signed the contract to rent the bandshell (he was only 14) by posing as the front for an ordinary rock band. Then they quickly plastered the town with posters announcing a punk rock concert. The city fathers were outraged. "They called Tom up and threatened to pull the plug on the show. 'We've got a contract', Tom countered. 'There's nothing you can do about it.'"

The big day arrived and there was a traffic jam to get to the park. "Everyone was there, including the mayor. They couldn't wait to find out who these freaks, these punk rockers were. When we took the stage it was great. People were throwing bottles at us." After then show they packed up the gear and the excitement continued. A crowd started hurling and charting "kill the punk rockers." They'd obviously stirred up the hypocritical citizens of Kelowna until they were ready to commit violence to keep the peace. That was the first and last time Gentlemen Of Horror tried to bring punk rock to the general public in Kelowna.

Another memorable gig happened in Cranbrook (the band called it Cranfart), another B.C. hicktown. "We played a roller skating rink there. The skaters would make faces at us every time they went by." After the gig the band was accosted by a bunch of pissed off kids weilding hockey sticks, and saying "We're going to kill you." Just then a cop showed up. "The cop advised us to get out of town. We didn't argue. We jumped in the van and he escorted us to the edge of Cranbrook and flashed his lights when it was safe to head back to Kelowna." This was typical of early Gentlemen Of Horror shows. "Generally we played for hostile crowds; we'd get them riled up and pissed off at us."

By December 1980 it was time to capture the raging Gentlemen Of Horror sound on vinyl, so they cracked open the Yellow Pages and found a guy with a four-track tape deck. They hauled their equipment to Donny's basement where the recording took around an hour. Total cost: $50.

Oddly, the record was pressed by a Christmas press (IRS) during the Christmas holidays of 1980. "They were the only press doing business over the holidays, which is funny, so is the fact that the record contains an anti-relgion rant: 'God Knows You By Name.'"

They pressed 200 copies (the smallest number that IRS Records would make). The Hoopers' borrowed $500 from their parents. "We saved money by not making up labels, so we had our friends hand-letter and design them." This included takeoffs from majors such as Virgin and Capitol Records.

The first 100 copies came with the Skeletons sleeve in January 1981. When the guys tired of that design they put together the Sterling Death sleeve, scooping the art work from a comic book. Distribution was by the traditional DIY methods, plus they sent a few copies into the punk world. Not surprisingly it was favorably reviewed in Ripper, a big American punk rag.

A friend of the band can be thanked for making the Gentlemen Of Horror single the rarest Canadian punk record. He was heading to Vancouver so they gave him 100 copies to consign in shops there. He put 50 copies in various stores on his tour around the city, but then jumped off a bus leaving the other box of 50 to travel on into some obscure future. (Has anyone checked the Vancouver Transit lost and found!?)

The band finally made it down to Vancouver several times to play, including backing up the Subhumans at the Smiling Buddha in 1981. However, the gig almost didn't happen when Igor the bouncer caught Tom (aged 15 or 16) drinking rye and 7UPs and tossed him out of the club. He managed to sneak back in just before show time.

With the influence of bands such as the Subhumans, Black Flag and the Circle Jerks, and the trend in the punk scene to speed up the aural attack, Gentlemen Of Horror started verging towards a hardcore band. Around this time they put out a four-band tape called "Canadian Cassette" that featured such tunes as "Urban Killboy" and "Someone's Gonna Die". Other bands on the tape wee a thrash outfit with the charming name of Hitler Youth and an electronic outfit called "Blubber".

Late in 1981 or early 1982 they slowed down a bit and renamed themselves the Dogs Of War. By this time the American hardcore scene was well under way. The Dogs Of War have two tracks- "Crime Watch" and "Block Parents"- on the Charred Remains cassette, brought out by Noise fanzine and Version Sound, the label that also released the first records by Articles Of Faith, Die Kreuzen and Toxic Reasons. Also appearing on Charred Remains: Husker Du, Void, and fellow Canadians Personality Crisis.

By mid-1982 the Dogs of War were finished and the Hooper brothers "retired". By 1983, however, they were back with a vengeance as Gentlemen Of Horror. Their pinnacle was playing a show in Victoria B.C. that also featured Victoria legends the Dayglo Abortions, Red Tide and the Neos. The Hooper brothers later formed the Grapes Of Wrath and Ginger.

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