Antiseen

Infobox musical artist
Name = ANTiSEEN


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Origin = United States of America
Genre = Punk rock, Cow punk, Scum punk
Years_active = 1983–present
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URL = [http://www.antiseen.com www.antiseen.com]
Current_members = Jeff Clayton
Joe Young
Doug Canipe
Greg Clayton
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ANTiSEEN, a self-described "Destructo Rock" band from North Carolina, have been playing and touring since 1983, and have collaborated with GG Allin & Hank Williams III.The band has recently released a [http://antiseen.com/merch.html#cds tribute album] entitled "Everybody Loves ANTiSEEN." This album features 58 various artists covering songs from ANTiSEEN's 25 year long history.

Biography

The band's members have often changed from record to record, with the only constant membersbeing Joseph ("Joe") Young and Jeffrey (Jeff')Clayton.

The band has a strong love for pro wrestling. They have displayed this by making musical tributes to various wrestlers including Cactus Jack, Sabu, Terry Funk, and Abdullah The Butcher. Non-specific songs include "(I'm a) Babyface Killer" (sung from the viewpoint of a heel) and "From Parts Unknown" (a tribute to wrestlers who wear masks).

The band is no stranger to cover songs, and has covered songs by artists such as Hank Williams Sr., Skrewdriver, Ernest Tubb, Hellstomper, GG Allin, Anti-Nowhere League,Black Flag, Broken Talent, Alice Cooper, Dave Dudley, Bob Dylan, Roky Erickson, George Jones, The Kinks, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Blowfly,Curtis Mayfield, Roy Orbison, Ramones, Rancid Vat, Rose Tattoo, Steve Sadler, Jumping Gene Simmons, Jack Starr, Sun Ra, Screaming Lord Sutch, The Stooges, Talking Heads, The Trashmen, and The Troggs.

This does not mean that the band doesn't write their own material. Besides the above mentioned wrestling songs they also feature songs about militant issues ("Stormtrooper", "Pledge Allegiance to the Bomb", "Warhero"), a love for The South ("Trapped in Dixie"), a lack of shame ("Glad I Am The Way I Am", "Fuck All Y'All", "No Apologies"), songs that defy political correctness ("Animals, Eat 'Em", "F.T.K.", "Spare Change", "Watch The Bastard Fry", "Melting Pot", "O.D. For Me", "Hippy Punk"), and day to day subjects ("I Don't Ask You For Nothing", "Backlash", "Leeches & Losers", "Run My World", "Alive & Unwell", "People Like You", "Misery"). According to their coffee table book ("Destructo Maximus") Jeff Clayton writes most of the lyrics although on their most recent studio release Badwill Ambassadors, Sir Barry Hannibal and Doug Canipe handled most of the songwriting duties.

The band is considered by a few to be nothing more than a GG Allin backing band because GG did use them as a backing band on his "Murder Junkies" album. The band has stated that this album was a mixed blessing, stating that although they regret the "backing band" stigma that it gave them, they loved the way the album turned out.

Some times it seems like thats all people wanna talk about. I don't regret those days at all, but we have done more than just that. We miss GG a lot though.-Jeff Clayton during an [http://hem.bredband.net/sanna96/antiseeneng.htm October 2001 interview] when asked about playing with GG.

The band's stage show often features wrestling style action, such as Jeff cutting his head open so that he wears a crimson mask, Jeff jumping through (sometimes flaming) tables, and barbed wire shows where the stage is covered in a wall of barbed wire. Even the crowd gets in it, a few times in Charlotte N.C. Jeff pulled young audience members up on stage to sing a Ramones cover "Beat On The Brat". The Cosmic Commander often acts as the bands "manager" coming on stage before the show begins to taunt the crowd/prepare them for that is about to happen. His dressing style includes brightly colored turbans, wrap around glasses, and sequined jackets, not unlike that of The Grand Wizard. Jeff Clayton also often plays the washboard during shows, destroying it at the end of a song. The methods of destroying it go from simple smashing it against the floor, putting explosives in it and setting it on fire, and elbow dropping through glass washboards.

The band has toured extensively throughout the US and Europe over the years, where they are said to have a strong following.

The band is credited with the birth of the now dead "Confederacy of Scum." The COS was a group of bands who got together to have a yearly supershow. Some bands that were included in these shows are Rancid Vat, Limecell, Hellstomper, Cocknoose, Frankenstein Drag Queens From Planet 13, Hammerlock, Before I Hang, and The Dead Kings.

Discography

*"Honour Among Thieves" (1988)
*"Raw Shit" (1989)
*"Noise For The Sake Of Noise" (1989)
*"Destructo Blitzkrieg" (1990)
*"GG Allin & ANTiSEEN: Murder Junkies" (1991)
*"Southern Hostility" (1991) (Man's Ruin Records)
*"Eat More Possum" (1993) (Man's Ruin Records)
*"Here To Ruin Your Groove" (1996)
*"The Boys From Brutalsville" (2001)
*"Screamin' Bloody Live" (2002)
*"Badwill Ambassadors" (2004)
* "Antiseen/Electric Frankenstein" split 7" split single (January 11, 2005, flagicon|USA TKO Records 135)
*"Everybody Loves ANTiSEEN" (2006)

In addition to this, the band has released at least 35 different 7 inch vinyl records.

Destructo Maximus

ANTiSEEN has put out a [http://www.steelcagerecords.com/catalog/scb003.html "coffee table" book] about the band's history.

Most of the book is taken up by interviews and reviews of the band's music and live shows from various press. Each of the band's current and past members is interviewed for the purpose of the book. The book also features "testimonies" of ANTiSEEN from friends and fans of the band. The also book features 307 rare pictures (all captioned by Jeff Clayton). The pictures include (but are not limited to) from live concert photos, promo shoots, the band's members posing with other bands' members, the band with their favorite wrestlers, and pictures of fans with ANTiSEEN tattoos. A large section of the press clippings section is dedicated solely to Joe Young's Libertarian office run. A gallery of some of the posters from gigs the band has played over the years is also included. A complete list of the band's 7 inches, LPs, CDs, tapes, and 8 tracks (up until around early 2006) is included, along with lyrics to the band's songs. It should be noted that none of the band's releases have included lyrics inside of them, save for Hippy Punk. Some of the lyrics also include a preface written by Jeff Clayton. The book ends with a list of all of the songs that ANTiSEEN has covered, along with all of the bands that have covered ANTiSEEN. However, the list of the bands that have covered ANTiSEEN has greatly increased since the printing of this book, as evident by "Everybody Loves ANTiSEEN".

Current line-up

*Jeff Clayton - Vocals
*Joe Young - Guitar

Past members

*Doug Canipe - Bass
*Greg Clayton - Drums
*Dale Duncan - Bass
*Marlon Cherry - Bass
*Doug Throgmorton - Drums
*Thomas O'Keefe - Bass
*GG Allin - [http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00023P4NI Vocals for one album]
*Greg Clayton - Drums
*Tripp McNeill - Bass
*Sir Barry Hannibal - Drums
*Byron "Spitbubble" McDonald - Drums
*Leigh Howard - Bass
*Steve Sadler - Drums
*Brad Keeter - Drums
*Bill Cates - Bass
*Mitch Cooper - Drums
*Joe Williams - Bass/Keyboards
*Dana "Ace" Davis - Lead Guitar

External links

* [http://www.antiseen.com Official website]

* [http://www.myspace.com/antiseen Myspace page]

* [http://www.tkorecords.com/bands/antiseen.html TKO Records]