Tsunami (Virginia band)

Tsunami is an American indie rock band from Arlington, Virginia, formed by housemates Jenny Toomey and Kristin Thomson in late 1990 to play at New Year's party.^[1] They enlisted former housemate John Pamer to play drums and Andrew Webster from Bricks and Jenny's previous band Geek to complete the line up.^[2]

Tsunami
Origin	Arlington, Virginia
Genres	Alternative rock, indie rock
Years active	1990-1998, 2001-2003, 2023-present
Labels	Simple Machines, Numero
Members	Jenny Toomey Kristin Thomson
Past members	Luther Gray Amy Domingues Bob Massey Andrew Webster John Pamer

Early days

Following their inception, Tsunami split their time between touring, recording various 7-inch singles and devoting time to Toomey and Thomson's Simple Machines record label- from which Tsunami would release the majority of their own music.^[3] The band recorded their debut album, Deep End during the summer of 1992. However, due to manufacturing and mixing problems this was not released until early 1993.^[2] It was then that the band were invited to play the side stage at Lollapalooza, going on to play six shows with Sebadoh, Free Kitten and Thurston Moore.^[2] After the release of the band's second album The Heart's Tremolo,^[2] Tsunami completed two tours of the US, a tour of England, and an appearance at the Phoenix Festival on the Melody Maker Stage.

In 1995, Tsunami continued to tour the States and also managed to release their third album World Tour & Other Destinations.^[2] The band subsequently had an official one year hiatus whilst John attended UMASS Amherst to complete his undergraduate degree.

Fresh Faces

Following his graduation in 1996, Pamer decided to stay in Amherst in order to save up so he could move to New York City. With this in mind, Tsunami enlisted the services of another Arlington drummer, Luther Gray. Having practiced with Gray for six months, the band recorded their fourth album at the Kingsize Soundlabs in Chicago. The result, A Brilliant Mistake, was released in August 1997 on Simple Machines.^[2] The band embarked on another US tour to promote the album, taking on new members, Amy Domingues (bass) and Bob Massey (guitar and keyboards).

Simple Machines

In 1998, Toomey and Thomson took the decision to call time on the Simple Machines record label and the band.^[2] The event was marked by the 'Simple Machines Finale party' at which the band performed. Whilst the end of the record label also marked the end of musical releases from Tsunami, they subsequently fulfilled a short East Coast tour in the same year. Toomey and Thomson joined up for two sets between 2001 and 2003 with a mixture of former members and guest musicians to perform at the Ladyfest festivals in Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia

Simple Machines had their own clothing line called Cog Wear, which sported their logo on different clothing items. Simple Machines ceased operations in 1997.^[4]

After Simple Machines

After Simple Machines was wound up in 1998, Toomey went on to become the executive director of the Future of Music Coalition,^[5] whose aim is "to ensure that musicians have a voice in the issues that affect their livelihood" through advocacy intended to establish a "balanced approach to music in the digital age — one that reflects the interests of all stakeholders, and not just the powerful few".^[6] She was to be joined by Thompson who became Education Director for the organization after completing a Masters in Urban Affairs and Public Policy from the University of Delaware.^[7]

Tsunami reformed in 2023 after reissues of their music courtesy of The Numero Group. 2024 saw the announcement of Loud As Is, a compilation of the band's four albums and various other releases from their discography.

Members

Jenny Toomey

Main article: Jenny Toomey

Kristin Thomson

Kristin Thomson left a position at the National Organization of Women in 1990 to co-lead the Simple Machines record label. She ran the label with partner Jenny Toomey until its closure in 1997. Simple Machines was the first self-made label in D.C. to be run by women. The label was initially based out of the Positive Force House in Arlington, but eventually relocated to another home in Arlington.^[8]

Thomson and Toomey published four editions of the Simple Machine's Mechanics Guide, a booklet that attempted to demystify the process of giving music a physical form, and helped aspiring artists learn how to release their records as cassettes, CDs, or any other physical form that was prominent at the time.^[9] The booklet sold over 2000 copies, which correlated with the significant uptick in the quantity of new, small record labels in the area.

Throughout her time working with Simple Machines, Thomson helped to organize female-oriented events and workshops with the other female characters and figures in the D.C. Punk scene.^[10] These events spread awareness about several different issues, and made a significant impact on the lives of thousands of women as well as the D.C. Punk scene as a whole.^[11]

In the mid 2000s, Thomson was the nonprofit education, project, and research director for the Future of Music Coalition.^[12][13][14] In 2017, she became a director at the nonprofit Media Democracy Fund. She lives Philadelphia with her husband, Bryan Dilworth.^[15]

Discography

Singles

• "Headringer" (Simple Machines, 1991)
• "Genius of Crack" (Homestead Records, 1991)
• "Teriyaki Asthma vol.7" (C/Z Records, 1992)
• "Beautiful Arlington" (IV (Australia), 1992)
• "Diner" (Simple Machines, 1993)
• "Matchbook" (Simple Machines, 1993)
• "Be Like That" (Simple Machines, 1994)
• "Poodle/Old City" (Simple Machines, 1997)

Albums

• Deep End (Simple Machines, 1993)
• The Heart's Tremolo (Simple Machines, 1994)
• World Tour & Other Destinations (Simple Machines, 1995)
• A Brilliant Mistake (Simple Machines, 1997)
• Loud Is As (Numero, 2024)

Compilation appearances

• Tsunami/Velocity Girl split 7-inch (Sub Pop, 1992)
• Season's Greetings split 7-inch w/ Velocity Girl (Simple Machines, 1992)
• Inclined Plane comp 7-inch (Simple Machines, 1993)
• Teen Beat 100 comp 7-inch (TeenBeat Records, 1993)
• August Working Holiday split 7-inch w/Small Factory (Simple Machines, 1993)
• Echoes from the Nation's Capital comp CD/CS (TWUnderground, 1993)
• The Machines: Simple Machines 7-inchs (1990-1993) comp. (Simple Machines - SMR 19, 1994)^[16]
• Monsters of Rock II CDw/Eggs & Rodan (Simple Machines, 1994)
• Working Holiday! Compilation Album (Simple Machines, 1994)
• "Our Band Could Be Your Life" Minuteman tribute comp LP/CD (Little Brother, 1995)
• Tsunami/Superchunk split 7-inch (Honeybear, 1995)
• Compulsiv comp No. 3 7-inch (Compulsiv Records, 1996)

References

1. "Simple Machines Records | Tsunami". Simplemachines.net.
2. Colin Larkin, ed. (2000). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Nineties Music (First ed.). Virgin Books. p. 403. ISBN 0-7535-0427-8.
3. "Archived copy". www.stayfreemagazine.org. Archived from the original on 30 April 2002. Retrieved 14 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
4. Andersen, Mark (2009). Dance of days : two decades of punk in the nation's capital. Mark Jenkins (Fourth ed.). New York: Akashic Books. ISBN 978-1-933354-99-6. OCLC 437084126.
5. "Answers - The Most Trusted Place for Answering Life's Questions". Answers.com.
6. "About FMC | Future of Music Coalition". Futureofmusic.org.
7. "About FMC | Future of Music Coalition". Futureofmusic.org.
8. "'Something from Nothing': Stories of Punk in Arlington | ARLnow.com". ARLnow.com | Arlington, Va. local news. 2018-08-17. Retrieved 2023-03-04.
9. Marcus, Sara (2010). Girls to the front : the true story of the Riot grrrl revolution (First ed.). New York. ISBN 978-0-06-180636-0. OCLC 526068974.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
10. "Secret History: Tsunami's Deep End". DCist. Archived from the original on 2023-03-04. Retrieved 2023-03-04.
11. Andersen, Mark (2009). Dance of days : two decades of punk in the nation's capital. Mark Jenkins (Fourth ed.). New York: Akashic Books. ISBN 978-1-933354-99-6. OCLC 437084126.
12. Sisario, Ben (2013-11-15). "Will Play for Health Care (at Least at One Music Event)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-03-04.
13. "DIY Musicians––Alone Together – Music Business Journal". 25 July 2012. Retrieved 2023-03-04.
14. Resnikoff, Paul (2013-10-29). "43% of Musicians In America Lack Any Form of Health Insurance..." Digital Music News. Retrieved 2023-03-04.
15. Andersen, Mark (2009). Dance of days : two decades of punk in the nation's capital. Mark Jenkins (Fourth ed.). New York: Akashic Books. ISBN 978-1-933354-99-6. OCLC 437084126.
16. Simple Machines: 1990-1993, AllMusic

External links

• Simple Machines Records | Tsunami
• Future of Music Coalition | Education, Research and Advocacy for Musicians