Get Smart!
They Came From Kansas
Lucia Beer Garden & Grill
1016 Massachusetts St
Lawrence, KS 66044
May 25, 2024
7:00 PM CDT
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About this concert
Lawrence, Kansas trio Get Smart! formed in 1980 and during seven years of relentless coast-to-coast touring, earned a reputation for intense live shows and edged their way onto college radio playlists with their first two LPs, Action Reaction (1984) and Swimming With Sharks (1986). The original lineup reformed in January 2020, and released a collection of previously recorded (but never released) songs, titled Oh Yeah No. The group played 40th + 1 anniversary shows in Lawrence and Chicago in 2021 and were inducted into the Kansas Music Hall of Fame in 2023.
Wichita’s The Embarrassmen (nope, there’s not a “t”) is original guitarist Bill Goffrier playing the song catalogue of The Embarrassment along with drummer Britt Rosencutter (The Buckthrusters, The New Wave Brothers), and bassist Eric Cale (The Censors, Aagarns). The Embarrassment formed in 1979 in Wichita and was active 1979–1983 and has reunited several times since. The Village Voice's long-time chief music critic Robert Christgau called them a "great lost American band". A feature-length documentary about the band, titled We Were Famous, You Don't Remember: The Embarrassment, premiered in 2022 and is now streaming. They were inducted into the Kansas Music Hall of Fame in 2020.
The Mortal Micronotz formed in 1980 in Lawrence while they were all still in high school and quickly became a part of the Kansas punk cohort. Lead singer, Dean Lubensky, left the band in 1984. He was replaced by Jay Hauptli, who would remain the band's vocalist throughout the rest of their career and subsequent reunions. After releasing three albums and two EPs, the band broke up in 1986. This show will feature both vocalists, original members John Harper (guitar) and Steve Eddy (drums) plus bassist Matt Kessler (The Pedaljets, Von Bulows).
It's gonna be an amazing show!
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Get Smart! Biography
Get Smart! is a three-piece indie alternative rock ‘n roll band that formed in Lawrence, KS in 1980 while the members, Marcus Koch (guitar/vocals), Lisa Wertman Crowe (bass/vocals) and Frank Loose (drums/vocals), were attending the University of Kansas. The group was prominent in the local music scene, and along with a cohort of other bands, helped to solidify Lawrence as an alternative music hotbed and a touring destination for many other regional and national acts. Along with frequent local shows, the band toured coast-to-coast, performing more than 300 gigs in a six-year span.
They released their first recording in 1981, a flexi-disc released through Talk Talk magazine. This was followed by Words Move, a self-released 4-track EP, and next was a four-band split cassette, Fresh Sounds from Middle America. They recorded their first LP, Action Reaction, prior to relocating to Chicago in late 1982. The debut was released in 1984 by Fever Records and distributed by Enigma and received positive reviews and climbed the ranks for college radio playlists. In 1986, they released their second LP, Swimming With Sharks through Enigma’s subsidiary, Restless Records. Once again, the release high praise from critics and scored even higher on college radio playlists.
In 1987 plans for a third album were formally set into motion. Half a dozen songs were cut with the late, great engineer Iain Burgess, but the band was unable to secure a label to release the recordings before gradually grinding to a halt in the late '80s, save for a couple of stray 1990 gigs.
The original lineup reformed in January, 2020, and in December, 2020, they released the collection of previously recorded (but never released) songs, titled Oh Yeah No, with the final mixes completed by Chicago scene contemporary Steve Albini.
The group played a 40+1 anniversary show in Lawrence in 2021 and to continue to collaborate, play live when they can, and have fun with fans.
"The band has a truly impressive knack for three-piece writing and arranging. Their new LP, Swimming With Sharks, is full of tense, carefully crafted miniatures that meld unvarnished noise with unexpected pretty vocal harmonies" (Renaldo Migaldi; Chicago Reader; 1986)
Read MoreThey released their first recording in 1981, a flexi-disc released through Talk Talk magazine. This was followed by Words Move, a self-released 4-track EP, and next was a four-band split cassette, Fresh Sounds from Middle America. They recorded their first LP, Action Reaction, prior to relocating to Chicago in late 1982. The debut was released in 1984 by Fever Records and distributed by Enigma and received positive reviews and climbed the ranks for college radio playlists. In 1986, they released their second LP, Swimming With Sharks through Enigma’s subsidiary, Restless Records. Once again, the release high praise from critics and scored even higher on college radio playlists.
In 1987 plans for a third album were formally set into motion. Half a dozen songs were cut with the late, great engineer Iain Burgess, but the band was unable to secure a label to release the recordings before gradually grinding to a halt in the late '80s, save for a couple of stray 1990 gigs.
The original lineup reformed in January, 2020, and in December, 2020, they released the collection of previously recorded (but never released) songs, titled Oh Yeah No, with the final mixes completed by Chicago scene contemporary Steve Albini.
The group played a 40+1 anniversary show in Lawrence in 2021 and to continue to collaborate, play live when they can, and have fun with fans.
"The band has a truly impressive knack for three-piece writing and arranging. Their new LP, Swimming With Sharks, is full of tense, carefully crafted miniatures that meld unvarnished noise with unexpected pretty vocal harmonies" (Renaldo Migaldi; Chicago Reader; 1986)
Indie Rock
Post-punk
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