Tesco Vee (born Robert Vermeulen; August 26, 1955) is an American, Michigan-based

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

musician, and co-founder of

Touch and Go Records Touch and Go Records is an American independent record label based in Chicago, Illinois. After its genesis as a handmade fanzine in 1979, it grew into one of the key record labels in the American 1980s underground and alternative rock scenes. To ...

zine A zine ( ; short for ''magazine'' or ''fanzine'') is, as noted on Merriam-Webster’s official website, a magazine that is a “noncommercial often homemade or online publication usually devoted to specialized and often unconventional subject ...

. Born in

Kalamazoo, Michigan Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in Kalamazoo County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 73,598. It is the principal city of the Kalamazoo–Portage metropolitan are ...

, he is a former elementary school teacher and the founding member, and front man, of punk bands The Meatmen, Tesco Vee's Hate Police, Blight, and Dutch Hercules.

History

In 1979, while working as a third- and fifth-grade teacher in Williamston, Michigan, Tesco Vee and his friend Dave Stimson self-wrote and self-printed ''Touch and Go'', a Lansing-based

, and one of the pioneering punk and

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (commonly abbreviated to hardcore or hXc) is a punk rock music genre#subtypes, subgenre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots ...

zines. It featured politically incorrect, and often crude humor, alongside album and single reviews of Black Flag,

Minor Threat Minor Threat was an American hardcore punk band, formed in 1980 in Washington, D.C., by vocalist Ian MacKaye and drummer Jeff Nelson. MacKaye and Nelson had played in several other bands together, and recruited bassist Brian Baker and guita ...

and

Bad Brains Bad Brains are an American punk rock band formed in Washington, D.C., in 1976. They are widely regarded as pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members have objected to the use of this term to describe their music. They are also an ade ...

. In 1981, Touch and Go also became a small label, releasing vinyl singles by The

Necros Necros was an early American hardcore punk band from Maumee, Ohio, although they are usually identified with the Detroit music scene. They were the first band to record for Touch and Go Records. History Necros was formed in mid-1979 by then- ...

, Meatmen and

Negative Approach Negative Approach is an American hardcore punk band, formed in Detroit, Michigan in 1981. The band is considered among the pioneers of hardcore punk, particularly in the Midwest region. Like most hardcore bands, Negative Approach was little know ...

. Touch and Go (as a zine) folded after 22 issues and a few limited-release punk singles. It was then taken over by Corey Rusk (of The Necros), who moved the label to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

and grew it into an international success - signing bands such as the

Butthole Surfers Butthole Surfers are an American rock band formed in San Antonio, Texas, by singer Gibby Haynes and guitarist Paul Leary in 1981. The band has had numerous personnel changes, but its core lineup of Haynes, Leary, and drummer King Coffey has ...

, Jesus Lizard and

TV on the Radio TV on the Radio (TVOTR) is an American rock music, rock band from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2001. The band consists of Tunde Adebimpe (vocals, loops), Dave Sitek (guitars, keyboards, loops), Kyp Malone (vocals, guitars, bass, loops), and ...

. Rusk continued operations of the label until 2008. After handing Touch and Go over to Rusk in 1983, Tesco moved to Washington, DC, and began to focus on his own punk band, The Meatmen - who played shows until 1996. In 1999, Tesco and his family moved back to the Lansing, Michigan, area. In 2007, Tesco began playing Meatmen shows again with a new lineup of Michigan musicians. In 2010, Tesco Vee reformed Tesco Vee's Hate Police and eventually recast and toured with The Meatmen. He is also promoting '' Touch and Go: The Complete Hardcore Punk Zine '79-'83"'' - a book released on June 30, 2010 that chronicles all 22 issues of the Touch and Go zine in one trade paper back book. In 2014, he collaborated with Blowfly on his album ''Black in the Sack''. In 2022 Tesco Vee opened a toy shop in Lansing, Michigan where he sells parts of his extensive collection of toys from the 1940s to the 1980s. Such as puppets, coloring books, plastic figurines, character dolls and model kits.

References

External links

*AMG bio
Meatmen
Accessed July 6, 2010 *Pitchfork Media
T&G zine on Pitchfork
Accessed July 6, 2010 *Blurt Online
Tesco, T&G book feature
Accessed July 6, 2010 *Outsight Radio Hours
2010 radio interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vee, Tesco American male singers 1955 births Singers from Michigan American punk rock singers Living people The Meatmen members