Robert Burnett, (born 1973) better known as Robert Eggplant, is an American writer, publisher, musician and activist from

Pinole, California Pinole (Spanish for "cornmeal") is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States. The population was 18,390 at the 2010 census. History The name derives from " pinole", a Nāhuatl word for a kind of flour made from the seeds o ...

, United States.

Background

Robert Eggplant has been the editor and publisher of the '' Absolutely Zippo''

fanzine A fanzine (blend of '' fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''-zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) for the pleasure of others who share t ...

since 1987. The zine has documented the East Bay

punk subculture The punk subculture includes a diverse and widely known array of ideologies, fashion, and other forms of expression, visual art, dance, literature, and film. Largely characterised by anti-establishment views, the promotion of individual freedo ...

from a "front-lines" point-of-view, due to Eggplant's intimate involvement with this scene. Contributors have included

Aaron Cometbus Aaron Elliott (born May 20, 1968), better known as Aaron Cometbus, is an American musician, songwriter, roadie, and magazine editor, best known as the creator of the punk zine ''Cometbus''. Career Born in Berkeley, California, Cometbus started ...

Larry Livermore Lawrence Hayes (born October 28, 1947), better known by his stage name Larry Livermore, is an American singer, musician, record producer, and author, best known as the co-founder of Lookout Records. Biography In 1977, Hayes began to attend pu ...

Jesse Michaels Jesse Michaels (born 1969) is an American songwriter, vocalist, guitarist, artist, and author from Berkeley, California. His lyrics deal with politics, racism, and general social issues. He is most well known as the vocalist for the ska punk ba ...

, and

Billie Joe Armstrong Billie Joe Armstrong (born February 17, 1972) is an American musician who is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of the rock band Green Day, which he co-founded with Mike Dirnt in 1987. He is also a guitarist and vocalist for t ...

. The zine has been compiled and released in a paperback edition entitled ''Absolutely Zippo!: Anthology Of A Fanzine 1988-1998''. Robert Eggplant was one of the founding members of the seminal East Bay punk rock band, Blatz, in which he played guitar. The band released a number of recordings on

Lookout! Records Lookout Records (stylized as Lookout! Records) was an independent record label, initially based in Laytonville, California and later in Berkeley, California, Berkeley, focusing on punk rock. Established in 1987, the label is best known for having ...

that are regarded as integral representations of the East Bay punk sound. They often released split recordings with Blatz on one side and notable bands like

Filth Filth or The Filth may refer to: Common uses * Dirt, unclean matter * Police officer, a pejorative in British slang Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Filth'' (film), a 2013 film based on the novel * ''Filth'', an alternative title for ''S ...

and

Tribe 8 Tribe 8 was a LGBTQ punk rock band from San Francisco, considered one of the first queercore groups. The band took their name from the practice of tribadism, with "tribe eight" being a play on the word ''tribade'', a sexual practice sometimes a ...

on the other. During this time Eggplant was also a volunteer at 924 Gilman Street Project, where Blatz frequently played. The band existed from 1989 till 1992. Eggplant's next group was The Hope Bombs which existed from 1994 until 1996. The group was influential. In 1995, he became a member of the S.P.A.M. Records collective and helped organize

Geekfest Geekfest is the name of a series of free, all-ages concerts organized by California indie label S.P.A.M Records during the 1990s. The first Geekfest was held in June 1996 on the shoreline at Point Molate in Richmond, California. This site, a form ...

, the

free festival Free festivals are a combination of music, arts and cultural activities, for which often no admission is charged, but involvement is preferred. They are identifiable by being multi-day events connected by a camping community without centralised c ...

that helped introduce a new sensibility into the punk rock scene. The Hope Bombs frequently played at Geekfest. He has played in Harbinger with

and John Geek, a fellow member of the S.P.A.M. Records collective and organizer of Geekfest, who also performs with his own band,

Fleshies Fleshies is an American punk rock band from Oakland, California, United States, that released three albums on Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles, ''Kill the Dreamer's Dream'', ''The Sicilian'', and ''Scrape the Walls''. Fleshies have also rele ...

. Eggplant also formed a band with members of '' Absolutely Zippo'' called Fugitive Kind. All the groups he has been a member of are noted for their

DIY "Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and sem ...

ethics, working with

independent record labels An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

and playing all-ages shows. He is well known for holding memorable shows in his backyard in

Pinole Pinole, also called pinol or pinolillo, is roasted ground maize, which is then mixed with a combination of cocoa, agave, cinnamon, chia seeds, vanilla, or other spices. The resulting powder is then used as a nutrient-dense ingredient to make di ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

, including the last show by

Operation Ivy Operation Ivy was the eighth series of American nuclear tests, coming after '' Tumbler-Snapper'' and before '' Upshot–Knothole''. The two explosions were staged in late 1952 at Enewetak Atoll in the Pacific Proving Ground in the Marshall Is ...

. His vocals are also in the

Green Day Green Day is an American rock band formed in the East Bay of California in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, together with bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt. For most of the band's career, they have been a ...

song " Longview": during the lyrics "Call me what you will," he sings "What you will," a line he used to shout out at shows before bands would begin to play. Robert Eggplant is also an activist and works with many peace and

anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not necessari ...

groups, including the Slingshot! collective. His writings on various topics can be read in his ongoing fanzine, ''Absolutely Zippo'' as well as on the Slingshot website.

Publications

*'' Absolutely Zippo'' 1989 - *''Absolutely Zippo: Anthology of a Fanzine'', 2006

Discography

Blatz

*''Cheaper Than The Beer'',

(1991) *''Stranger Fruit'', split LP with

, Lookout! Records (1992) *''Bitches and Brew'', split single with Tribe 8, Lookout! Records (1992) *''A Touch Of Blatz/Filth'', split LP with

, Lookout! Records (1992) *''The Shit Split'', split LP with Filth, Lookout! Records (1992)

The Hope Bombs

*''Sex With Euclid'', Pug Records (1995)

Harbinger

*''Challenging The Prevailing Judeo-Christian Doomsday Mentality'', LP, Riisk (2005)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eggplant, Robert Guitarists from California Writers from California American punk rock guitarists Living people People from Pinole, California 1973 births 21st-century American guitarists