Dunk, also previously known as Starkicker and blue.bottle.fly., was a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

power pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a subgenre of rock music and form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, ...

band from

St. Catharines St. Catharines is the most populous city in Canada's Niagara Region, the eighth largest urban area in the province of Ontario. As of 2021, St. Catharines has an area of and 136,803 residents. It lies in Southern Ontario, south of Toronto ac ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, who were active from the mid 1990s to the early 2000s."New name means new approach for Dunk". ''

Victoria Times-Colonist The ''Times Colonist'' is an English-language daily newspaper in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It was formed by the September 2, 1980 merger of the ''Victoria Daily Times'', established in 1884, and the ''British Colonist'' (later the ' ...

'', November 25, 1999.

History

The band formed in the early 1990s, consisting of vocalist and guitarist Ben Dunk, bassist Nick Dunk and drummer Doug Boudreau. The original name of the band was blue.bottle.fly. The band sold 1,500 copies of their independent album in the

area, after which they were signed by Sony. In 1996, the band changed their name to Starkicker due to another band on the Sony label having a similar name, Bluebottle Kiss. The band released the album ''Beach Music'' through Sony in 1996. The first single from the album, "Get Up", peaked at No. 10 the week of August 26, 1996 on the ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or r⋅min−1) is a unit of rotational speed (or rotational frequency) for rotating machines. One revolution per minute is equivalent to hertz. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 def ...

'' Alternative chart. By September 1996, the album had sold about 10,000 units. The second single from the album, "Neil Armstrong", enjoyed even greater success, peaking at No. 26 on the ''RPM'' Top 100 singles chart. ''Beach Music'' was a top-30 Canadian campus radio chart hit in the late summer and fall of 1996. The band garnered a nomination for Best New Group at the 1997 Juno Awards. Deciding that the name Starkicker didn't fit, in 1999 the band changed their name to Dunk, added guitarist Tawgs Salter to the lineup, and released their follow-up album ''Time to Fly'' under their new name on September 7, 1999. The album's first single, "Crowdsurfing", peaked on the ''RPM'' Rock chart at No. 18. On July 1, 2000, the band performed at Edgefest.

Ben Dunk

Ben Dunk has worked as a songwriter and producer for other artists. Dunk co-wrote Edwin's 1999 hit song "Trippin'" and co-wrote and produced

Wave In physics, mathematics, engineering, and related fields, a wave is a propagating dynamic disturbance (change from List of types of equilibrium, equilibrium) of one or more quantities. ''Periodic waves'' oscillate repeatedly about an equilibrium ...

's 2001 hit songs "

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

" and "Think It Over".

References

{{Authority control Canadian indie rock groups Canadian power pop groups Musical groups from St. Catharines Musical groups established in 1993 Musical groups disestablished in 2006 1995 establishments in Ontario 2006 disestablishments in Ontario