Psychefunkapus was a funk metal band from the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...

that released two albums for

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...

in the early nineties. They got their name from their love of psychedelic music and a reference to a

P-Funk Parliament-Funkadelic (abbreviated as P-Funk) is an American music collective of rotating musicians headed by George Clinton, primarily consisting of the funk bands Parliament and Funkadelic, both active since the 1960s. Their distinctive ...

song warning the coming of the "Funkapus".

History

Psychefunkapus formed in the

San Geronimo Valley San Geronimo Valley is located in Marin County, California, composed of four unincorporated towns: Woodacre, San Geronimo, Forest Knolls, and Lagunitas. It is a fairly close-knit community, with a rather liberal citizenry. The farther west o ...

, in California, in 1986 and achieved a rise to prominence in San Francisco clubs by 1988.

The Deftones Deftones is an American alternative metal band formed in Sacramento, California in 1988. They were formed by Chino Moreno (vocals, guitar), Stephen Carpenter (guitar), Abe Cunningham (drums), and Dominic Garcia (bass). During their first five ...

' first gig was opening for Psychefunkapus, and other well-known artists such as

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 powe ...

and

No Doubt No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California, formed in 1986. For most of their career, the band has consisted of vocalist Gwen Stefani, guitarist Tom Dumont, bassist Tony Kanal, and drummer Adrian Young. Since the mid-1990s, they ...

have opened for them as well. Psychefunkapus in turn has opened for

Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. The band's lineup consists of founding members Jeff Ament (bass guitar), Stone Gossard (rhythm guitar), Mike McCready (lead guitar), and Eddie Vedder (lead vocals, guita ...

The Sugarcubes The Sugarcubes ( Icelandic: Sykurmolarnir) were an Icelandic alternative rock band from Reykjavík formed in 1986 and disbanded in 1992. For most of their career, the band consisted of Björk Guðmundsdóttir (vocals, keyboards), Einar Örn Bened ...

, Was Not Was, Steel Pole Bathtub, The Beatnigs, The Charlatans, and

The Vandals The Vandals are an American punk rock band, established in 1980 in Orange County, California. They have released ten full-length studio albums, two live albums, and have toured the world extensively, including performances on the Vans Warped ...

.telling
Their first, self-titled album featured a dual vocal lineup consisting of Gene Genie and Manny Martinez. That debut album was produced by Marc DeSisto. Recorded at Alfa Omega Studio In SF, CA. Their second album, ''Skin'' featured only Manny Martinez on vocals. That album was produced by Jerry Harrison at Studio D in Sausalito and the

Record Plant The Record Plant is a recording studio established in New York City in 1968 and currently operating in Los Angeles, California. Known for innovations in the recording artists' workspace, it has produced highly influential albums, including Blon ...

in California. Dick Dale and Bernie Worrell both contributed tracks to several songs on the album. The band toured the U.S. after recording their second album. Psychefunkapus reunited to raise funds for

L.A. Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

's City of Hope Cancer Center January 2, 2010 at Slim's in San Francisco.

Band members

*Gene Genie - lead and backing vocals *Manny Martinez - lead and backing vocals, percussion *

Atom Ellis Atom Ellis (born April 8, 1966) is a bass guitarist from San Francisco, California. Atom was a founding member of the Thrash Funk band Psychefunkapus from 1986 to 1992 and a member of the San Francisco band Dieselhed from 1993 to 2000. During a ...

- bass, backing and lead vocals *Paul Johnson - drums, various percussion, hambone, backing vocals *Jon Axtell - lead guitar, keyboards, backing and lead vocals

Discography

* ''Psychefunkapus'' (1990- Atlantic No. 82063) * ''Skin'' (1991- Atlantic No. 82331)

References

External links

Fan sitePsychefunkapus Myspace pageJon Axtell's official website
{{Authority control American funk metal musical groups Musical groups from the San Francisco Bay Area