The Showcase Showdown was an American band that was a fixture in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

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 ...

scene in the 1990s. The band toured the Northeast extensively and became notorious for their tongue-in-cheek songs, often about obscure cultural icons from political history, television shows and comic books. Its name was among these references, referring to the "

Showcase Showdown ''The Price Is Right'' is an American television game show where contestants compete by guessing the prices of merchandise to win cash and prizes. A 1972 revival by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman of their The Price Is Right (1956 American game ...

," a game play element on the game show ''

The Price Is Right ''The Price Is Right'' is an American television game show where contestants compete by guessing the prices of merchandise to win cash and prizes. A 1972 revival by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman of their The Price Is Right (1956 American game ...

''.

Background

Showcase Showdown released only two full-length albums, ''Appetite of Kings'' and ''Permanent Stains''. They released much of their work on 7" vinyl singles and cassettes, and were featured on several split EPs including a split with

Blanks 77 Blanks 77 is an American punk rock band active from 1990 to 2001, and again from 2004 onward. Originally based in Hillside, New Jersey, they have since relocated to Denville. The band has maintained a prolific career, having released three al ...

entitled "Drunk at the Karaoke Bar" featuring duets by mostly inebriated members of both bands. The lineup of the group consisted of Albert "Ping Pong" Genna on vocals, Victoria Arthur on bass, Tom Cloherty on guitar, and Steve "Chez Nips" Maxwell on drums. Arthur was a medical student at the

University of Massachusetts Medical School The UMass Chan Medical School is a public medical school in Worcester, Massachusetts. It is part of the University of Massachusetts system. It consists of three schools: the T.H. Chan School of Medicine, the Morningside Graduate School of Biom ...

through much of the band's career, and her husband, Cloherty, was working as a social worker. After Showcase Showdown's breakup, Arthur and Cloherty formed the group The Spitzz.

Reception

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

's review of the album ''Appetite of Kings'' noted the influence of the

Sex Pistols The Sex Pistols are an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they became culturally influential in popular music. The band initiated the punk movement in the United Ki ...

, along with "aggressive pogo-punk". Critic Sarah Bee of ''

Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. In January 2001, it was merged into "long-standing rival" (and IPC Media sister publicatio ...

'', in a favorable review of the album ''Permanent Stains'', wrote, "These men are in touch with their inner deviants." Critic Ian D'Giff of ''

Newsday ''Newsday'' is a daily newspaper in the United States primarily serving Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island, although it is also sold throughout the New York metropolitan area. The slogan of the newspaper is "Newsday, Your Eye on LI" ...

'' wrote that Showcase Showdown's cover version of the

' song " Friggin' in the Riggin'", from the album '' Never Mind the Sex Pistols... Here's the Tribute'', was "raging", and it "nearly makes up for the album's shortcomings".

Discography

Albums

*''Appetite of Kings'' (1996) Elevator Music *''Permanent Stains'' (1999) Damaged Goods Records

Cassettes

*''Self-titled Tape'' (1993) Tario Records *''6 Foot Sofa'' (1993) Tario Records *''All The Presidents' Heads & Chickens Tape'' (1994) Tario Records

Vinyl

*''Showcase Showdown'' 7" (1993) Tario Records *''Chickens'' 7" (1994) Tario Records *''All The Presidents' Heads'' 7" (1994) Pogostick Records *''Christmas'' 7" (1995) Tario Records *''Soothing Moments'' 7" (1996) Beer City Records *''Split'' w/ Twerps 8" (1997) 702 Records *''Assemble Your Own Dictator'' (split w/ August Spies) 7" (1997) Tario Records *''Drunk at the Karaoke Bar'' (w/

) 7"(1997) Tario Records *''We Are Showcase Showdown'' 7" Picture Disc (1998) Tario Records

Compilation exclusive tracks

*"Drano" ''Runt of the Litter'' CD (1996) Fan Attic Records *"Forgery" ''Suburban Voice No. 38'' 7" (1996)

Suburban Voice ''Suburban Voice'' is a punk zine A punk zine (or punkzine) is a zine related to the punk subculture and hardcore punk music genre. Often primitively or casually produced, they feature punk literature, such as social commentary, punk poetr ...

*"The Devil Speaks French/Here Come the Televampires" ''I've Got My Friends'' CD (1996) Flat Records *"Johnny Wont Go To Heaven" ''Joey Vindictive Presents: That Was Now, This is Then'' CD (1997) VML Records *"The Only Thing Scary About Halloween Is Your Fucking Face" ''Songs for the Witching Season'' 7" (1998) Creep Records *"Get Out" ''Scene Killer Vol.2'' CD (1999) Outsider Records *"Friggin' in the Riggin'" '' Never Mind the Sex Pistols, Here's the Tribute'' CD (2000) Radical Records

References

{{Authority control Musical groups from Boston Punk rock groups from Massachusetts Oi! groups