Hot off their upcoming album, Quite Contrary, comes a new Pansy Division 7-inch single, Blame the Bible! The band celebrates their 25th year with a perfectly timed election year stomper. Angry and funny, it delivers a strong message about religious hypocrisy and right-wing blind hatred, guaranteed to resonate no matter which gender’s sign is on the bathroom door! The B-side, “Neighbors of the Beast,” is an exclusive non-album track which suggests that the devil might actually be a better neighbor than a right-wing Christian. Unless, of course, he doesn’t exist and is just a concept made up by people who have no fun and don’t want others to.
7" $6.75
10/07/2016
Alternative Tentacles Records celebrates Pansy Division’s 25th anniversary with Quite Contrary, an unforgettable collection of hook- filled sing-a-longs. This latest album continues to mix clever lyrics with catchy melodies while giving a sober look at themselves and where they are now. Starting back in 1991 in San Francisco, singer/guitarist Jon Ginoli and bassist/vocalist Chris Freeman shared the experience of not only being outsiders for being gay, but also for being gay punk rockers. By turning their alienation into music that defied the stereotype that gay men preferred pop divas and show tunes, Pansy Division would go on to become beloved underground music legends. Also featuring guitarist/vocalist Joel Reader (The Mr. T Experience, The Plus Ones, The Avengers) and drummer Luis Illades (The Plus Ones, The Avengers), Quite Contrary is the perfect follow up to 2009’s That’s So Gay. Tackling topics such as New Year’s reflections, phone addiction, aging barflies, dating apps, and flaky guys (an evergreen Pansy Division theme), this latest release provides a glimpse at the struggles of modern life both with Pansy Division’s trademark grin and a sense of determination. Quite Contrary sums up everything great about an astonishing 25-year career, including reuniting the original cover models of the classic 1996 album Wish I’d Taken Pictures, showing them 20 years later — quite contrary to the forever young imagery of mainstream gay iconography— a fantastic look into the social and personal frustrations we all face today. Pansy Division evolves with the times, gaining new depth while staying...
LP $16.00
09/09/2016
CD $13.00
09/09/2016
Alternative Tentacles proudly presents the DVD release of the documentary Pansy Division: Life in a Gay Rock Band by director Michael Carmona. Undeniably one of the most gay music acts in the last twenty years, Pansy Division pioneered queercore before others had the confidence to come out of the closet--and they did it all without major record label support or mainstream radio airplay. This humorous and fast-paced yet intimate portrait of the band features newly shot footage and archival footage spanning 15 years. From their first days in San Francisco's underground music scene to a full-fledged stadium tour with Green Day and beyond, founding members Jon Ginoli and Chris Freeman overcame prejudice, near-poverty, and increasingly difficult line-up changes to keep the band together. The film also examines issues that confronted the gay community in the 1990s, as well as the adversity one encounters simply by being oneself. Pansy Division: Life in a Gay Rock Band features interviews and appearances by Rob Halford (Judas Priest), Billie Joe Armstrong (Green Day), Jello Biafra, Lookout! Records founder Larry Livermore, and Jessie "Luscious" Townley (Blatz, The Criminals, Alternative Tentacles). This documentary provides an essential history of an alternative to the 1990s alternative music. The release comes with a bonus DVD of more than two hours of live footage spanning the history of the band. "[A] docu whose prankish DIY charms reflect the spirit of its subject." --Denis Harvey, Variety
2XDVD $17.50
03/31/2009
With Rick Warren and Proposition 8 making recent headlines, many probably thought, "Pansy Division, we need you!!" Worry not, friends: they're back with That's So Gay, their first new album in six years. Featuring a newish lineup bolstered by former Mr. T Experience bassist (and token hetero) Joel Reader on lead guitar, they've given their Undertones / Buzzcocks-inspired pop punk / power pop a few fresh twists. While so many bands choose monotony over variety, That's So Gay is an all-you-can-eat rock buffet: take your pick from garage to punk, power pop to glam, and of course, balls-out rock. The humor and in-your-face queer content that put Pansy Division on the radar are in abundance, but songs about relationships, Bible-thumpers, and closeted politicians cruising airport bathrooms round out the album. In the interest of equal representation, Reader contributes a song about being a straight guy in a gay band ("Some of My Best Friends") and on "Average Men," about trying to avoid getting beaten up by rednecks, Jello Biafra contributes as co-lead vocalist. A series of webisode videos based on some songs will materialize on YouTube and the band's website around the release date.
CD $13.00
03/31/2009
PANSY DIVISION, one of the first openly gay punk bands in history, commemorates their fifteenth year together with The Essential Pansy Division! The boys have picked out thirty songs—from classics like “Fem in a Black Leather Jacket” and “Homo Christmas” to their newer hits like “No Protection”—culled from their six out-of-print Lookout! Records releases as well as their 2003 Alternative Tentacles release Total Entertainment! (VIRUS 304). Slap on a bonus DVD with music videos, TV appearances and live clips, including their 1994 opening stint for GREEN DAY, and you gotta agree that “essential” is no overstatement on our part. PANSY DIVISION formed in 1991 as a San Francisco-based, fully out-of- he-closet punk band. Their catchy pop hooks and smart, outré lyrics found an enthusiastic audience—both queer and straight—all over the world. It probably isn’t too much to say PD’s outness and their humorously frank yet sensitive tackling of social and personal issues changed the world a little bit. The Essential PANSY DIVISION is a tidy summation of PD’s groundbreaking career thus far, perfect for the uninitiated or the consummate fan who wants all the hits on one convenient disc.
CD+DVD $16.00
01/24/2006
***The seventh full-length album from San Francisco's queer punk faves, and the band's first new material in five long years. Total Entertainment is just that, a wide array of entertaining styles that runs from balls-out garage rock to Motown strut to danceclub grooves to banjo-soaked bluegrass, all delivered with humor, mischief, and personal politics.
CD $9.50
08/19/2003