Off-Site: DEMENTIA PRECOX at Myspace, Ebay

Still depressed and angry -- blah, blah, blah...

I'm still off the grid for a few days, but even post-breakup depression must yield at least briefly to this incredible find: Dayton's legendary industrial, gothic, new wave, dance-pop, electronica, performance art rock group DEMENTIA PRECOX has a Myspace page.

Go there now and you'll find...

• Four downloadable MP3s (must have a Myspace account to get 'em)
• Current DEMENTIA PRECOX news and happenings, including show dates (in the blog section)
• photo montage video highlighting various points in the band's career (under the blog)
• Complete list of current and former band members

Those of you who are jumping up and down in your seats right now (or who did so when they first found this page if this isn't the first time you've heard of it) probably don't need to be told that Gyn Cameron's DEMENTIA PRECOX took on epic popularity in the Miami Valley and parts unknown during their almost ten-year-run through the 1980s and into the '90s. Nor need you be told that they have taken on enduring cult status in the years since. And you probably also know that Gyn recently reconstituted the band and has been playing a few shows around the tri-state area, so you should know better than to miss them when they're in Dayton (like I did when they did the Halloween show because I'm a witless tool).

Gotta go now and be depressed more, but before I do, here are some random DEMENTIA facts that have popped into my brain:

• Around 1987 or 1988, Dan Rather's old news magazine show 48 Hours, which ordinarily concentrated on stories of straight journalistic interest, did a fluff episode on Paul McCartney's career. During one of the interview segments, there's a roadie sitting in the background with a clearly visible DEMENTIA PRECOX t-shirt on. He doesn't move for the entire segment, which lasted a couple of minutes. I don't remember his name, but I remember Kris Pleis telling me it was either a former member of this band or some other luminary of Dayton music at the time.
• My dad actually went to a DEMENTIA PRECOX show at Wright State University in 1989. He had come because he was interested in computer generated music, and I had mentioned how DEMENTIA had developed a whole music and live show integrating computers and all sorts of electronics. He stood in the back with sort of a quizzical look on his face, but he stayed the whole time. For that show DEMENTIA PRECOX was Gyn Cameron, Royse Robbins, and Nick Kizirnis.
• I dimly recall that in 1986 DEMENTIA guitar player Max Nye (1980-1985) was assaulted by a group of nasty Dayton rednecks outside a convenience store while walking home late one night from a show at the Building Lounge. He lived but his injuries were quite extensive. I remember at least one benefit show to raise funds for his medical bills.
• Apparently, you can buy at least one CD with DEMENTIA PRECOX material on it and t-shirts commemorating the band's current renaissance period through ebay. Just go there and do a search on "Dementia Precox." As I understand it, the CD and t-shirt are on there fairly consistently and other merchandise comes and goes, so die hard fans should keep an eye out.
• A couple of days ago, Matt DeWald gave me a compilation tape of DEMENTIA PRECOX material that a friend recorded for him about twenty years ago. It's fairly lousy quality, but it's audible, and since it appears someone is still selling the DEMENTIA recordings on ebay, it's probably best to only post a low quality cassette of that material here (which I'll be doing after I rip it).

And now I'm moping again.

take care

---Jones()