copacetic zine - where are they now?

who were they then?

I first got into The Mommyheads 'cause their second album Coming Into Beauty was released on the late, great Simple Machines label, a label I felt could do no wrong. And I was right! The quartet hailed from New York in the late 1980's, but then relocated to San Francisco in 1990. I totally adored their quirky pop sound and strong melodies, which reviewers have likened to XTC and which I later likened to Ben Folds Five when they first hit the scene. I even got my brother to teach me how to say their name in Spanish 'cause I loved them so. ("Madre Cabeza" --- am I spelling that right?)

They released a few other quirky albums on various indies, and then came their 1997 Geffen Records release produced by Don "Walk The Dinosaur" Was. Whoa. It was (sadly) pretty disliked by critics, and I personally missed the younger, goofier Mommyheads who released "At The Mall" on the Simple Machines Pulley 7".

And then in 1998, they broke up.

and where are they now?

• The band's main songwriter/vocalist Adam Cohen changed his name Adam Elk to avoid confusion, since Leonard Cohen's son is also named Adam. Apparently, he moved back to NYC in 1999, and has embarked on a solo career! And in 2002, he provided vocals to the soundtrack for Yu-Gi-Oh: Music to Duel By. No joke!

• Bassist/guitarist/vocalist/moog-i-list Jeff Palmer has been busy since the Mommyheads split. He served as the bass player for Sunny Day Real Estate from 1997-98, leaving due to "personal obligations" as the story goes. In 2000, he produced the solo Virgil Shaw CD, and in 2001, his new band Granfaloon Bus, appeared on this compilation. And then in 2002, he toured with The Court and Spark. Like we said, he's been busy!!!

• No news on keyboardist/vocalist Mike Holt.

• Drummer/Percussionist Dan Fisherman is back with ol' Mommyhead-buddy Adam Coh--we mean, ELK on his solo album!

UPDATE 12/03: Yay! We got a band update from a huge Mommyheads fan from all the way in Hamburg! :) Here's the scoop --- Michael Holt is now a solo artist and has released two albums, one of which was a 2002 CD pressing of a cassette-only album he put out in 1991 before he even joined the Mommyheads. Check it out here. Thanks, Markus! :)