Mpls Mayor declares “The Suicide Commandos Day”

Here's Mayor Rybak's proclamation, in all its glory:

WHEREAS, in the words of "indie" music industry shaker and mover, Peter Jesperson at New West Records, "The Suicide Commandos are THE Granddaddy's of the Minneapolis/St. Paul music scene that later bred The Suburbs, Husker Du, The Replacements, Soul Asylum and The Jayhawks;" and

Whereas The Suicide Commandos put the Minneapolis Music scene on the map; and

Whereas The Suicide Commandos carved a path where there was none before. Many of the Minneapolis bands that went onto big success may not have done so without the Commandos having done so; and

WHEREAS The Suicide Commandos, like other rock bands of the late '70s, such as The Ramones in New York, and other "punk bands," like The Sex Pistols in England, helped shape a rock 'n roll renaissance by peeling back to the basics with a swell sense of humor and rock history; and

WHEREAS The Suicide Commandos helped propel the commercial viability of new, independent labels by taking risks on non-major labels and meeting a hunger in the market for a new rock spirit among fans and music entrepreneurs alike; and

WHEREAS The Commandos, as they were known fondly by fans and media alike, indulged in consistently producing entertaining nights out in now-legendary downtown bars, such as The Longhorn, with, what The Commandos called in their own original rocker, "Complicated Fun; and

WHEREAS this loud, fast trio was among the earliest subjects of pioneering rock video filmmaker Chuck Statler (Devo, Elvis Costello, et al.) with its song "Burn It Down," thus helping to expand the rock video genre (even though the house in the video was one they rehearsed in....); and

WHEREAS drummer Dave Ahl, bassist Steve Almaas and guitarist Chris Osgood have continued to contribute to music culture through their professional careers by teaching (Almaas), creating studios (Ahl) and working with musicians and artists at Springboard for the Arts and students and McNally Smith College of Music (Osgood); and

WHEREAS The Suicide Commandos continue to ROCK special occasions and events for the benefit and enjoyment of the people-- 30-plus years after their initial reign!

Now, Therefore I, R.T. Rybak, Mayor of the City of Minneapolis do hereby declare Saturday, November 7, 2009 as:

The Suicide Commandos Day in the City of Minneapolis

By the way, The Suicide Commandos are playing twice on Saturday, first at the Walker Art Center's Free First Saturday program, and then later in the evening at the Dakota.

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