Bwang!
From The Secret History of the Cedar Valley
During the years of the Ragman scene, Chuck Hoffman hit upon an idea for an improvisational band whose members would consist of anyone who happened to be around, especially if they couldn't play. This was inspired by ideas he had at that time about unskilled musicians having a purer originality, a concept that had been explored in the past by various post-punk bands.
Hoffman began recording noisy jam sessions with people that hung around Ruth's house, often on detuned and even broken instruments using very lo-fi recording methods such has handheld cassette recorders, and often on aged, discarded tapes. The overall aesthetic was inspired greatly by New Zealand group The Dead C but with a more overtly playful vibe and sense of humor.
Dozens of hours of tapes were later edited down into about a half dozen CDs worth of material, and other recordings followed or were unearthed later. A full accounting of everyone that played on a Bwang! recording would be difficult to come up with in its entirety.
