Al Batross drum history with The Plungers (NYC).

The Plungers (NYC) were:
Masayo Sato Chalmers - Vocals, Guitar
Jenn K - Bass, Vocals (replaced Akiko for later shows and recordings)
Akiko - Bass, Vocals (original bassist)
Al Batross - Drums (on all recordings featured here)

On the left is the stub I took from a flyer one day at Wowsville Record Store that led me to audition for The Plungers. I knew nothing about the band or the groups they mentioned as influences, but one thing jumped out at me. On the flyer it said "must like to have fun." I liked the beautiful simplicity of that and it made me want to go check the band out. When I arrived for the audition I discovered it was two Japanese girls playing raw, garage style rock and roll with a punkish feel, which was not at all what I expected and I immediately enjoyed playing with them. In addition, Masayo and Akiko were absolute sweethearts and a joy to spend time with in those often depressing, overpriced NYC rehearsal spaces. Not long after the audition, I got word that I was invited to join the band, and I continued playing local shows with them, mostly in New York, for several years.

The Plungers were, without a doubt, the least ambitious band I ever played with. They were perfectly happy to just play an occasional show (a half dozen or so a year), and mostly cared about playing for their friends. But, the friends they had were many, and often very cool people. Friends like Bill Florio (columnist for Maximum Rock and Roll and prolific bassist), Ronnie Yoshiko (of the 5,6,7,8s, as seen in "Kill Bill") and Dave Spazz of WFMU, as well as pals Ron and Tony (who remembered me from my days with Ludichrist), made most every Plungers show a warm and friendly experience. I owe a lot to The Plungers, as they were the band that began my return to playing after a long break, following the frustrating break up of Big Sniff. The Plungers were also, arguably, a somewhat amateur band, and after being in the group for a while I did begin to feel frustrated with both their lack of ambition and their lack of precision. It can also be argued, I now realize, that I never fully "got" The Plungers, and was expecting them to become something they never intended to be, namely a rock solid "professional" band. Looking back on my time with them, I can see that I often overplayed. Very often. I was adding too much in the way of rolls and such and the band probably would've been benefited from a more quiet and rudimentary drummer who wasn't so preoccupied with his own personal catharsis. Masayo, the group's guitarist and main vocalist, was a powerhouse who I always felt had a great deal of potential to be a killer on stage. When Akiko left, I was quite sad, but Jenn brought a new element to the band that was a nice change, a vocal style softer and more gentle than Akiko's. Sadly, The Plungers disbanded. When I listen to certain tracks today, like the cover of "Saved," it makes me wish I could find two solid female band mates who would delve into the same gene pool of music with me. There's a sense of exhilaration in that recording that is positively infectious, polished or not.

Although I had left the band for the last year or so that The Plungers were still performing, two tracks from the final Plungers recording (Chunksaah Records) were released on a split LP with the band J Church. Seen in the photo on the left is the final lineup of The Plungers - Masayo (left), Kris, the final drummer (center), and Jenn K (right).

Masayo had founded the band with Akiko, and the group had released two other EPs, "Here are The Plungers" (Intensive Scare Records) and a two track 45 on Solamente Records, which both featured John (aka "Kimiko" - why a girl's name, John?) on drums.

Masayo, the adorably kooky soul
of The Plungers.

One of several shows we played with The Jet Boys from Japan. The main thing I remember about them was the leader/guitarist of the band would set his pubic hair on fire during a set and smash vegetables. Manitoba's
is a well know NYC bar, owned by a member of the band The Dictators, Handsome Dick Manitoba.