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Pere Ubu David Lynn Thomas, b. 1953 in Miami FL. Raised in Cleveland OH. High School Graduate. Son of an American literature professor from New York City and an illustrator / amateur architect from Georgia. Oldest of 3 children. Brother is a chemical engineer & internet harvester. Sister is a government geologist specializing in water table research.
Founder of legendary avant-rock band Pere Ubu, singer David Thomas has been re-writing the rules of popular music for more than 30 years. Formed in Cleveland OH in 1975, Pere Ubu integrated found sound, analog synthesizers and musique concrete into a hybrid of overdriven midwestern garage rock tempered by abstract sensibilities. The band's first release, The Modern Dance (1978), can be found on all sorts of critics' lists of "The Great Albums." Over the years Pere Ubu has released a stream of uncompromising, highly original records, the latest being St Arkansas (2002).
As a complement to his work with Pere Ubu, Mr Thomas explores implausible creative configurations and seemingly arbitrary production methods. The Sound of the Sand (1981), configured around English folk-rock guitarist Richard Thompson, has been followed by a series of eclectic, unpredictable and ambitious releases, the latest being 18 Monkeys on a Dead Man's Chest by David Thomas and two pale boys. A duet with Scottish singer Jackie Leven called UBUDOLL and a one man show called "Surf's Up In Bay City" are ongoing projects.
Recognizing that a fundamental theme of Mr Thomas' work is the gestalt of culture, geography and sound, the Department of Cultural Geography at Clark University (Worcester MA) commissioned a lecture, "The Geography of Sound In The Magnetic Age," in 1996, delivered, as well, at the Gerrit Rietveld Akademie, Amsterdam, later that year.
In April 1998 London's South Bank Centre commissioned Mr Thomas to curate a 4-day festival of his work and related interests, "David Thomas: Disastodrome!" The commission included the premiere of a major work, a theatrical / musical / storytelling production, Mirror Man. A second production of the Mirror Man piece was commissioned by the FIMAV festival in Victoriaville, Quebec, May 21, 2000, and the Contemporary Music Network sponsored a full theatrical production for a seven city tour of Britain in May 2001. In September 1998 Mr Thomas curated a similar four day event at the Knitting Factory in New York City called "The Fall of The Magnetic Empire.", and UCLA Performing Arts commissioned a 3-day Disastodrome Festival, Feb 21-23, 2003 which featured another iteration of Mirror Man.
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