Artist description Original Bureaucrat: 5 piece UK/Canada based band ( Vocal, 2 guitars, bass,drums). Known for it's high energy, melody driven pop tunes. The Bureaucrats were essentially an "alternative singles band". Bureaucrats: 2nd Generation :4 Piece Canadian based band (vocal, guitar, bass, and drums). This incarnation of the band moved towards better studio production of melody driven "alternative singles".

Music Style Alternative, Powerpop, Punk, New Wave, Melody Punk

Musical Influences Jam, Vibrators, Undertones, Sham 69, Generation X, Clash, Buzzcocks, Sex Pistols, U2, Members

Similar Artists Clash, U2, The Bureaucrats, The Jam, Buzzcocks

Artist History Formed in the summer of '78 in Ottawa Canada, the Bureaucrats featured Gary (Gaz) Sidwell on Vocals, Mitch Sidwell on Rhythm guitar, Joe Frey on Lead Guitar, Grant Bucowsky (a.k.a Johnny Flamingo aka Lamont Porter) on Bass guitar and Wayne Johnson on Drums. At the time of the band’s inception, very little was happening on the Canadian music scene. Bands that wrote and performed their own material could not get gigs in local clubs, as club owners systematically selected mainstream "cover" bands to fulfill their club’s musical needs. Record companies also did not believe that original Canadian bands had anything to offer, and would rarely even venture outside of New York City to check out new talent. Eventually, Toronto was seen as a stepping stone to NYC but even that didn’t occur until well into the 80’s. But a band from Ottawa… especially one that leaned heavily towards the "new wave"…wasn’t then nor ever would be, a consideration in any self-respecting A&R man’s eyes! Burdened by these limitations, the Bureaucrats began their musical legacy by opening and closing the now infamous "Rotter’s Club” and eventually did the same with it’s successor, "The 80’s Club". In the time between these two clubs’ inceptions and eventual demise, the Bureaucrats changed the face of the "live" music scene in Ottawa forever! Starting from a point of having absolutely no musical venues to showcase their original and distinctive songwriting capabilities and performances (with the exception of Eugene Haslam’s legendary "Gang of Four" house parties), the growing appeal of the band ultimately led to the opening up of almost ALL clubs in the Ottawa area to the Bureaucrats, and eventually to the just then emerging "new music scene". This about face by the club owners could only be attributed to the popularity of the Bureaucrats, their intensely energetic yet melodic music, and their ever-growing fan base. Combine this with an almost iron-clad guarantee of a capacity crowd wherever and whenever they performed proved to be just too lucrative for most club owners to continue to ignore. And that, if anything, is the Bureaucrat’s legacy to Ottawa: their ability to "open the doors" which enabled the "live" new music scene to grow and prosper in Canada’s capital. Over the course of these early years, besides extensive touring, the Bureaucrats had been busy penning and recording original songs both at Double Helix Studios in Old Chelsea and at Passport Studios in Hull. In total the band wrote about 20-30 songs but unfortunately only recorded about half that number. The "original" Bureaucrats went their separate ways in August of 1980. However, the band continued on in various incarnations until late 1981 when eventually it disbanded for good.

Group Members Gary 'Gaz' Sidwell: Vocals, Joe Frey: Lead Guitar, Mitch Sidwell: Rhythm Guitar, Grant Bucowsky: Bass, Wayne Johnson: Drums.

Albums "R.O.I." - The, Bureaucrats, "Now but Then" - The Bureaucrats, "Second Generation" - The Bureaucrats

Press Reviews The Bureaucrats - Feel the Pain b / w Grown Up Age (MP Records - Canada) From: TRANS FM (July 1980) by Rob Stewart. Just when the world had resigned itself to the energy crisis, Ottawa's own Bureaucrats have come to the rescue, providing us with some of the power we've been so sadly lacking. 'Feel the Pain' has a strong pop feel that by rights should be heard on radios everywhere, but it's the B-side, 'Grown Up Age' that really impresses me, with its call-and-response drum and guitar interplay on the intro and strong playing throughout. The production is perfect for the Bureaucrats, giving them an earthy, street-action sound that echoes their live performance. Apart from being one of Canada's best gigging bands, the Bureaucrats have released a top-notch single. What more could one ask? Get it.

Additional Info CD's, Original posters, Original 7" vinyl single, 12" limited edition vinyl album

Location Ottawa, Ontario - Canada

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