The band formed in 1980 when all the members were still teenagers. The Embarrassment were looking for an opening band for a show they had booked on December 12, 1980 at the "Off The Wall Hall" (now known as "The Bottleneck"). The Embarrassment knew John Harper and knew that he was putting a band together, so they asked him if his band could open the show, but the band hadn't actually formed yet. At this point, the band just consisted of John Harper on guitar and David Dale on bass, so a drummer and singer needed to be recruited. Dean Lubensky and Graham Reece were recruited as vocalist and drummer. Dean was a good fit and became the permanent singer, and Steve Eddy replaced Reece as the drummer.
The band soon came to the attention of local music promoter, Bill Rich, who wrote about them for his "Talk Talk" magazine and then signed them to his Fresh Sounds record label. Their first release for Fresh Sounds was the 4-band split cassette Fresh Sounds From Middle America (vol 1) in December 1981, just one year after the band formed. The "Fresh Sounds" compilation series was organized by Bill Rich as a way to promote regional bands nationally.[4][5][6]
When the band discovered that Bill Rich was an acquaintance of William S. Burroughs they asked for an introduction and Burroughs would end up giving them some lyrics for a song ("Old Lady Sloan" from the Mortal Micronotz album).
Lead singer Dean Lubensky left the band sometime after the 1984 Live Recording of the Video Soundtrack EP. He was replaced by Jay Hauptli, who would remain the band's vocalist throughout the rest of their career and subsequent reunions.
After releasing three albums and two EPs, the band broke up in 1986. Bassist David Dale committed suicide on Sunday, January 31, 1993.[7] The surviving band members reunited for a memorial show which was held at the Outhouse on February 6, 1993.
Renewed interest in the band lead Fresh Sounds to release two Micronotz compilations, called Complete Recordings Volume I and II where the first volume covered the Dean Lubensky recordings and the second covered the Jay Hauptli recordings. A tribute album was also put together featuring William S. Burroughs and various other artists. The band still does the occasional reunion show, with Matt Kesler, formerly of the Pedaljets, playing bass.[8][9]
In 2016 the Bar/None label digitally reissued the band's entire catalog.[10]
The Outhouse
The Outhouse was a popular venue in Lawrence for punk shows and not only did the Micronotz perform there, but they also helped get the venue into shape ready to have concerts. In 1984, the band built the stage, painted the walls and cleared the brush outside.[11]
Reception
"these guys have your standard '70s Ameri-punk moves down cold — sort of a sub-Dead Boys, but tighter" (Jack Partain, Trouser Press) [12]
"Fueled by blazing electricity, right-angle tempo changes, chop-socky guitar riffs, and a vocalist who gargles glass and the leading shoe polish remover, the Micronotz go the distance to buy a metal sandwich at the 'Psychodeli'" (Judge I-Rankin, Spin, 1987) [13]
"Midwest teenage snot- rock at the outset, the trebly, tin-can production on early records actually worked to the bands ragged charm. The spanking riffs and barbed hooks served as a perfect backdrop for original singer Dean Lubensky's caterwaul, sounding to all the world like Janis Joplin's horny, pubescent, punked out suburban little brother." (Oliver Hunt, SuperStarcastic.com, 2006) [14]
^Mills, Mike (July 1985). "Our Town". Spin. p. 23. If the Embarrassment from Lawrence, Kansas, had become a huge national hit, people would have gone, "God, there's Get Smart!, and The Mortal Micronotz - LOOK AT ALL THOSE BANDS! What is it about Lawrence, Kansas, that produces these bands?"
^Finn, Timothy (August 17, 2006). "Kansas City's best bands ever". The Kansas City Star. Retrieved March 13, 2011. The band that received the most votes the Sin City Disciples, Ernie Locke's first and most inimitable band whose name appeared 11 times. Second place went to the Rainmakers who got eight votes. Third went to the Get Up Kids and the Homestead Grays with six each. After that the Embarrassment, the Mortal Micronotz, the Starkweathers, the Architects, Frogpond and Kill Creek got four votes each.
^Hitchcock, Doug (December 14, 1986). "New Year's Eve reunites Embarrassment". Lawrence Journal-World. Retrieved March 13, 2011. The Micronotz and the Embarrassment came out of the first batch of regional bands spawned by the punk rock explosion in 1976. They were the cream of the crop and the focus of the local scene.
^Jensen, Ron (January 17, 1982). "Local music critic promotes 'Fresh Sounds' of Midwest". Lawrence Journal-World. p. 16. Retrieved February 15, 2011. It is Rich's dream to have names like Get Smart!, The YardApes, The Mortal Micronotz, Color Entertainment and The Buckthrusters head the parade when regional bands from the interior of the nation come marching to the forefront of the music business.
^Fricke, David (December 18, 1986). "The Underground Empire". Rolling Stone. pp. 116–122. Archived from the original on July 18, 2011. Lawrence, Kansas, has been a hotbed of alternative music for several years, thanks principally to the indefatigable Bill Rich, who runs the hardy, little Fresh Sounds label there. As far back as 1981, Rich was issuing the first pressings by the Lawrence bands Get Smart! and the Embarrassment, both of whom went on to underground-cult fame. More recently, Rich, the University of Kansas radio station KJHK and Redline Productions (a local concert promoter) issued a sampler album entitled Fresh Sounds from Middle America No. 3 (No. 1 and No. 2 were cassette only releases put out by Rich in 1981). Of the sixteen bands featured on the LP, twelve are from Lawrence or nearby Topeka.
