Dos dos dos QUATRO! There's Only 2 Band Members! Quiz

Answer: The White Stripes

The White Stripes formed in Detroit in 1997. The members were Jack White and Meg White. The last names may have been coincidence. Or they might have been brother and sister. Or husband and wife. It depends on who you want to believe. They were pretty successful from the get go and their records were well received.

They officially split up in 2011, at which point they were playing arenas, opening for the Rolling Stones etc. From what little has leaked out about the split, it did not seem an amicable one. Jack started a record store and record label "Third Man Records" and has played with numerous others as well as having a thriving solo career. I honestly have no idea at all what Meg is doing since the break up but every year or so I run into her at the Glendale Galleria.

Answer: Lee Michaels

Lee Michaels was born on November 24, 1945 in Los Angeles, CA. He plays organ, piano and guitar. His first band were from San Luis Obispo and named the Sentinals. He was signed to A&M Records in 1967 and released his debut LP, "Carnival Of Light", in 1968. His instrument of choice was the Hammond organ and for live shows he would usually be accompanied by a single drummer. The drummer he played with the most was Bartholomew Eugene Smith-Frost aka Frosty. He achieved moderate success but did not really break through to a larger degree until his fifth LP and his hit single "Do You Know What I Mean".

Frosty had an unusual drumming technique in that he often played barehanded (which influence John Bonham of Led Zeppelin). Frosty eventually left Lee however, joining a band called Sweathog, and Lee continues to play with different musicians to this day (2/2019).

Answer: Incapacitants

There are a whole bunch of 'Japanoise' bands that I like. Most sound like variations of sticking your head into a turbine engine. Without cotton in your ears.

The Incapacitans are quite possibly my favorite of the bunch. The two members are Toshija Mikawa and Fumio Kosakai, as stated in the question: a banker and a government employee. Usually they like to get completely hammered before performing (which can be seen in any of their online videos). If you like sheer noise then these guys are probably the nosiest of the bunch (start with their cd 'Quietus' - it takes getting used to. A LOT of getting used to. But with time you will start to see how layered their brand of noise actually is).

Answer: Insane Clown Posse

Now I am not about to pretend I know a lot about these guys. I probably heard them for the first time while writing this quiz and really liked them as far as hip hop is concerned. Their members are Violent Jay and Shaggy 2 Dope. Without outright quoting what I can find online, they started out as wrestlers who were also hip hop fans.

They eventually formed a gang and Violent Jay was arrested for parole violation, death threats and robbery. He served 90 days jail time in 1989/1990. His wrestling career got underway after he was released from jail. Violent Jay eventually became fed up with the backstage politics of the wrestling business and decided a career change was in order.

He formed a hip hop band with Shaggy and John Kickjazz. Local (hip hop) radio stations refused to play their debut single because the band was Caucasian.

After giving a copy of their first record to his hero, the rapper Esham, things started to move forward. They changed their name from Inner City Posse to Insane Clown Posse and adopted a slightly different approach (for starters they decided to no longer openly sing about Satan).

They also decided to use face paint. This "interesting information" could go ON for a bit. In the interest of brevity (not me strong suit) let's just sum things up with: the now two band members continue to issue new music and get arrested and their fan base, known as 'Juggalos' have been classified as "a loosely organized hybrid gang" in a 2011 report issued by the FBI. If you like your music dangerous, the way rock & roll once used to be, then this is your band.

Answer: Steely Dan

Formed in 1972, by Donald Fagin and Walter Becker, Steely Dan were, for a while, one of the biggest bands in music. I lived in Germany when their first three albums came out and on the European tour I remember Donald Fagin receiving many comparisons to Frank Zappa in the press at the time (which is what made me pay attention to them). Their earlier albums are more rock based but after firing the rest of the band the duo continued with various session musicians. It is at this point that they went from big to massive.

In 1977 they released the album "Aja". All I can tell you is: during the Christmas season of 1977 I worked at a record store. No matter how many boxes of "Aja" we would order we would sell out of it within two days. The store I worked at alone must have sold over 50 copies a day during December of that year! They released one more album "Gaucho" and disbanded from 1981 until 1993. Donald and Walter came back and issued numerous solo and band albums until Walter's death in 2017. Donald continues to perform as Donald Fagin as well as Steely Dan.

Answer: Ween

Gene and Dean Ween (Aaron Freeman and Mickey Melchiondo) comprise the duo known as Ween. I picked up their first cd from a ten cent bin WAY back when because the title made me laugh: "God Ween Satan". And with that purchase I became a fan. They have since issued albums in just about every musical style imaginable. Their concerts regularly top the two hour mark. Ween formed in 1984.

After being together for 28 years Freeman quit the band citing drug and alcohol addiction and the need to deal with them as his reason. Ween reformed in late 2015 and continue to record and play live shows to this day.

Answer: Darkthrone

Ok, honestly I would have preferred to use Abruptum as my Norwegian black metal duo of choice, but as I am TRYING REALY HARD to not make this quiz overly difficult I settled on the better known Darkthrone. They formed in 1986 as "Black Death" and discovered the band "Bathory" after which they changed their name to "Darkthrone" and became one of the leading bands in that scene. Generally speaking they consist of the duo Nocturno Culto and Fenriz.

In 2006 they decided to move away from the typical Black Metal style and incorporate elements of more mainstream Heavy Metal elements into their sound.

Answer: Flute & Voice

There is precious little information on this band available, but I'll try. The band formed in Germany in the spring of 1970, just in time to be considered one of the earliest 'Krautrock' bands. They were Hans Brandeis and Hans Reffert. When they performed live they would use a variety of guest musicians. Hans Brandeis eventually moved to Berlin in 1974, thus splitting up the band. One LP, 'Imaginations Of Light', was released in 1973 and a second LP was recorded, "Hello Rabbit" but it remained unreleased until 1995 (for not being commercial enough. Because, you know, albums of flute and singing were all the rage in the early '70s...).

A third album, of their 1973 demos, was released in the late nineties as well.

Answer: Hall & Oates

Umm... Only one of the most commercially successful duos of the late seventies and earlier eighties. What? You actually NEED more info on them? Ok...

Hall & Oates (Daryl Hall and John Oates) first met at the Adelphi Ballroom in Philadelphia in 1967. At this time they were each involved with their own bands/musical projects. In 1970 they decided to work together musically and at first had trouble focusing their ideas into a defined sound. Their songs could range from folk to pop to soul and more. Their Atlantic Records debut was released in 1970. They released three more albums (of which 'War Babies' was produced by Todd Rundgren. The band has since disowned that album and Daryl has been know to break copies in half when he has been presented with them by fans for autographs). Eventually the band Tavares, as well as Lou Rawls, covered their song 'She's Gone' prompting Atlantic Records to reissue the song. Despite that none of their Atlantic albums had been hits, tracks from their album 'Abandoned Luncheonette' started to receive a lot of airplay on the local Minneapolis/St Paul radio station WQRS. The album eventually rose to 33 on the charts in November 1976 and it stayed on the charts for 38 weeks. And in 1977 their career took off nationwide.

I remember going to a scalper in 1977 looking for a Kiss ticket at the massive arena The Forum. This could be considered the height of Kiss' career. The West Hollywood scalpers office was PACKED (with lines out the door) with gay male couples clamoring for tickets to H&O's local appearance at the Roxy Club. I got my Kiss ticket for $35 (a lot back in those days). Hall & Oates tickets were $75 a piece and they sold out at the scalper's office in about ten minutes! According to the guy I got my tickets from Hall & Oates were the fastest selling ticket they had offered for sale in months. Eventually in the later seventies their career appeared to be stalling and in 1980 they suddenly started receiving tremendous airplay on the local New Wave radio station KROQ with their song 'Gotta Lotta Nerve'. And pretty much for the rest of the eighties they were unstoppable once they embraced the New Wave sound. They still play every now and again and Daryl has a popular TV show with his 'Party At Daryl's House' cable TV show. They were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame on March 30, 2015.

Answer: The Louvin Brothers

Satan and Country. They go together like a horse and carriage. Just look at their "Satan Is Real" album cover. They must have thought for sure they might be going to hell!

Charlie and Ira Louvin were cousins of JD Loudermilk, a very well known Nashville Songwriter Hall Of Fame-er. They basically performed secular country music with a HEAVY dose of fire and brimstone (They were of the Baptist faith). While born with the last name 'Loudermilk' they chose to perform under the name The Louvin Brothers in the 1940s. Ira was a notorious drinker (among other things. Drinking, womanizing, and volcanic temper can be included) He was married four times. His third wife, Faye, shot him in the chest four times and in the hand twice during a fight where he tried to strangle her with a telephone cord. In 1963 George was fed up with Ira's drinking and abusive behavior and split up the duo. They embarked on solo careers. Ira died in 1965, when his car was ironically hit head on by a drunk driver. George died of pancreatic cancer in 2011. Many modern music listeners discovered the duo via the Byrds, when that band covered their "The Christian Life" on their 1968 "Sweetheart Of The Rodeo" lp (we can thank Gram Parsons for that).