Kill Geeksville

Man... or Astro-Man? Meet Teenage Caveman, commonly referred to as the Kill Geeksville record, was a split 7" EP by Man or Astro-man? and Teenage Cavemen (billed as both Teenage Caveman and Teenage Cavemen on the release). It was put out by Worry Bird Records (WOE-22) in 1994. MOAM? contributed two songs: "Bombora" (an original Surfaris cover) and "Surf Terror." The two songs were recorded at Zero Return studios by James Marrer (credited on the sleeve as Jim Morer). Teenage Cavemen also did two songs: "Phantom Stranger of your Heart" and "Sidekick." The cover was printed on glossy cardstock that was folded in half. There was no printing on the inside cover. The record was only pressed on opaque black vinyl.

Here is a scan of the record:


This was the first split single that MOAM? did. Many more would follow. This one featured a lesser known southern band that, because of some shared membership, is often referred to as an Astroman side-project. I'm not sure if we can really call the Teenage Cavemen a side-project, since they seem to have risen from the same Auburn, Alabama music scene at around the same time. There was some band member crossover, though. It is a little tough to pin down who was who since the members of both bands used assumed names. I know for certain that original Astroman Birdstuff (Brian Teasley) was also the drummer for the Teenage Cavemen. Bill Bradley, who played briefly in MOAM? as Mr. Neutron (most notably at Garageshock '94) was also a member, as was his eventual Astroman replacement Captain Zeno (Jason Russell). Russell was also the founder of the Homo Habilis record label, and would later play with the Quadrajets. Rounding out the Cavemen were fellow Quadrajet Rob Hauck, and a guy named Hardy Gilbert (the only one not in either MOAM? or the Quadrajets).

Here is a photo of Mr. Neutron (Bill Bradley) performing with MOAM? at 1994's Garageshock:

Of course, this rundown of Teenage Cavemen members only accounts for five of the six players listed on the back of the split single. I'm not sure who the other member was, though I've long heard that Dr. Deleto (Jeff Goodwin) was also involved. As contributor Abraham Lincoln III points out, it is interesting to think of Teenage Caveman as a training ground for several generations of Man or Astro-Man? members and as a sort of precursor to the Quadrajets. Teenage Cavemen released at least one other record, a single on Homo Habilis records called Spirit of Wildwood. Interestingly enough, there are only five band members shown on that single's front cover illustration. Here is a scan of that single: