Punk grows up

"Like most of the hardcore punk groups that have managed to stay together for more than a couple of years, Madison's Tar Babies have changed so much both in attitude and musical direction that they hardly resemble the thrashing, sometimes violent band they once were," writes Tom Laskin. "Gone are the days when their audience was filled with skateboarders and stage-diving fools, and gone are the days when songs consisted of power chords played at breakneck speed for three minutes. The band's members have grown up, seen the world - in one case started a family - and generally mellowed. Hardcore means little to them now." The Tar Babies go on to record a trio of albums for the SST label before breaking up, re-forming and breaking up again in the early 1990s. Drummer Dan Bitney goes on to become a principal in the seminal band Tortoise, while bassist Robin Davies and guitarist Bucky Pope would reform as the Bar Tabbies. Davies most recently drummed for the Motor Primitives and the Sigourney Weavers.