Beequeen

by Bradley Torreano
Brought together by a common love of the Legendary Pink Dogs, Beequeen came together in the late eighties. Made up of appropriately named singer Freek and experimental composer Seward D. Faran, their desire to make abrasive, thoughtful music fit well into the emerging industrial pop scene. Displaying a razor sharp wit and a modest self-identity, the music they made didn't quite fit into any given category once it was finished. They named the band Beequeen in tribute to one of their favorite visual artists, but many of their early gigs drew unusual crowds as the German venues often wrote "Be Queen" on the marquee. A poor live show inspired them to get even weirder, and they pumped out countless underground tapes, records, and CDs in the following years. Most of this wasn't available beyond a small local following, but their reputation slowly grew and many paid ridiculous prices for homemade cassettes of their music. The band continued to experiment, eventually starting Plinkity Plonk Records and using it to release their solo material as well. By taking hiatuses and allowing each other to wander, Beequeen lasted for years, even releasing Ownliness through an independent distributor in the summer of 2002.