Led by founding guitarist and vocalist Murray “The Cretin” Acton since 1979, the Dayglo Abortions emerged from the humid fringes of a Canadian punk scene on Vancouver Island, fusing surf-rock riffs with hardcore velocity and truck-stop bathroom humor. Their 1981 debut, Out of the Womb, set the tone: fast, irreverent, and gloriously offensive.
And they were just getting started. Dayglo’s 1986 album, Feed Us a Fetus, turned heads and stomachs with cover art of Ronald and Nancy Reagan smiling over a ghastly, band-themed dinner platter garnished with jellybeans (the 40th U.S. president’s favorite snack).
But it was 1987’s Here Today, Guano Tomorrow that saw Dayglo’s blend of juvenile absurdity and scathing anti-establishment fury become a free-speech flashpoint, after an Ottawa-area police officer found a copy of the album in his daughter’s bedroom. Acton became a defendant in a landmark obscenity trial that ended with the band cleared of wrongdoing.
As peers flamed out or sold out, Dayglo leaned in, weaponizing satire, speed and slime on into the ’90s and the next century with albums including Holy Shiite, Armageddon Survival Guide and their latest, 2021’s Hate Speech. Through decades and lineup changes, Acton has remained Dayglo’s snarling core, deploying venomous wit and shredding guitars, with relentless shots fired at politics, religion and society. He continues to put on live shows that are raw, loud, and soaked in beer and bile.
Also on the bill are local old school hardcore disaster artists Killed by Florida and, from Austin, Texas, The Brothels. Fronted by David Luna, who once sang for New York hardcore punk legends Reagan Youth, The Brothels garnered even more punk cred for salvaging dates on a collapsed 2024 tour involving a vanished booking agent and missing funds.
The Dayglo Abortions were supposed to be on that tour, and if anyone would have been shocked but not surprised by what happened, it’s Acton. Back in 1987 he railed at “ripoff” concert promoters in a Dayglo track called “Kill Johnny Stiff.”
The Dayglo Abortions, The Brothels, and Killed by Florida perform 7pm Friday, August 15 at Respectable Street in West Palm Beach. daygloabortions.com ~ Abel Folgar
