Chandra (band)

Chandra
Chandra
Origin	New York City, U.S.
Genres	Post-punk; Funk; No wave;
Years active	1979–1982
Labels	GO GO Records; Telephone Explosion;
Past members	Chandra Oppenheim; Eugenie Diserio; Steven Alexander; Fred Maher
Website	Official Site

Chandra was an American post-punk band founded in 1979. The band was fronted by Chandra Oppenheim, who was 11 years old when the band was founded. A second incarnation of the band, The Chandra Dimension, was launched in 1981 but dissolved before a second EP could be released.

History

Eugenie Diserio and Steven Alexander were former members of the band Model Citizens and contemporaries of Chandra Oppenheim's father, conceptual artist Dennis Oppenheim. After seeing the 11-year-old Oppenheim perform, Diserio and Alexander decided to build a music group around her. In 1979, they began rehearsing in a rented room at the Music Building in Hell’s Kitchen, with Fred Maher joining as drummer. The band debuted at the Mudd Club in New York City.

Chandra released their first and only EP, Transportation, in 1980. A second incarnation of the band, the Chandra Dimension, was launched in 1981, and included three additional musicians between 12 and 19 years old. The band performed on the children's television series Captain Kangaroo. However, the Chandra Dimension dissolved in 1982 before a second EP could be released. “I had to make a decision, school or music, and I chose school,” said Oppenheim in 2018.

Chandra received renewed interest in 2016, after their track "Subways" was sampled by the Avalanches in their song of the same name. Oppenheim had not previously heard about the Avalanches until they approached her regarding the sample but subsequently became a fan. That same year, she performed live with the Avalanches in New York City. In 2018, the label Telephone Explosion released a compilation album, Transportation EPs, which combined the 1980 EP with the unreleased second EP and two four-track demos.

Discography

EPs


Year	Details
1980	Transportation Released: 1980 Label: GO GO Records

Compilations


Year	Details
2018	Transportation EPs Released: 2018 Label: Telephone Explosion

References

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Wray, Daniel Dylan (November 13, 2018). "'It was grungy, gritty, rough': the 11-year-old who fronted an 80s post-punk band". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on November 13, 2018. Retrieved January 19, 2025.
1 2 3 Beta, Andy (January 10, 2019). "Chandra: Transportation EPs". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on February 4, 2019. Retrieved January 19, 2025.
1 2 Taysom, Joe (July 22, 2020). "The story of Chandra, a unique 12-year-old post-punk sensation that ripped up the 1980s music scene". Far Out. Archived from the original on September 22, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2025.
↑ Iadarola, Alexander (June 7, 2016). "We Spoke to the Now-Grown Up 12-Year-Old The Avalanches Sampled on Their New Song". Thump. Vice. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2025.

[:0-1] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Wray, Daniel Dylan (November 13, 2018). "'It was grungy, gritty, rough': the 11-year-old who fronted an 80s post-punk band". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on November 13, 2018. Retrieved January 19, 2025.

[:1-2] 1 2 3 Beta, Andy (January 10, 2019). "Chandra: Transportation EPs". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on February 4, 2019. Retrieved January 19, 2025.

[:2-3] 1 2 Taysom, Joe (July 22, 2020). "The story of Chandra, a unique 12-year-old post-punk sensation that ripped up the 1980s music scene". Far Out. Archived from the original on September 22, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2025.

[4] Iadarola, Alexander (June 7, 2016). "We Spoke to the Now-Grown Up 12-Year-Old The Avalanches Sampled on Their New Song". Thump. Vice. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2025.