Dee Pop, Drummer For New York No Wave Band Bush Tetras, Dies At 65

Dee Pop: No Wave Drummer (Facebook)

DEE POP (DIMITRI PAPADOPOULOUS), drummer for No Wave band BUSH TETRAS alongside PAT PLACE, CYNTHIS SLEY and ADELE BERTEI, passed away in his sleep at the age of 65.

“It is with great sadness we report DEE POP, drummer for BUSH TETRAS since 1979, passed away in his sleep last night,” bandmates SLEY and PLACE wrote in a statement. “DEE POP was a quintessential NEW YORKER, growing up in FOREST HILLS, QUEENS, and living in NEW YORK ever since. He was not only BUSH TETRAS’ drummer, but also our archivist, owning an original copy of every BUSH TETRAS release and T-shirt and also maintaining the band’s masters. In addition to BUSH TETRAS, DEE POP played with RICHARD LLOYD, THE CLASH, MICHAEL KAROLI (CAN), THE GUN CLUB, JAYNE COUNTRY, RADIO i-CHING and 1000 YARD STARE, among others. He is survived by his son CHARLIE and daughter NICOLE. He will be sorely missed by his bandmates and the many people he touched throughout his life.”

Ironically, the band played a release party at NEW YORK LOWER EAST SIDE gallery space HOWL! ARTS on SATURDAY night for the new box set, “Rhythm And Paranoia: The Best Of BUSH TETRAS."

“We think he would have wanted us to carry on tonight with our BUSH TETRAS release event," SLEY wrote on FACEBOOK. “The band meant everything to him. He was an amazing drummer, one of the best, and a very dear friend."

BUSH TETRAS are a post-punk band formed in 1979, best known for their 1980 song, “Too Many Creeps.” 

The band was named after a tiny AFRICAN primate called “bush babies” and a load of fish they liked called “neon tetra.”  

The band's debut 7" EP, "Too Many Creeps," was released in 1980 on 99 RECORDS, a downtown NEW YORK record store owned by ED BAUMAN, and reached #57 on the BILLBOARD club play chart. The follow-up, "Things That Go Boom in the Night," was issued in 1981 by FETISH RECORDS. The Rituals 12" EP, produced by THE CLASH’s TOPPER HEADON, was released in 1981 by FETISH in the UK and by STIFF RECORDS in the U.S., reaching #32  on the BILLBOARD club chart. 

Two live tracks (a cover of JOHN LENNON’s “Cold Turkey” and “Punch Drunk”) appeared on the 1981 STIFF RECORDS compilation, “Start Swimming,” documenting a one-night showcase of NEW YORK bands (also including THE BONGOS, THE RAYBEATS and the dBs) at the RAINBOW in LONDON on FEBRUARY 20, 1981. Another live release, the cassette-only “Wild Things,” was issued by NEALCOOPER’s ROIR label in 1983.

Wrote THE BONGOS’ RICHARD BARONE, “To me, you were indestructible. Thank you for being an amazing friend. I will miss you, and will think of you often”

Said PAT IRWIN, “DEE was a force, he played drums with passion and power. He’ll be missed.”

SONIC YOUTH’s THURSTON MOORE said of the BUSH TETRAS, “At TIER 3, PEP LOUNGE, the MUDD CLUB, HURRAH – wherever – they would hit such a slathery sonic groove with noise-death beauty that I knew this was the greatest rock and roll group in the universe.”

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