The Wallets | |
|---|---|
 Steve Kramer and the Wallets at First Avenue c. 1982 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Minneapolis, United States |
| Genres | Post-punk |
| Years active | Early 1980s–1988 |
| Labels | Twin/Tone |
| Past members | Steve Kramer Erik Anderson Jim Clifford Rod Gordon Max Ray |
The Wallets were a band from the Twin Cities, who recorded on the local Twin/Tone Records label in the 1980s.
The Wallets were founded as an experimental group by accordionist Steve Kramer and managed by Bob Hest. [1]
The Allen Toussaint-produced debut album Take It was released in 1986, described by Spin as urban soul and funk with "a Cajun smell to their work". [2] The album saw the band described as "art rockers who not only want to groove but know how to groove". [3]
Kramer decided to retire the band in spring 1988, but waited until their final album, Body Talk, was released late in the fall before announcing the split. [4] The Wallets performed their final show at the Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis on January 23, 1989. [5] [6]
Kramer and Hest later formed an advertising agency, currently known as Hest & Kramer, Van House Weber, [7] noted for its use of music in television ads for clients such as Target Stores, MTV, Time Warner, and Buick. [8] [9]
The Minneapolis Star Tribune summed the band's style up as a "mix of polka, rock, rhythm-and-blues, jazz and whimsy". [12]
The band received several Minnesota Music Awards ("Minnies"), with ten nominations in 1987. [13]
| Authority control databases: Artists |
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