It’s 1981 in New York City.
AIDS cases emerge, Anna Wintour joins New York Magazine, and MTV launches with ‘Video Killed the Radio Star’. Somewhere beneath the chaos and crime, a massive all-female percussion band, Pulsallama, forms in the basement of an old Polish church on St. Marks.
The story of Pulsallama began with two women, Ann Magnuson and Dany Johnson, who had just left a Bush Tetras performance, inspired by the energy and creative spirit they had witnessed.
Channeling that energy, they started their own musical project that was as chaotic and rebellious as the city itself. They named their band Pulsallama, a playful fusion of “Pulse Matic,” the name of a popular blender, and “llamas”..because, why not? It was as absurd and unexpected as the music they would soon create.
Led by Club 57 manager and theatrical performer Ann Magnuson, Pulsallama recruited women from The Ladies Auxiliary of the Lower East Side, a “twisted women’s group” that hosted parties and events at Club 57 (formerly, a Polish church).
Initially, Pulsalama was meant to be an impromptu one-time performance. However, amidst the wild sounds of percussion and the power of psychedelics, the people wanted more!
The wild ensemble shrank from 13 to a core of 7, but their legendary, loud, ritualistic, and theatrical performances only intensified.
Often described as ’13 women fighting over a cowbell.’ After all, they famously didn’t use guitars – who needs one when you’ve got bass and plenty of things to bang? Blending influences from Latin and African beats, Pulsallama pushed the boundaries of what was considered mainstream music at the time.
As their influence grew, so did their presence on New York’s downtown scene.
In 1982, they launched their first couple of singles, Ungawa, Pt. II (Way Out Guiana)” with the B-side “The Devil Lives in My Husband’s Body“. Shortly after, they began touring in the UK and U.S. East Coast opening for The Clash.
Bringing their trademark wild energy and theatrical percussion to the stage, Pulsallama had The Clash’s audience caught off guard by the intensity of their performance.
I mean, imagine going to see your favorite British punk band and suddenly being hit with an ensemble of women banging things together and chanting?? Jarring, to say the least. Or shall I say, a complete clash by all rhythmic means.
The Clash’s audience was a defining moment for the band, solidifying its place in New York’s underground scene. Pulsallama was unlike anything most audiences had ever seen.
After a performance in Asbury Park, band member Min Thometz recalled in an interview with Bedford & Bowery magazine: ‘Audience members were throwing beer and coins at us, but by the second night, they were kind of rooting for us.'”
More than anything, their spontaneity and playfulness is what made Pulsallama so iconic in the New York underground scene.
In a videowave interview, one of the band members April Palmieri states, “We basically started out having fun. That was the premise; that’s what has kept us together. And not taking it too seriously…I think what appeals to people is 12 girls up there doing jungle rhythms.”
One of my personal favorite songs from Pulsallama is The Devil Lives in my Husbands Body, which tells the story of of a concerned housewife who calls her witchy neighbor Hilda (she owns 17 cats) to help perform an exorcism on her husband, who she believes is possessed because he won’t stop barking.
Forget songs of breakups and falling in love, this is what I want to hear about!!
In 1983, Pulsallama ended far too soon due to a studio bill that couldn’t be paid and disagreements between band members.
For a brief moment in time, Pulsallama had become part of something bigger—an exciting part of the cultural wave that was sweeping through the city’s music scene.
Though their time was short, Pulsallama’s performances were legendary, leaving a lasting mark on the downtown scene.
The band’s wild and unorthodox approach to music paved the way for future all-female and experimental bands, proving that women could lead and redefine the music world in ways that hadn’t been seen before.
Check out Pulsallama’s Facebook page.
If you loved reading about them, you may enjoy Jen Larson’s book about underrated female punk bands, HIT Girls. It’s a fascinating read, and where I first read about Pulsallama.
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