Nomy Lamm

Nomy Lamm (born in 1976) is an American singer/songwriter and political activist. Lamm describes herself as a Jew dyke amputee."

Biography

Lamm was involved with musical theater during her youth. She became part of the queercore scene in Olympia, WA, where she performed with various musicians and published a zine titled I'm So Fucking Beautiful. In 1999, Lamm released a solo debut album of punk rock music with revolutionary themes, titled Anthem. Originally, the record company Talent Show sought to compile the work of the various bands with whom she performed as frontperson, but Lamm chose to re-record the music as a solo project.

Later in 1999, Lamm released The Transfused, a soundtrack to the anti-corporate rock musical that she created with The Need. Lamm also toured as part of Doctor Frockrocket’s Vivifying Reanimatronic Menagerie and Medicine Show.

Effigy, released by Yoyo Recordings, represented a departure for Lamm, with electronica replacing the sparse production of her previous work. "What I'm doing now is total disco-pop," she said at the time, "but it’s still punk because it was created through punk channels using punk ethics." Thematically, Effigy continued Lamm’s call for a revolution, but this album's focus was on an internal, rather than external revolution.

Lamm continued to publish zines, and she also gave theatrical college lectures on fat oppression, sometimes dressed in fairy wings and waving a magic wand. For this, Lamm received Ms. Magazine's "Woman Of The Year" award. Lamm also toured as part of the spoken word performance troupe, Sister Spit, and wrote as a regular columnist for Punk Planet magazine.

From January, 2004 until May, 2005, Lamm co-hosted a monthly genderqueer open mike variety show called The Finger with Ana Jae. The show was held at a feminist sex toy store in Chicago, called Early to Bed, and it featured live poetry, improv, comedy, dance, storytelling, video exhibition, folk music, rock music, and performance art. The Finger was said to inspire local queer people to taking artistic risks and freely express themselves.

Lamm's music is featured in the 2006 documentary, Young, Jewish, and Left. An interview with her about the connections between punk rock and Judaism appear in the DVD extras.

Lamm's most recent artistic venture is with the band Tricrotic with Marcus Rogers and Erin Daly. They have recorded one EP.

Discography

Albums

• Effigy, Yoyo Recordings, 2002
• The Transfused, (with The Need), Yoyo Recordings, 2000
• Anthem, Talent Show, 1999

Singles

• KaraNEEDoke, double 7" collaboration with Nomy Lamm, Slim Moon, Audrey Marrs, Donna Dresch, Tamala Poljak (formerly of Longstocking) and Tracy Sawyer (formerly of Heavens to Betsy), music by The Need; Kill Rock Stars

External links

• Official Website
• Intercourse 2002: a Sex and Gender Spoken Word Recipe for Revolution Interview with the Portland Mercury