Plantains was an EDM concept band, started by Nick Hallett (aka Nicklcat) and Ray Sweeten (aka Mitgang Bevilacqua). They began as a queer nightlife act in 2000, sporting fake European accents, and evolved—with the collaboration of video artist English Kills—into a live music video performance, sharing stages with Le Tigre, Scissor Sisters, Breyer P-Orridge, The Blow, Cory Arcangel, K8 Hardy, Chromeo, Tracy + The Plastics, and Ssion. In 2010, a compilation of their recordings was released on the I, Absentee label. In 2014, their cover of “I Feel Love” was featured on the soundtrack to the film, Men, Women, and Children.
"Many groups impersonate British new wave acts from the '80s, but very few do it as convincingly, or as hilariously, as the Plantains. It's not just the accents that put singers-programmers Nicklcat and Mitgang over the top, it's the whole Eurotrash package - the looks, the hooks, and most importantly, the 'tude." - Village Voice
"Totally ridiculous." - NME
"Clever electro-cabaret" - Time Out New York
"Tech-savvy DIY ethos powered two trends that boomed this year: live video bands and geeky-as-we-wanna-be computer art. LoVid and Tracy and the Plastics achieved the most advanced manifestations of the former, with post-new-new-wavers Ssion and the Plantains holding their own" –Village Voice, “The Year in Experimental Film and Video” (2003), by Ed Halter
Maison du Chic was a limited edition performance series held primarily at Fez Under Time Cafe between 2002 and 2005, in which electronic music, video, and live art co-mingled as a self-described retrofuturist cabaret. Artists included: Tracy + the Plastics, Scissor Sisters, The Blow, Chromeo, Ssion, San Serac, Anna Oxygen, My Robot Friend, Bingo Gazingo, Soviet, Dirty Martini, Linda Lamb, Crème Blush, Kassette, Travers, K8 Hardy, Julie Atlas Muz, Lady Ace, DJ Ulysses, Nao Bustamante, Jane Gang, Von Von Von, Rise, Susanne Oberbeck, Daisy Spurs, Phiiliip, Gil Mantera’s Party Dream, Gater, Kassette, War Slut, John Moran and Saori Tsukada, Services, Shana Moulton, Martha Colburn, ZZZs, Paperrad, Gater, Jen Liu, Negativland and more….
Pictured: Original flyer by English Kills, Scissor Sisters, K8 Hardy, Chromeo, The Blow, Tracy + the Plastics, My Robot Friend, Cory Arcangel, Nao Bustamante, John Moran and Saori Tsukada, Julie Atlas Muz,