Art-pop collective the Orthotonics formed in Richmond, VA, in 1979. Saxophonist/vocalist Danny Finney, trumpeter Paul Watson, and drummer Pippin Barnett (the latter also a member of Curlew) first teamed in 1975 in the improvisational jazz unit Idiot Savant; with the arrivals of singer/guitarist Rebby Sharp and bassist Phil Trumbo, the group adopted the name Ortho-Tones, adapted to the Orthotonics when bassist Tom Carson replaced Trumbo in 1982. Despite their improvisational leanings and avant-jazz background, the group's densely rhythmic, beat-intensive approach earned them a strong following among fans of pop's new wave, and in 1983 they issued the cassette-only collection Accessible as Gravity. The Fred Frith-mixed Wake Up You Must Remember followed in 1984. Reduced to the trio of Sharp, Finney, and Barnett, in 1986 the Orthotonics resurfaced with Luminous Bipeds; the group called it quits in 1989, with Sharp and Finney later reuniting in the like-minded Rattlemouth. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi