Brand New Unit, also known as BNU, was a Canadian hardcore punk band from Vancouver, British Columbia. Formed in 1991 in Surrey, B.C., the group included Gary Lavallee on vocals, Jinx Stringer on guitar, Ben Hughes on bass, and Garnet Kulhavy on drums. Their breakthrough came in 1992 when they won CITR-FM's SHiNDiG live performance contest, leading to their first EP, Summertime. In 1994, Brand New Unit released their debut album, Under the Big Top, through Excursion Records. They toured extensively and expanded into the US market. By 1997, they had enough material for a compilation album, Looking Back Again. The band disbanded in 2000 but reunited occasionally, including an appearance in Victoria in 2018. Gary Lavallee passed away in October 2021, followed by Garnet Kulhavy's death from COVID-19 in November of the same year.
