Death from Above 1979 is the Toronto-based duo of Jesse F. Keeler (bass, synths) and Sebastien Grainger (vocals, drums), which formed in 2001. Refusing to employ a lead guitarist, they played loud synth infused dance punk on the drum and bass combination alone. They added the 1979 suffix to the name following a legal dispute with New York City dance-punk label Death From Above (known as DFA Records since the September 11, 2001 attacks). "Death from above" was written on a helicopter in the movie Apocalypse Now, which was copyrighted in 1979.