Throwing Muses are an American alternative rock band formed in 1981 in Newport, Rhode Island, United States, that toured and recorded extensively until 1997, when its members began concentrating more on other projects.
4AD is a British record label owned by Beggars Group. It was founded in London under the name Axis Records by Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent in 1980 as an imprint of Beggars Banquet Records. The name was changed to 4AD after the release of the label's first four singles. Later that year, Watts-Russell and Kent purchased the label from Beggars Banquet to become an independent record label, and Kent sold his share to Watts-Russell a year later.
Martha Kristin Hersh is an American singer, guitarist and songwriter known for her solo work and with her rock bands Throwing Muses and 50FootWave. She has released eleven solo albums. Her guitar work and composition style ranges from jaggedly dissonant to traditional folk. Hersh's lyrics have a stream-of-consciousness style, reflecting her personal experiences.
Tanya Donelly is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist based in New England. She came to prominence as a co-founder of the band Throwing Muses with her step-sister Kristin Hersh. Donelly went on to co-form the alternative rock band The Breeders alongside Kim Deal in 1989, before leaving to front her own band Belly in 1991. By the late 1990s, she settled into a solo recording career, working largely with musicians connected to the Boston music scene.
David John Narcizo is an American musician and graphic designer, primarily known for his work as the longtime drummer for Throwing Muses.
Bernard Georges is best known for his bass guitar work in Throwing Muses and 50 Foot Wave.
Vaughan Oliver was a British graphic designer based in Epsom, Surrey. Oliver was best known for his work with graphic design studios 23 Envelope and v23. Both studios maintained a close relationship with record label 4AD between 1982 and 1998 and gave distinct visual identities for the 4AD releases by many bands, including Mojave 3, Lush, Cocteau Twins, The Breeders, This Mortal Coil, Pale Saints, Pixies, and Throwing Muses. Oliver also designed record sleeves for such artists as David Sylvian, The Golden Palominos, and Bush.
Martin McCarrick is an English cellist, keyboardist, guitarist and composer. Aside from being a live and recording artist, he is also a teacher and visiting lecturer in music.
Hips and Makers is the debut solo album by Kristin Hersh, best known as the primary singer and songwriter of the band Throwing Muses. The album was released by 4AD in the UK on January 24, 1994, and by Sire Records in the US on February 1, 1994. In contrast to Hersh's rock-oriented work with Throwing Muses, the album is primarily acoustic, with Hersh usually playing unaccompanied. Other credited musicians include Jane Scarpantoni on cello and Michael Stipe of R.E.M., who sings backing vocals on the opening track, "Your Ghost." In addition to Hersh's own material, the album features a cover of the traditional song "The Cuckoo".
House Tornado is the second studio album by the alternative rock band Throwing Muses. Produced by Gary Smith and engineered by Paul Q. Kolderie, it was recorded at Fort Apache Studios in Cambridge, MA. The album was released in 1988 internationally on the 4AD label, except in the United States, where it was released by Sire Records. Sire used a different album cover for its release, as the label was putting a strong promotional push behind the band, and label executives favored a picture of the band over the collage featured on the 4AD release.
Throwing Muses is the 1986 debut album of the band Throwing Muses, released on British independent label 4AD. This was the first album by an American band to be released on 4AD, which had concentrated primarily on British-based acts up to this point. The release marked a shift in the label's direction; a year later 4AD would sign Pixies based in part on the band's connection to Throwing Muses, and by the mid-1990s much of the label's roster was made up of American bands.
Learn to Sing Like a Star is Kristin Hersh's seventh solo album and was released in the US on Yep Roc Records on the 23 January 2007 and on 4AD for the rest of the world on the 29 January. The album was produced by Kristin herself and mixed in Nashville by two-time Grammy winner Trina Shoemaker. It features her Throwing Muses bandmate David Narcizo on drums and with strings by the McCarricks. The album peaked at #27 on the US's Billboard Top Heatseekers Album Chart.
The Grotto is the sixth solo album released by Kristin Hersh. It was released on 17 March 2003 on 4AD records, simultaneously with the Throwing Muses (2003) record. It features Howe Gelb on piano and Andrew Bird on violin. Kristin Hersh produced the album as well as playing all other instruments. The album peaked at #39 on the US's Billboard Top Independent Albums Chart.
Throwing Muses is the eighth studio album by the alternative rock band Throwing Muses. It was recorded over three weekends and released simultaneously with Kristin Hersh's solo record The Grotto on 17 March 2003. The album features Bernard Georges on bass and David Narcizo on drums as well as original bandmate Tanya Donelly on backing vocals.
University is the sixth studio album by the American alternative rock band Throwing Muses, released in 1995. It contains the single "Bright Yellow Gun", the band's first national hit.
Limbo is the seventh studio album by the American alternative rock band Throwing Muses, released on Rykodisc in 1996. It was recorded at the New Orleans studio where the band had recorded University. Following a tour for the album, Throwing Muses were dissolved, with Kristin Hersh continuing her solo career and David Narcizo and Bernard Georges working on several personal and music projects including Hersh's. The album, engineered by Trina Shoemaker, also features cellist Martin McCarrick and Robert Rust on piano.
50 Foot Wave is an extended-play recording by American alternative-rock band 50 Foot Wave, released on March 23, 2004.
Golden Ocean is the debut full-length album by rock band 50 Foot Wave. It was released in 2005 on Throwing Music.
Rat Girl is a memoir published in 2010 by Penguin Books and written by Kristin Hersh, a guitarist, songwriter, and singer who has performed as a solo artist, and as guitarist/lead singer of the alternative rock band Throwing Muses. In the U.K., it was released with the alternate title Paradoxical Undressing.
Sun Racket is the tenth studio album by American alternative rock band Throwing Muses. The album was released on Fire Records on September 4, 2020, and has received positive reviews from critics.
