Glenn Branca was an American avant-garde composer, guitarist, and luthier. Known for his use of volume, alternative guitar tunings, repetition, droning, and the harmonic series, he was a driving force behind the genres of no wave, totalism and noise rock. Branca received a 2009 Foundation for Contemporary Arts Grants to Artists Award.
Shoegaze is a subgenre of indie and alternative rock characterized by its ethereal mixture of obscured vocals, guitar distortion and effects, feedback, and overwhelming volume. It emerged in Ireland and the United Kingdom in the late 1980s among neo-psychedelic groups who usually stood motionless during live performances in a detached, non-confrontational state. The name comes from the heavy use of effects pedals, as the performers were often looking down at their pedals during concerts.
Noise rock is a noise-oriented style of experimental rock that spun off from punk rock in the 1980s. Drawing on movements such as minimalism, industrial music, and New York hardcore, artists indulge in extreme levels of distortion through the use of electric guitars and, less frequently, electronic instrumentation, either to provide percussive sounds or to contribute to the overall arrangement.
Avant-garde metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music loosely defined by use of experimentation and innovative, avant-garde elements, including non-standard and unconventional sounds, instruments, song structures, playing styles, and vocal techniques. Avant-garde metal is influenced by progressive rock and extreme metal, particularly death metal, and is closely related to progressive metal. Some local scenes include Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, Boston, and Seattle in the United States, Oslo in Norway, and Tokyo in Japan.
Rhys Chatham is an American composer, guitarist, trumpet player, multi-instrumentalist, primarily active in avant-garde and minimalist music. He is best known for his "guitar orchestra" compositions. He has lived in France since 1987.
Phillip Earl Niblock was an American composer, filmmaker, and videographer. In 1985, he was appointed director of Experimental Intermedia, a foundation for avant-garde music based in New York with a parallel branch in Ghent, Belgium.
The Ascension is the debut studio album by American no wave musician Glenn Branca, released in November 1981 by 99 Records. The album experiments with resonances generated by alternate tunings for multiple electric guitars. It sold 10,000 copies and received acclaim from music critics.
Love Agenda is the second album by Band of Susans, released on April 17, 1989 by Blast First and Restless Records. Page Hamilton, later frontman for Helmet, played guitar on the album and sang the lead vocals on the track "It's Locked Away". Also notable was bassist Susan Stenger singing her first lead vocals on the songs "The Pursuit of Happiness", "Birthmark" and "Hard Light". Robert Poss was an admirer of the Rolling Stones and CD versions of Love Agenda features a cover of "Child of the Moon".
The Peel Sessions is an EP by Band of Susans, recorded in 1988 and 1989 from sessions with John Peel but not released until 1992.
The Word and the Flesh is the third studio album and fourth album overall by American noise rock band Band of Susans. For the first time in the band's history, they were able to find a settled lineup to back up the band's core-line up of band leader Robert Poss, Susan Stenger and drummer Ron Spitzer, after Karen Higlof and Page Hamilton departed the band following the release of Love Agenda (1989). With Anne Husick and Mark Lonergan replacing them, the band entered their "classic line-up" and recording The Word and the Flesh in New York City in spring 1990, with Poss acting as producer.
Veil is the fourth studio album by American noise rock band Band of Susans. After establishing their "classic-line up" with their previous album The Word and the Flesh (1991), and recording the EP Now (1992), the band aimed for a new, more sonic and experimental direction on Veil, after the more song-centric approach to The Word and the Flesh. Recording the album in early 1993, Veil shows the band expand the margins of their sound with a more experimental approach. The album was described as "smokey" by one critic and an "epic swell of guitar and noise" by another. The album has been said to combine "R&B rhythms with crushed sonic shards," and has been compared to, and is sometimes considered to be shoegazing music.
David Watson is an American musician originally from New Zealand. Watson has lived and worked in New York City since 1987. Originally known as a guitarist, since 1991 Watson's work has also featured new music for the Highland Bagpipes.
Liturgy is an American black metal band from Brooklyn, New York. The band features Haela Hunt-Hendrix, Mario Miron (guitar), Tia Vincent-Clark (bass) and Leo Didkovsky (drums). The band have described their music as "transcendental black metal," which was especially described in a manifesto written by Hunt-Hendrix; in the process of transforming their style of black metal, they have experimented with other genres including progressive rock, hip hop and electronic music. In the band's early days, Hunt-Hendrix expressed her interest in the work of Swans, Glenn Branca, Rhys Chatham, La Monte Young and Lightning Bolt as influences.
Whirr is an American shoegaze band, formed in 2010 in Modesto, California. The band currently consists of vocalist and guitarists Joseph Bautista and Loren Rivera, guitarist Nick Bassett, bassist Eddie Salgado, and drummer Devin Nunes. The band underwent numerous lineups changes early in their history, including a rotating lineup of female vocalists and keyboardists and the departure of founding drummer Sergio Miranda, before settling on their current lineup in 2013.
A rock band or pop band is a small musical ensemble that performs rock music, pop music, or a related genre. A four-piece band is the most common configuration in rock and pop music. In the early years, the configuration was typically two guitarists, a bassist, and a drummer. Another common formation is a vocalist who does not play an instrument, electric guitarist, bass guitarist, and a drummer. Sometimes, in addition to electric guitars, electric bass, and drums, also a keyboardist plays.
Here Comes Success is the fifth and final studio album by American alternative rock band Band of Susans, released on February 28, 1995, by Blast First and Restless Records.
Wired for Sound is a compilation album by Band of Susans, released in 1995 by Blast First.
Robert Poss is an American guitarist and music producer. He was the front man and primary composer for Band of Susans between 1986 and 1996. He has also collaborated with Rhys Chatham and the band When People Were Shorter and Lived Near the Water. He co-founded Trace Elements Records in 1980, which released records from artists such as Nicolas Collins and Phill Niblock.
Tone is an instrumental post-rock band that formed in Washington, DC, in 1991. The group creates dynamic instrumental music using multiple electric guitars. While its two founding members, guitarist Norm Veenstra and drummer Gregg Hudson, have remained constant through most of the group’s history, Tone has also included former, current, or future members of Government Issue, Edsel, Pitchblende, Velocity Girl, Thud, Teen Idles, Unrest, Wharton Tiers Ensemble, Strange Boutique, Caligari, Smart Went Crazy, Raymi, and Night Streets. Veenstra has stated in interviews that the band would never have fewer than three guitarists.
