Swans are an American experimental rock band formed in 1981 by singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Michael Gira. One of the few acts to emerge from the New York City-based no wave scene and stay intact into the next decade, Swans have become recognized for an ever-changing sound, exploring genres such as noise rock, post-punk, industrial and post-rock. Initially, their music was known for its sonic brutality and misanthropic lyrics. Following the addition of singer, songwriter and keyboardist Jarboe in 1986, Swans began to incorporate melody and intricacy into their music. Jarboe remained the band's only constant member except Gira and semi-constant guitarist Norman Westberg until their dissolution in 1997.
Michael Rolfe Gira is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, author and artist. Now based in New Mexico, he founded the band Swans, in which he sings and plays guitar, in New York City in the 1980s at the height of the no wave movement. He is also the founder of Young God Records and previously fronted Angels of Light.
Filth is the debut studio album by American experimental rock band Swans. It was released in 1983 through Neutral Records, following the release of the band's self-titled debut EP in 1982. Though it did not receive much contemporary attention, Filth has since been recognized as ahead of its time and significant to heavy genres of music.
Greed is the third studio album by American experimental rock band Swans. It was released in 1986, through record label K.422. Greed marks the slow turning point for Swans away from the harsh, brutal noise rock of prior releases, and is also the first Swans album to contain contributions from Jarboe.
Soundtracks for the Blind is the tenth studio album by Swans. It was released as a double CD on October 22, 1996, through Young God Records. Soundtracks for the Blind was intended, as suggested by the title, to function as a "soundtrack for a non-existent film." Upon its release, it received widespread acclaim from critics, but was the last studio album released by the band until 2010's My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky. A reissue of the album was released on July 20, 2018, marking the first time Soundtracks for the Blind was released on vinyl.
The Burning World is the sixth studio album by American experimental rock band Swans. It was released in 1989, through record label Uni Records, the band's only major-label release. Co-produced by Bill Laswell and band leader Michael Gira, the album features a major stylistic shift from their past releases, being very tuneful and accessible compared to the bleak, industrialized sound from their past records. It received a mixed reception and was a commercial disappointment; the band was dropped from the record label following its poor performance.
White Light from the Mouth of Infinity is the seventh album by the American band Swans. It was released in 1991, through the record label Young God. The band supported the album with a North American tour.
Swans Are Dead is the fifth double and seventh overall live album by American experimental rock band Swans. It was released in 1998 and was recorded in 1995 and 1997 on the band's final tours, before reuniting in 2010.
"Time Is Money (Bastard)" is a song by American experimental rock band Swans. It was released as a 12-inch single in 1986, through record label K.422. The single is notable for the first official appearance of vocalist Jarboe.
A Screw is a single by the New York City experimental rock group Swans. The single's three songs were later appended as bonus tracks to the CD release of Holy Money.
Holy Money is an album by American experimental rock band Swans. It was released in March 1986, through record label K.422. The album was recorded in the same sessions as "Time Is Money (Bastard)", "A Screw", and Greed.
Feel Good Now is the second live album by the New York City no wave band Swans. It was recorded on a Sony Professional Walkman on their 1987 Children of God tour in Europe. A remaster of the album, along with the studio album Children of God, was released on November 13, 2020.
Love of Life is the eighth studio album by American experimental rock band Swans. It was released in 1992 on Young God Records.
Jarboe Devereaux, known mononymously as Jarboe, is an American singer and musician who came to prominence as a member of the New York City experimental rock band Swans in 1985. Jarboe and Michael Gira, the founder of Swans, were the two constant members of the group until it broke up in 1997.
The Seer is the twelfth studio album by the American experimental rock band Swans. It was released by Young God Records on August 28, 2012. Producer and front man Michael Gira funded the recording of the album with the sales of the live double album We Rose from Your Bed with the Sun in Our Head (2012).
Sacrificial Cake is the second studio album by Jarboe. It was released in 1995 through Alternative Tentacles, and is an accompaniment to Drainland by fellow Swans member Michael Gira.
The Body Lovers and The Body Haters were experimental music projects led by composer Michael Gira between 1998 and 1999 following the breakup of Swans in 1997. Both projects served as an outlet for Gira's loop experimentation within the drone and dark ambient genres and were compared to the compositions comprising Swans' final pre-breakup album Soundtracks for the Blind. The music was built around samples and found sounds, some of which dated as having been recorded as far back as 1980.
Drainland is the debut solo studio album by American musician Michael Gira. It was released on June 9, 1995, through Alternative Tentacles. Using spare arrangements recorded in August 1994 at musician Bill Rieflin's Seattle home, the album features contributions from Rieflin and Gira's Swans bandmate Jarboe.
The Glowing Man is the fourteenth studio album by American experimental rock band Swans, released on June 17, 2016 on Young God and Mute. It is considered the third and final part of a three-album "trilogy", the other two parts being The Seer and To Be Kind.
Is There Really a Mind? is a 2022 limited-edition fundraiser album by American experimental rock band Swans. The album was released in February 2022 on band leader Michael Gira's Young God Records. Limited to 2,500 copies, Is There Really a Mind? serves as a fundraiser for the sixteenth Swans album The Beggar, which began recording in May 2022 and was released on June 23, 2023. The latter announcement was coupled with the completed version of "Paradise Is Mine" being released as the new album's lead single.
