Line #18 Music/VerucaSalt


1	[[quoteright:295:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/verucasalt_7377.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:295:Don't be fooled, they can rock out hard enough.]]
3
4	->''Volcano Girls, we really can't be beat,\
5	Warm us up and watch us blow.\
6	But now and then we fail and we admit defeat,\
7	We're falling off, we are watered down and fully grown!''
8	-->--'''"Volcano Girls"'''
9
10	Veruca Salt are an AlternativeRock band from UsefulNotes/{{Chicago}}, formed in 1993. Named after a character from ''Literature/CharlieAndTheChocolateFactory,'' the band had some initial success in TheNineties before fading out of view.
11
12	The first and most famous incarnation of the band coalesced around Louise Post and Nina Gordon, who both played guitars, sang, and wrote almost all the band's songs (barring some covers and a co-write). Soon enough, they filled out the band with bassist Steve Lack and Nina's brother Jim Shapiro on drums, and gained a record deal with Minty Fresh Records. Their first album, ''American Thighs'', boasted their trademark Music/ThePixies influenced PowerPop and became reasonably successful, chiefly due to Gordon's "Seether" being released as a single and [[Music/LizPhair Brad Wood's]] {{Grunge}}y production helping it appeal to the alt-rock audience.
13
14	After buying time with a noisier, harsher EP called ''Blow It Out Your Ass It's Veruca Salt'', the band moved to Creator/GeffenRecords and began working on their next album with Bob Rock, apparently because they were impressed by his production for Music/{{Metallica}}'s SelfTitledAlbum. The result was ''Eight Arms to Hold You'', which once again became successful due to a Gordon lead single, namely "Volcano Girls" (the ColbertBump it got from being in the credits of ''{{Film/Jawbreaker}}'' may have helped). However, the band failed to sustain its momentum as subsequent singles from the album tanked on the charts and Shapiro left after the album was released, being replaced with Stacy Jones for the supporting tour.
15
16	The band acrimoniously collapsed only a year later as Gordon left with Lack after arguments with Post. Post re-organised the band, bringing in new members to an almost RevolvingDoorBand-like degree, and recorded two more albums: ''Resolver'', which got a lukewarm reception due to its unfocused nature and AuthorTract-like tendency to throw [[TakeThat potshots]] at Gordon and various other targets, and ''IV.''
17
18	Then the unthinkable happened, in March 2013 an announcement was made on the band's official Facebook saying "hatchets buried, axes exhumed" - officially PuttingTheBandBackTogether. Fan's patience was finally rewarded with the release of a new song "The Museum of Broken Relationships" in April 2014 followed by the band embarking on a US tour. A second new song "It's Holy" was released during the tour. A brand new album, ''Ghost Notes'', followed in 2015 cementing the band's return.
19	----
20
21	!! Notable Songs:
22
23	* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jC9AUR-iTo0 "Seether"]]
24	* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qyVSKydUxKk "Volcano Girls"]]
25	----
26
27	!! '''Members''':
28
29	First incarnation (1993-1998):
30
31	* Nina Gordon - guitar, vocals
32	* Louise Post - guitar, vocals
33	* Steve Lack - bass
34	* Jim Shapiro - drums, occasional vocals (1993-1997)
35	* Stacy Jones - drums (1997-1998)
36
37	Second incarnation (1998-2013):
38
39	* Louise Post - guitar, vocals
40	* Stephen Fitzpatrick - guitar
41	* Suzanne Sokol - bass (1998-2000)
42	* Gina Crosley - bass (2000-2005)
43	* Solomon Snyder - bass (2005)
44	* Nicole Fiorentino - bass (2005-2013, also playing with Music/TheSmashingPumpkins)
45	* Jimmy Madla - drums (1998-2005)
46	* Michael Miley - drums (2005)
47	* Kellii Scott - drums (2005-2013)
48
49	Third incarnation (2013-):
50
51	* Nina Gordon - guitar, vocals
52	* Louise Post - guitar, vocals
53	* Steve Lack - bass
54	* Jim Shapiro - drums, occasional vocals
55	----
56
57	!! '''Albums''':
58
59	* ''American Thighs'' (1994)
60	* ''Blow It Out Your Ass It's Veruca Salt'' EP (1996)
61	* ''Eight Arms to Hold You'' (1997)
62	* ''Resolver'' (2000)
63	* ''Officially Dead'' EP (2003)
64	* ''Lords of Sounds and Lesser Things'' (2005)
65	* ''IV'' (2006)
66	* ''Ghost Notes'' (2015)
67	----
68
69	!!Tropes are, neither, big nor small...
70
71	* BrotherSisterTeam: The band's first incarnation; Jim only joined because he owed his sister a favour.
72	* TheCameo: They cameo'ed as a replacement band in the video for "Painted Soldiers" by Music/{{Pavement}}.
73	* CallBack: The section of "Volcano Girls" where they sing 'the Seether's Louise' is a musical one to the first verse of "Seether", complete with scratchy guitar.
74	* CanonDiscontinuity: ''Resolver'' is potentially a victim of this, as this is their only studio album to be omitted from most digital/streaming music services. This was the first album since Nina Gordon left the band, and considering how several songs on the album contain harsh lyrics that are often believed to be about Gordon (for instance, "Born Entertainer" and "Only You Know"), it's understandable that they might not have wanted to acknowledge songs with such lyrics when Gordon and Post have since made peace.
75	* CoverVersion: "Bodies" by Music/SexPistols, "My Sharona" by Music/TheKnack, "Burned" by Music/NeilYoung.
76	* DarkerAndEdgier: Both of the Post-only albums.
77	* EpicRocking: "25" and "Disinherit" are longer than their usual songs.
78	* HulkingOut: What the song "Seether" is about.
79	* LyricalDissonance: There exists a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NG2EGOB9-lc solo Nina Gordon cover]] of Music/{{NWA}}'s "Straight Outta Compton," preformed in a cheery folk sound. We shit you not.
80	* MetalScream: Occasionally... "Shimmer Like a Girl", "I'm Taking Europe With Me", "Straight" and "Earthcrosser", for starters.
81	* PerishingAltRockVoice: Mostly present and accounted for.
82	* PunBasedTitle: ''Resolver.''
83	* RecordProducer: Brad Wood (''American Thighs''), [[Music/{{Nirvana}} Steve]] [[Music/PJHarvey Alb]][[Music/ThePixies ini]] (''Blow It Out Your Ass It's Veruca Salt''), [[Music/{{Metallica}} Bob Rock]] (''Eight Arms to Hold You''), and self-production since.
84	* SequelSong: "Volcano Girls" refers back to "Seether" and includes the "extra clue" that "the Seether's Louise" (Post).
85	* ShoutOut: Let's see... The band takes its name from a character in ''Literature/CharlieAndTheChocolateFactory'', ''American Thighs'' is a line from [[Music/{{ACDC}} "You Shook Me All Night Long"]], ''Eight Arms to Hold You'' was the working title for Music/TheBeatles' movie ''Film/{{Help}}'', ''Resolver'' is another [[Music/RevolverBeatlesAlbum Beatles pun]], ''Blow It Out Your Ass It's Veruca Salt'' could be a reference to ''Music/NeverMindTheBollocksHeresTheSexPistols,'' the bridge of "Number One Blind" quotes Music/ThePixies' "Stormy Weather", "With Music/DavidBowie" is obvious, "Laughing in the Sugar Bowl" namedrops [[Music/LedZeppelin "Whole Lotta Love"]] and [[Music/TheB52s "Dirty Back Road"]], and "Volcano Girls" simultaneously referenced "Glass Onion" by Music/TheBeatles and their first hit with the verse:
86	--> ''I told you about the Seether before''
87	--> ''You know the one that's neither or nor''
88	--> ''Well here's another clue if you please,''
89	--> ''[[TheWalrusWasPaul The Seether's Louise]]''
90	** The line 'jubilation, he loves me again' in "The Museum of Broken Relationships" is one to "Cecilia" by Music/SimonAndGarfunkel.
91	* SurprisinglyGentleSong: "Aurora."
92	** And Nina Gordon’s solo song “Tonight And The Rest Of My Life”, which became a minor hit shortly after the band broke up. It sounds more like Music/SarahMcLachlan than Veruca Salt.
93	* VocalTagTeam: Gordon and Post during the band's first incarnation -- typically each would sing lead vocals on half the songs on each album with the other providing harmony vocals.
94	* TakeThat: There's quite a bit of it on ''Resolver.''

Context Music / VerucaSalt