Violent Femmes

Violent Femmes are a rock band that formed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in the early 1980s. Gordon Gano (singer/guitarist), Brian Ritchie (bassist), and

Violent Femmes are a rock band that formed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in the early 1980s. Gordon Gano (singer/guitarist), Brian Ritchie (bassist), and Victor DeLorenzo (percussionist) founded the group and were discovered (and subsequently forgotten) by James Honeyman-Scott (of The Pretenders) when the band was playing on a street corner in front of the Milwaukee venue that The Pretenders would be playing later that night. The band signed to Slash Records and released a self-titled album in 1982. The music was an innovative combination of American folk music and indie rock. The lyrics were the common adolescent themes of yearning for love, sex and affection. The group quickly gained a small cult following that never burgeoned into widespread popularity, although a few songs from this album did get some recognition ("Add It Up", "Blister in the Sun", and "Kiss Off"). The debut album went platinum ten years after its release.

The following year, the Violent Femmes released Hallowed Ground, which moved the group to a more country music sound and introduced spiritual themes. Their third album, The Blind Leading the Naked, produced by fellow Milwaukee native Jerry Harrison of the Talking Heads, was more mainstream and pop-oriented, resulting in a minor hit with "Children of the Revolution" (originally by T. Rex). The group then disbanded, with Gano releasing an album in 1987, the result of a gospel side project Mercy Seat. Ritchie also released several solo LPs. The group came back together in 1989, releasing 3 and then Why Do Birds Sing? (1991), after signing to Reprise.