Favorite Obscure/Semi-Obscure Bands With Female Lead Singers

Nice to see a lot of my favorites mentioned here, like Graces, Swimming Pool Qs, Animal Logic and Slow Children...

But I must add two words: SUBURBAN LAWNS (Su Tissue). This was one of my favorite L.A. Punk/Wave groups. Most fmous for the tunes "Gidget Goes To Hell" and "Janitor" (and the accompanying videos), I the tunes "Mom And Dad And God" or "Flying Saucer Safari" were issued as singles they'd've gone places! Sadly, after a 1983 follow-up EP to their 1981 LP debut, they split up. Several members tried to continue on as simplt THE LAWNS, but it was over for them...

Other groups of note include NOVEMBER GROUP (Anne Prim), SPOONS (Sandy Horne), and (though not a band) my favorite angry female 80s rocker, Hazel O'Connor...

--Mr Bill

 

The Aussie version of The Captain had a bonus CD with 7 songs including the Eaglesmith and Crowded House covers + the I Still Pray duet with Paul Kelly. Worth searching for!!

I also recommend the Dead Ringer Band CD's (Aussie again) which feature Kasey on lead vocals.

 

Mazzy Star with Hope Sandoval as lead singer. She also did a record on her own as "The New Inventions"

 

Check out Feist. She's from Canada, but lives in France and has a French band. I think she's the best 'new' singer for ages. Album is 'Let It Die.'

http://www.listentofeist.com/SITE/

 

Here's another one: Dave's True Story.

Lounge jazz, I guess, if I HAD to classify. Dave Cantor's witty, wicked-smart lyrics combined with Kelly Flint's killer voice makes for great listening. Their fourth CD, Nature, is out in two weeks.

 

I remember Mary's Danish. A friend of mine had their CD when it first came out and played it for me. I liked it and he made a (yikes!) cassette copy for me.

I don't know if anyone mentioned them yet, but there is Hugo Largo. I always loved the depressing art-rock they did, and Mimi Goese's vocals could get so scary at times.

 

I am at work and too busy to search so if someone already mentioned Robin Lane & The Chartbusters let this be a second.

Peace-
Norm

 

Yes!!

I'm glad someone remembers TWD.

A couple of her solo albums are available from Hip-O Select.

How about Flame?

They put out 2 LP's on RCA in the mid 70's, "Queen of the Neighborhood" and "Flame"
Not to be confused with the Flame that contributed a couple of members to the Beach Boys.

Lead singer was Marge Raymond, guitar player was Jimmy Crespo. He later played with a Boston band for awhile....Aero something or other...

Siren - All Is Forgiven, Mercury 1989- Kristen Massey
Headpins - from Vancouver, Darby Mills
Letters To Cleo - Kay Hanley

 

and I can't believe no one has mentioned Romeo Void with Deborah Iyall

 

Feist just won a Juno (Canadian equivalent of a Grammy) for best new artist

 

LTC - Kay Hanley, she put out a solo album a year or so ago "Cherry Marmalade" and also did the "Josie" vocals for the songs in the movie Josie and The Pussycats.

I love Aurora, but I think their 2nd "Wholesale Meats And Fish" is their best.

 

Did anyone mention The Muffs, yet?

They had a minor alt hit years ago - "Sad Tomorrow"

 

I agree.

Just ordered their first (Sisters) and fourth (Go!) releases.

Can't wait to hear what they sound like

 

I like a lot of the female led groups/artists mentioned throughout this thread.

I'll add The Cold, a new-wave pop band out of New Orleans from '79 thru '85. Ellen DeGeneres' brother Vance was the bassist. It was fronted by a perky Barbara Menendez. Although they only released singles and a couple of albums locally, and limited to the southern region only.

 

United States of America
Insect Trust (these 2 late 60's bands were not always great, but truly great when they were great)
The Aquanettas
That Dog
cub
Martha and the Muffins
The Essex (Easier Said Than Done, A Walking Miracle...fun early 60's pop)

Are the Roches obscure? Were they a band? Anyway, the best.

Oh, and what about the Memphis Jug Band? that was a woman, wasn't it?

 

I emailed Rhino to see Insect Trust-Hoboken Saturday Night on cd from Handmade!
I'll add Demolition Doll Rods- Mr.Airplane Man- The Avengers- Waitresses- Paris Combo-
Au Pairs- pre Mazzy Opal-and less than obscure Divinyls & My Bloody Valentine.
Got to mention Smith of 'Baby It's You" fame & teenage garage fembots Pleasure Seekers w/Suzi Quatro + Nico like psychonauts of Amon Duul II & Brainticket. Lastly some sistas belted in front of funk bands like Betty Davis & Sharon Jones.

 

I just picked up MOJO's special psychedelic issue over the weekend and was pleased to find they listed this as one of the top 40 psychedelic albums of all time. I've got the original vinyl of this and the other Insect Trust album. Been a while since my last listen, though.

 

How about "Babes in Toyland". Pure energy unleashed!

 

YES, YES, YES! Except I only have heard one of their LPs, but boy what a great one - it's called A RIPPING SPIN and was their first, released in 1985 on the tiny Homestead label. But WHAT AN ALBUM! It's really a shame they never got much recognition, it's far superior to a lot of more lauded alt rock bands fronted by women in that era. Tuneful, intelligent, original, well-recorded, just a gem.

Other than Salem 66, I'd definitely second Throwing Muses...but primarily again just their first self-titled LP on 4AD. One of the best rock records ever, regardless of era. Barely contained frenzy. I have to say that to my ears they never came anywhere close to the level of that first LP with subsequent releases, although I like both Kristen Hersch and Tanya Donelly's post-Muses work (solo and in Donelly's case with various other bands).

 

Wow, I must be getting old, because I don't even consider them obscure, but I'm sure they must be.

 

Sun 60 with Joan Jones.

They released 3 great albums on Epic in the 90's and she has gone on to release some excellent solo work.

 

Luscious Jackson (neato toledo stuff)
Kitty/Kittie (hard core chick metal...hot. heh)
The Mosquitos (chill longe grooves)

 

The Gathering. Anneke Van Giersbergen has the voice of an angel.

Lacuna Coil is not so bad either.

 

I have some of their 45's and a 12" single. "Across My Heart" was the name of one of them. Sinead O'Connor sang on some of their stuff. Am I giving away my age? I turn 42 in two weeks.


I have 5 Fanny albums, there was a great Fanny thread on this site last year. All girl 4-piece led by Jean and June Millington, who were tiny Filipino ladies who rocked their audiences nearly deaf. They were loud, hard & great!

Better than a female vocalist is a female drummer in an otherwise all-male band. The Honeycombs, who did "Have I The Right" and were produced by Joe Meek.

 

In this same vein, a band called The Uptights, fronted by singer Caroline O'Dell, were contemporaries with The Cold in New Orleans. I think they only released one single ("I'm Awake") but recorded an album's worth of tracks, nearly all of which were a lot of fun and very catchy. Somewhere around here I've got a cassette of all their stuff, dubbed from a copy of a copy. Just like all obscure new wave rock should be.

I'm sure someone else has already mentioned Martha + The Muffins. "Echo Beach" was a cool song.

Jason