Club Babyhead was a

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

and hard rock music venue in

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts ...

. The venue was located at 73 Richmond Street. It was known for being dark and gritty.

Club nights

In 1992 and 1993, Club Babyhead was the only local venue providing space for

hardcore Hardcore, hard core or hard-core may refer to: Arts and media Film * ''Hardcore'' (1977 film), a British comedy film * ''Hardcore'' (1979 film), an American crime drama film starring George C Scott * ''Hardcore'' (2001 film), a British documen ...

acts. Audience members at the club's hardcore shows often engaged in

moshing Moshing (also known as slam dancing or simply slamming) is an extreme style of dancing in which participants push or slam into each other, typically performed to "aggressive" live music such as heavy metal and punk rock. Moshing usually happen ...

.Simon, Bradford Scott. "Entering the pit: Slam-dancing and modernity." ''Journal of popular culture'' 31.1 (1997): 149. Club Babyhead hosted a "Stupid Dance Party" Thursday and Sunday nights, that featured an eclectic mix of music DJ'ed by Jared Dubois. The club hosted

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...

club nights that attracted the rave scene. Club Babyhead regularly featured matinées, which teenagers attended.

Featured musicians

From 1990 to 1997, Club Babyhead featured performances from

Jennifer Finch Jennifer Finch (born August 5, 1966) is an American musician, designer, and photographer most notable for being the primary bass player of the punk rock band L7. Active in L7 from 1986 to 1996, Finch also wrote music and performed with her ban ...

, Buzzcocks, Babes in Toyland, Electrafixion,

Shelter Shelter is a small building giving temporary protection from bad weather or danger. Shelter may also refer to: Places * Port Shelter, Hong Kong * Shelter Bay (disambiguation), various locations * Shelter Cove (disambiguation), various locatio ...

The Breeders The Breeders are an American alternative rock band based in Dayton, Ohio, consisting of members Kim Deal (rhythm guitar, lead vocals), her twin sister Kelley Deal (lead guitar, vocals), Josephine Wiggs (bass guitar, vocals) and Jim Macpherso ...

Scarce In economics, scarcity "refers to the basic fact of life that there exists only a finite amount of human and nonhuman resources which the best technical knowledge is capable of using to produce only limited maximum amounts of each economic good. ...

, Alanis Morissette,

Yo La Tengo Yo La Tengo (YLT; Spanish for "I have her") is an American indie rock band formed in Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1984. Since 1992, the lineup has consisted of Ira Kaplan (guitars, piano, vocals), Georgia Hubley (drums, piano, vocals), and James M ...

, Melvins, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Pearl Jam,

The Smashing Pumpkins The Smashing Pumpkins (also referred to as simply Smashing Pumpkins) are an American alternative rock band from Chicago. Formed in 1988 by frontman and guitarist Billy Corgan, bassist D'arcy Wretzky, guitarist James Iha and drummer Jimmy Ch ...

Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...

Meat Puppets Meat Puppets are an American rock band formed in January 1980 in Phoenix, Arizona. The group's original lineup was Curt Kirkwood (guitar/vocals), his brother Cris Kirkwood (bass guitar/vocals), and Derrick Bostrom (drums). The Kirkwood brothe ...

, Mudhoney,

Blind Melon Blind Melon is an American rock band formed in 1990 in Los Angeles by five musicians: three from Mississippi, one from Pennsylvania and one from Indiana. The band currently consists of guitarists Rogers Stevens and Christopher Thorn, drummer ...

Bo Diddley Ellas McDaniel (born Ellas Otha Bates; December 30, 1928 – June 2, 2008), known professionally as Bo Diddley, was an American guitarist who played a key role in the transition from the blues to rock and roll. He influenced many artists, inc ...

, Green Day,

The Dead Kennedys Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band that formed in San Francisco, California, in 1978. The band was one of the defining punk bands during its initial eight-year run. Dead Kennedys' lyrics were usually political in nature, satirizing ...

Arab on Radar Arab on Radar was a Providence, Rhode Island-based noise rock band founded in 1994. They went on hiatus in 2002. Members of the band went on to form or join the bands including The Chinese Stars, Athletic Automaton, Made in Mexico, and Doomsda ...

Godflesh Godflesh are an English industrial metal band from Birmingham. The group formed in 1982 under the title Fall of Because but did not release any complete music until 1988 when Justin Broadrick (guitar, vocals and programming) and G. C. Gre ...

, Marilyn Manson,

Deftones Deftones is an American alternative metal band formed in Sacramento, California in 1988. They were formed by Chino Moreno (vocals, guitar), Stephen Carpenter (guitar), Abe Cunningham (drums), and Dominic Garcia (bass). During their first f ...

Catherine Wheel Catherine wheel may refer to: * wheel or breaking wheel, an instrument of torturous execution originally associated with Saint Catherine of Alexandria * Catherine wheel (firework), a firework that rotates when lit Arts and entertainment * Cather ...

, The Proletariat,

Snuff Snuff may refer to: Tobacco * Snuff (tobacco), fine-ground tobacco, sniffed into the nose ** Moist snuff or dipping tobacco ** Creamy snuff, an Indian tobacco paste Media and entertainment * Snuff film, a type of film that shows a murder Literat ...

Butt Trumpet Butt Trumpet is a Los Angeles-based punk band founded and maintained by Thom Bone. It is known for its crass lyrics and deliberately offensive style. The group features two bassists among its members. They became famous in 1994 when their Chry ...

Throwing Muses Throwing Muses are an American alternative rock band formed in 1981 in Newport, Rhode Island, United States, that toured and recorded extensively until 1997, when its members began concentrating more on other projects. The group was originall ...

Goo Goo Dolls The Goo Goo Dolls are an American rock band formed in 1986 in Buffalo, New York, by guitarist/vocalist John Rzeznik, bassist/vocalist Robby Takac, and drummer George Tutuska. After starting off as a cover band and then developing a punk sou ...

Samiam Samiam (pronounced "sam-I-am") is an American punk rock band from Berkeley, California, active since 1988. History Samiam was formed in late 1988 after the breakup of the Gilman club mainstay Isocracy. Their first show was in January 1989 wit ...

, Only Living Witness, and Korn.

Nirvana show

On September 25, 1991, Nirvana performed alongside Melvins at Club Babyhead. The show occurred a day after ''

Nevermind ''Nevermind'' is the second studio album by the American rock band Nirvana, released on September 24, 1991, by DGC Records. It was Nirvana's first release on a major label and the first to feature drummer Dave Grohl. Produced by Butch Vig, '' ...

'' was released, as part of Nirvana's ''Nevermind'' tour. Kurt Cobain broke his amp while the band played the first song "Jesus Doesn’t Want Me for a Sunbeam", a cover of " Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam" by

The Vaselines The Vaselines are a Scottish alternative rock band. Formed in Glasgow, Scotland in 1986, the band was originally a duo between its songwriters Eugene Kelly and Frances McKee, but later added James Seenan and Eugene's brother Charlie Kelly on b ...

. During the performance, the band played several covers, including "

Here She Comes Now "Here She Comes Now" is a song released by the American rock band the Velvet Underground in January 1968, from their second studio album ''White Light/White Heat''. As the shortest song on the album, the performance and mix of the song are both c ...

" by

The Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground was an American rock band formed in New York City in 1964. The original line-up consisted of singer/guitarist Lou Reed, multi-instrumentalist John Cale, guitarist Sterling Morrison, and drummer Angus MacLise. MacLise ...

and "D-7" by Wipers. That night, Nirvana played, “Help Me, I’m Hungry”, which they rarely performed. As Cobain was having technical problems during the show, he smashed his

Boss DS-1 The Boss DS-1 is a distortion pedal for guitar, manufactured by the Roland Corporation under the brand name Boss since 1978. The first distortion effects unit made by Boss, it has become a classic effect, used by many notable guitar players. B ...

Distortion pedal Distortion and overdrive are forms of audio signal processing used to alter the sound of amplified electric musical instruments, usually by increasing their gain, producing a "fuzzy", "growling", or "gritty" tone. Distortion is most commonly ...

on stage, and threw it into the crowd. In 2020, the pedal was sold on

Julien's Auctions Type Private Industry Art, Auctions Founded 2003; 20 years ago Headquarters 13007 S. Western Avenue, Gardena, CA 90249 Key people • Darren Julien (Founder, CEO, President) • Martin J. Nolan (Executive Director, CFO) Website www.juliensauctio ...

for $8,960.{{Cite web , last=Buchanan , first=Brett , date=2020-06-25 , title=Kurt Cobain Broken Instrument Sold For Stunning Price , url=http://www.alternativenation.net/kurt-cobain-broken-instrument-sold-stunning-price/ , access-date=2023-03-04 , website=Alternative Nation , language=en-US

References

Arts centers in Rhode Island Arts organizations based in Rhode Island Buildings and structures in Providence, Rhode Island Electronic dance music venues Music venues in Rhode Island New wave music Performing arts centers in Rhode Island Punk rock venues Rock music venues Social centres in the United States Theatres in Rhode Island Tourist attractions in Providence, Rhode Island Underground culture