Deerhoof are an American musical group formed in San Francisco in 1994. They currently consist of founding drummer
Greg Saunier
Greg Saunier (born 18 May 1969) is a musician, producer, and composer best known as the drummer and founding member of Deerhoof.
''Rolling Stone'' included Saunier alongside Brian Chippendale (of Lightning Bolt) and Zach Hill (of Hella, lat ...
, bassist and singer
Satomi Matsuzaki
Deerhoof are an American musical group formed in San Francisco in 1994. They currently consist of founding drummer Greg Saunier, bassist and singer Satomi Matsuzaki, and guitarists John Dieterich and Ed Rodriguez. Beginning as an improvised n ...
, and guitarists John Dieterich and Ed Rodriguez. Beginning as an improvised
noise punk
Noise rock (sometimes called noise punk) is a noise-oriented style of experimental rock that spun off from punk rock in the 1980s. Drawing on movements such as minimalism, industrial music, and New York hardcore, artists indulge in extreme ...
band, Deerhoof became widely renowned and influential in the 2000s through self-produced albums.
They have released eighteen studio albums since 1997. Their most recent album, ''
Actually, You Can
''Actually, You Can'' is the seventeenth studio album by the experimental rock band Deerhoof
Deerhoof are an American musical group formed in San Francisco in 1994. They currently consist of founding drummer Greg Saunier, bassist and singe ...
'', was released on 22 October 2021.
History
Formation
Deerhoof were formed in San Francisco in 1994 as Rob Fisk's
improvisational
Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...
bass/harmonica solo project.
Greg Saunier
Greg Saunier (born 18 May 1969) is a musician, producer, and composer best known as the drummer and founding member of Deerhoof.
''Rolling Stone'' included Saunier alongside Brian Chippendale (of Lightning Bolt) and Zach Hill (of Hella, lat ...
joined on drums a week later.
They were quickly signed to record a single for
Kill Rock Stars
Kill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in 1991 by Slim Moon and Tinuviel Sampson, and based in both Olympia, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, but was originally know ...
after owner
Slim Moon
Matthew "Slim" Moon (born October 15, 1967) is an American musician and the founder of the American independent music label Kill Rock Stars (KRS). He also started its sister label, 5 Rue Christine. Slim ran KRS from 1991 to 2006, during which t ...
witnessed their performance at the 1994
Yoyo A Go Go
Yoyo A Go Go, usually abbreviated to Yoyo and often typeset in various ways, was an independent music festival in Olympia, Washington, first held in 1994 and followed by successor festivals in 1997, 1999, and 2001. Five- and six-day concert marat ...
festival.
Satomi Matsuzaki joined Deerhoof within a week of moving to the United States from Japan in May 1995, with no prior experience playing in a band, and went on tour as Deerhoof's singer only a week later, opening for
Caroliner
Caroliner, a group formed in 1983 in San Francisco, is an industrial bluegrass–experimental–Noise conceptual art band that uses instruments from bluegrass and rock traditions, as well as homemade electronics and other modified instruments. In ...
. Their 1997 debut album ''
The Man, the King, the Girl
''The Man, the King, the Girl'' is Deerhoof's first album. It was released on Kill Rock Stars.
Track listing
#"Tiger Chain"
#"Polly Bee"
#"Sophie"
#"A-Town Test Site"
#"Gold on Black"
#"For Those of Us on Foot"
#"Gore in Rut"
#"Wheely Freed Spea ...
'' was recorded on
4-track tape.
Deerhoof had a music practice space at the Art Explosion Studios at 2425-17th Street in the
Mission District
The Mission District (Spanish: ''Distrito de la Misión''), commonly known as The Mission (Spanish: ''La Misión''), is a neighborhood in San Francisco, California. One of the oldest neighborhoods in San Francisco, the Mission District's name is ...
; other bands in this space included
Creeper Lagoon
Creeper Lagoon is a San Francisco indie-rock band originally started by Sharky Laguana as a solo project in 1991. They are currently on Laguana's digital record label, Neglektra.
History
Sharky Laguana and Ian Sefchick both played in the Cin ...
,
Beulah, Zmrzlina, Don't Mean Maybe, and S-- S-- Band Band.
Breakthrough
Chris Cohen
Christopher David Cohen (born 5 March 1987) is an English former professional footballer and is currently assistant manager at Southampton.
Primarily a midfielder, he was able to operate equally in the centre or on the left, but was also emplo ...
joined Deerhoof on guitar in 2002, between ''Reveille'' completion and release.
In contrast to ''Reveille'' digital production process, 2003's ''
Apple O'
''Apple O'' is the fifth studio album by the indie rock band Deerhoof. It was released in 2003 on Kill Rock Stars and 5 Rue Christine, an offshoot of Kill Rock Stars. The album is the group's first with guitarist Chris Cohen.
The 2013 LP version ...
'' was played almost entirely live to tape in one nine-hour session with Jay Pellicci engineering.
Extinction,
nuclear holocaust
A nuclear holocaust, also known as a nuclear apocalypse, nuclear Armageddon, or atomic holocaust, is a theoretical scenario where the mass detonation of nuclear weapons causes globally widespread destruction and radioactive fallout. Such a scenar ...
,
invasive species
An invasive species otherwise known as an alien is an introduced organism that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Although most introduced species are neutral or beneficial with respect to other species, invasive species ad ...
, and the Greek god of music all figure prominently in the album's themes.
Karen O
Karen Lee Orzolek (born November 22, 1978) is a South Korean-born American singer, musician, and songwriter. She is the lead vocalist for the indie rock band Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
Early life
She was born in Seoul, South Korea, the daughter of a Ko ...
chose ''Apple O'' in the Rolling Stone 2003 Music Awards, Artists' Top Albums,
and the album received some critical praise, notably in the ''New York Times''. But in what was to become a pattern for Deerhoof, the album's critical appraisal improved with time, and ''
Apple O'
''Apple O'' is the fifth studio album by the indie rock band Deerhoof. It was released in 2003 on Kill Rock Stars and 5 Rue Christine, an offshoot of Kill Rock Stars. The album is the group's first with guitarist Chris Cohen.
The 2013 LP version ...
'' was later listed by Pitchfork as one of the top albums of the 2000s. The anti-war themes of the record were underscored by Deerhoof's outspoken opposition to that year's invasion of Iraq.
By 2003 Deerhoof had become the longest-running band on
Kill Rock Stars
Kill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in 1991 by Slim Moon and Tinuviel Sampson, and based in both Olympia, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, but was originally know ...
.
Matsuzaki was editing a Bay Area Japanese magazine, Cohen was waiting tables at a Thai restaurant, and Dieterich and Saunier were doing data entry for legal and consulting firms,
but that year they all decided to quit their jobs simultaneously and focus on touring.
That year they contributed to ''Azadi! A Benefit Compilation for the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan''. Saunier also released ''Nervous Cop'', a collaboration album with
Zach Hill
Zachary Charles Hill (born December 28, 1979) is an American multi-instrumentalist and visual artist. He is best known as the drummer and co-producer of the groups Death Grips and the I.L.Y's, and as the drummer of math rock band Hella.
Art
In ...
and
Joanna Newsom.
![Deerhoof2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Deerhoof2.jpg)
Deerhoof's next record took its inspiration from a crudely drawn character created by Japanese artist Ken Kagami.
2004's
''Milk Man'' the album featured an opulent, campy sound inspired by
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
and
Igor Stravinsky
Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of the ...
.
It was nominated for "Outstanding Alternative Album" in the California Music Awards,
and stayed at #1 on the Dusted Radio Chart for six straight weeks, and reached #1 on the
CMJ
CMJ Holdings Corp. is a music events and online media company, originally founded in 1978, which ran a website, hosted an annual festival in New York City, and published two magazines, ''CMJ New Music Monthly'' and ''CMJ New Music Report''. Th ...
Core Chart.
Also in 2004 Deerhoof received the Editor's Choice Award from ''
7x7'' magazine, and was voted "Best Local Rock Band" by readers of SF Weekly.
In 2006 ''Milk Man'' was adapted to a children's ballet.
Deerhoof's next release was their first to be sung in Matsuzaki's native language of Japanese.
2005's mini-album ''
Green Cosmos'' combined an orchestral sound with dance music styles.
Deerhoof spent several months in 2005 in a rented rehearsal space in Oakland, writing and recording daily as a full band. When the result was released that fall, the double album ''
The Runners Four
''The Runners Four'' is the seventh studio album by American indie rock band Deerhoof, released on October 11, 2005 by Kill Rock Stars, ATP Recordings and 5 Rue Christine. A vinyl edition with a different cover was released by the label Children ...
'' featured each band member taking turns as vocalist, singing unusually wordy lyrics in which Arks and time capsules recur, as though foretelling that this would be the final recording of this lineup.
Instrumental roles were reversed for Matsuzaki (now on guitar) and Cohen (now on bass).
In 2006,
Danielson
Danielson is an American rock band from Clarksboro, New Jersey, that plays indie pop gospel music. The group consists of frontman Daniel Smith and a number of various artists with whom he collaborates. Smith has also released solo work as Br ...
released the critically acclaimed ''
Ships
A ship is a large watercraft that travels the world's oceans and other sufficiently deep waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research, and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished ...
'', which featured Deerhoof as the backing band for many of the tracks. Later that year, after an extensive world tour that ended at
Coachella Coachella may refer to:
* Coachella, California
* Coachella Canal, in California
* Coachella (festival), an annual music and arts festival in California
* "Coachella – Woodstock in My Mind", a 2017 song by Lana del Rey
See also
* Coachell ...
, Deerhoof composed and performed a live soundtrack to
Harry Smith's hour-long animation masterpiece ''
Heaven and Earth Magic
''Heaven and Earth Magic'' (also known as ''Number 12'', ''The Magic Feature'', or ''Heaven and Earth Magic Feature'') is a 1962 American avant-garde independent cutout animation film directed by visual artist, filmmaker and mystic Harry Everett ...
'' at the
San Francisco International Film Festival
The San Francisco International Film Festival (abbreviated as SFIFF), organized by the San Francisco Film Society, is held each spring for two weeks, presenting around 200 films from over 50 countries. The festival highlights current trends in in ...
. This was to be Cohen's last activity with Deerhoof. The split was amicable and, to commemorate Cohen, Deerhoof posted
a free EP on their website, one of several they have posted over the years.
Chris Cohen
Christopher David Cohen (born 5 March 1987) is an English former professional footballer and is currently assistant manager at Southampton.
Primarily a midfielder, he was able to operate equally in the centre or on the left, but was also emplo ...
now records and tours as a solo act.
Reconfiguration
Matsuzaki, Saunier, and Dieterich began a new recording as a trio. Despite being recorded mostly in Dieterich's bedroom and being mixed on the band's laptop in hotel rooms during tours with
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...
,
The Flaming Lips
The Flaming Lips are an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1983 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The band currently consists of Wayne Coyne (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Steven Drozd (guitars, keyboards, bass, drums, vocals), Derek Brown (keyb ...
, and
Beck
Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi music, lo-fi style, and became ...
,
Some material was from the "Heaven and Earth Magic" soundtrack, some was completely orchestral (without drums or guitars), and one song ("Matchbook Seeks Maniac") was created specifically for the end credits of a Hollywood film. The album was highly praised in Pitchfork and Rolling Stone.
![Deerhoofprospect](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Deerhoofprospect.png)
By January 2008 Deerhoof became a quartet again with the addition of
The Flying Luttenbachers
The Flying Luttenbachers is an American instrumental unit led by multi-instrumentalist/ composer/ improviser/ producer Weasel Walter. The Flying Luttenbachers have created a body of work focused on musical extremity and dissonance. Over the cou ...
/
Gorge Trio Gorge Trio is an American experimental rock band based in Oakland, California. It is composed of three-fourths of the critically acclaimed math rock band Colossamite, which disbanded in 1998, and is survived by three releases on Skin Graft Records. ...
/
XBXRX
XBXRX is an American rock band formed in 1998 in Mobile, Alabama, United States. Their early sound was no wave-influenced, but became more improvised and deconstructed, moving away from using the synthesizers that typify new wave. They are a co ...
guitarist and longtime friend Ed Rodriguez. That summer Deerhoof released the song "Fresh Born" online as sheet music only, anticipating similar experiments by
Beck
Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi music, lo-fi style, and became ...
and
Blur by several years. Fans recorded and uploaded their own versions of the song to a special site, before anyone outside the band had heard Deerhoof's own version. The October 2008s album ''
Offend Maggie'' received critical praise from VH1, NPR, Entertainment Weekly, Alternative Press, The Guardian, and Mojo.
![Deerhoof on stage](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/84/Deerhoof_on_stage.jpg)
In April 2010 Deerhoof curated the Belgian music festival Sonic City, inviting an eclectic array of European acts including
The Go! Team
The Go! Team are an English six-piece band from Brighton, England. The band initially began as a solo project conceived by Ian Parton; however, after the unexpected success of The Go! Team's debut album, '' Thunder, Lightning, Strike'', Parton r ...
,
Paolo Pandolfo
Paolo Pandolfo is an Italian virtuoso player, composer, and teacher of music for the viola da gamba, born on January 31, 1964.
He began his studies as a double bass and guitar player, becoming a skilled performer of jazz and popular music.Ernesto ...
, and sitting in with the Belgian punk band
The Kids. Then in April and July 2010, Deerhoof and
Xiu Xiu
Xiu Xiu ( ) is an American experimental band, formed in 2002 by singer-songwriter Jamie Stewart in San Jose, California. Currently, the line-up consists of Stewart (the only constant member since formation) and Angela Seo. The band's name co ...
joined to perform
Joy Division
Joy Division were an English rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist Ian Curtis, guitarist/keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris.
Sumner and Hook formed the band after attend ...
's album ''Unknown Pleasures'' live at the Donaufestival in Austria, and at Brooklyn's Williamsburg Waterfront.
Format experimentation
Building on "I Did Crimes For You", they continued during this time to record themselves in a rented rehearsal space in Oakland. Musical influences from
the Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band that formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and frie ...
,
new romanticism
The New Romantic movement was an underground subculture movement that originated in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The movement emerged from the nightclub scene in London and Birmingham at venues such as Billy's and The Blitz. The New ...
,
tropicalia, and the
Congotronics series all found their way onto 2011's ''
Deerhoof vs. Evil''. The band released the album one track at a time via different media outlets online, with a full map and schedule available on their own website. The album received critical acclaim notably from Entertainment Weekly, MOJO, and Paste. Matt Goldman's design was the second Deerhoof album cover to feature a mushroom cloud. A remix of "Behold a Marvel in the Darkness" was done by Shugo Tokumaru. Deerhoof immediately initiated a 7-inch series wherein guest vocalists (including
Jeff Tweedy of
Wilco
Wilco is an American alternative rock band based in Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo following singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently d ...
,
Kevin Barnes
Kevin Lawrence Barnes (born May 30, 1974) is the singer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter for the indie rock group of Montreal, part of the Elephant 6 Collective. Barnes started the band and, although providing several stories as to the ...
of
Of Montreal, singer-songwriter
David Bazan
David Bazan (; born January 22, 1976) is an American indie rock singer-songwriter from Phoenix, Arizona who now resides in Seattle, Washington. Bazan is the lead singer and creative force behind the band Pedro the Lion and was the lead singer ...
, rapper
Busdriver
Regan Farquhar (born February 12, 1978), better known by his stage name Busdriver, is an American rapper and producer from Los Angeles, California. He has collaborated with rappers such as Myka 9, Milo, Nocando, Open Mike Eagle, 2Mex, and Radioi ...
, and others) sang new lyrics over an instrumental of a ''
Deerhoof vs. Evil'' song of their choice.
Deerhoof were ''
The Wire
''The Wire'' is an American Crime film, crime drama Television show, television series created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon. The series was broadcast by the cable network HBO in the United States. ''The ...
'' magazine's January 2011 cover story. They contributed to Polyvinyl's benefit compilation ''Japan 3.11.11'' joining in the relief efforts to help with the devastation from March's earthquake and tsunami. Throughout the summer of 2011, Deerhoof toured in an international supergroup alongside
Konono N°1,
Juana Molina
Juana Rosario Molina (; born 1 October 1961) is an Argentine singer, songwriter and actress, based in Buenos Aires. She is known for her distinctive sound, considered an exponent of folktronica, although it has also been described as ambient, exp ...
,
Kasai Allstars Kasai Allstars are a 25-piece musical collective based in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. The musicians originally come from the Kasai region, but originating from five different ethnic groups: the Songye, Lulua, Tetela, Luba, and L ...
and others, called Congotronics Vs. Rockers. Their onstage repertoire included the Deerhoof song "Super Duper Rescue Heads" from ''Deerhoof Vs. Evil''. In April 2012 Deerhoof collaborated with
Questlove,
Reggie Watts
Reginald Lucien Frank Roger Watts (born March 23, 1972) is an American comedian, actor, beatboxer, and musician. His improvised musical sets are created using only his voice, a keyboard, and a looping machine. Watts refers to himself as a "disinf ...
,
Sasha Grey
Marina Ann Hantzis (born March 14, 1988), known professionally as Sasha Grey, is an American actress, model, writer, musician, and former pornographic actress. Grey began her acting career in the pornographic film industry, winning 15 awards for ...
and others in a conceptual concert event called ''Shuffle Culture'' at Brooklyn Academy of Music. April 2012 also saw the release of young adult fiction book ''Rules to Rock By'', by Josh Farrar, about a 12-year-old girl who's inspired by Deerhoof to form her own band. Deerhoof's version of
LiLiPUT
LiLiPUT, initially known as Kleenex, were a Swiss punk rock band formed in Zürich in 1978. The band experienced numerous line-up changes throughout their existence, with bassist Klaudia Schiff being the only constant member of the band over th ...
's "Hitchhike" appears on the soundtrack. In June 2012 at a Deerhoof performance in Chicago's Millennium Park,
contemporary classical music
Contemporary classical music is classical music composed close to the present day. At the beginning of the 21st century, it commonly referred to the post-1945 modern forms of post-tonal music after the death of Anton Webern, and included seria ...
ensemble Dal Niente
Ensemble Dal Niente is a contemporary classical music ensemble based in Chicago, Illinois, USA that performs acoustic and electroacoustic chamber music.
History
Ensemble Dal Niente was founded in 2005 by a group of graduate student composers a ...
performed
Marcos Balter
Marcos Balter (born April 1, 1974) is a Brazilian contemporary classical music composer and the Fritz Reiner Professor of Musical Composition at Columbia University.
Life and professional career
Balter began his music studies at age five at th ...
's arrangement of Deerhoof's "Eaguru Guru".
The same month, Deerhoof and
The Flaming Lips
The Flaming Lips are an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1983 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The band currently consists of Wayne Coyne (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Steven Drozd (guitars, keyboards, bass, drums, vocals), Derek Brown (keyb ...
performed onstage together playing songs by
King Crimson
King Crimson are a progressive rock band formed in 1968 in London, England. The band draws inspiration from a wide variety of music, incorporating elements of classical, jazz, folk, heavy metal, gamelan, industrial, electronic, experime ...
,
Canned Heat
Canned Heat is an American band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1965. The group is noted for its efforts to promote interest in blues music and its original artists and rock music. It was founded by two blues enthusiasts Alan Wilson and Bob ...
, and Deerhoof.
In 2012 Deerhoof also began home-recording their next record ''
Breakup Song
A breakup song is a song describing the breakup of an intimate relationship, with associated emotions of sadness, frustration, anger, and sometimes of acceptance or relief. As one source states (discussing the upbeat breakup song " Better Things ...
''. The band said that the album was a response to the tradition of breakup songs, which they felt included too many sad songs and too few empowering ones. After a long final mixing session at Saunier's apartment, Matsuzaki took the front cover photo of a garbage truck in the early morning hours. The Polyvinyl Records release was also released on
Joyful Noise Recordings
Joyful Noise Recordings is an independent record label from Indianapolis, Indiana. The label was founded in 2003 in Bloomington, Indiana by Karl Hofstetter, who also played drums on many of the label's first releases. Joyful Noise maintains an a ...
in "flexi-book" format, allowing the listener to flip from song to song as if each track were a page in a storybook. Deerhoof hero Simeon of
Silver Apples
Silver Apples were an American electronic rock group from New York, active between 1967 and 1970, before reforming in the mid-1990s. It was composed of Simeon (born Simeon Oliver Coxe III, June 4, 1938 – September 8, 2020), who performed o ...
made a remix of "Mario's Flaming Whiskers III". Revealing some of Deerhoof's working methods and group chemistry, a rare full-band interview, with former MTV VJ
John Norris, appeared in the fall 2012 ''
Interview
An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" ...
'' magazine.
In October, they released a single "Sexy, but Sparkly", produced by ''
Fear of a Black Planet
''Fear of a Black Planet'' is the third studio album by American hip hop group Public Enemy. It was released on April 10, 1990, by Def Jam Recordings and Columbia Records, and produced by the group's production team The Bomb Squad, who expanded ...
'' co-producer Chris Shaw, marking the first time Deerhoof worked with a producer. It was recorded as part of the series of short documentaries Masters From Their Day, which chronicles the efforts of a band and a record-producer as they attempt to record and mix a new single in one day. The song then appeared in the LAMC split-7" series, in which a more known artist chooses a lesser-known one (Deerhoof chose Half Waif) to make their recorded debut, with proceeds going to the Ariel Panero Memorial Fund at VH1 Save the Music.
Deerhoof's twelfth album, 2014's
''La Isla Bonita'' was self-recorded live in guitarist Ed Rodriguez's basement during a "weeklong sleepover arguing over whether to try and sound like
Joan Jett
Joan Jett (born Joan Marie Larkin, September 22, 1958) is an American singer, guitarist, record producer, and actress. Jett is best known for her work as the frontwoman of her band Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and for earlier founding and per ...
or
Janet Jackson
Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreog ...
". The recordings were meant as demos to be rerecorded with former music journalist and Mr. Dream drummer Nick Sylvester, but the band liked the raw DIY versions so much, they just kept them and recorded the vocals with Sylvester. The lyrics were heavily influenced by ''24/7'', a book by Columbia professor
Jonathan Crary
Jonathan Crary is an art critic and essayist, and is Meyer Schapiro Professor of Modern Art and Theory at Columbia University. His first notable works were ''Techniques of the Observer: On Vision and Modernity in the 19th Century'' (1990), and ...
. The album art was by
Sara Cwynar
Sara Cwynar is a contemporary artist who works with photography, collage, installation and book-making. Cwynar was born in Vancouver, Canada in 1985 and currently lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. Cwynar's work presents a marriage of old a ...
. Their music video for "Exit Only" featured
Michael Shannon
Michael Corbett Shannon (born August 7, 1974) is an American actor, producer, musician, and theater director. He is an off beat actor known for his on-screen versatility, performing in both comedies and dramas. He became known for his frequent ...
playing two roles, with a cameo by Rodriguez. The Guardian, on their exclusive preview stream of ''La Isla Bonita'', collected testimonials about Deerhoof from a variety of notable musicians and artists, including
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...
's
Jonny Greenwood,
Henry Rollins
Henry Lawrence Garfield (born February 13, 1961), known professionally as Henry Rollins, is an American singer, writer, spoken word artist, actor, and presenter. After performing in the short-lived hardcore punk band State of Alert in 1980, Rolli ...
,
Blur's
Graham Coxon
Graham Leslie Coxon (born 12 March 1969) is an English musician, singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and painter who came to prominence as a founding member of the rock band Blur. As the group's lead guitarist and secondary vocalist, Cox ...
,
Adam Green, the
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are an American indie rock band formed in New York City in 2000. The group is composed of vocalist and pianist Karen O (born Karen Lee Orzolek), guitarist and keyboardist Nick Zinner, and drummer Brian Chase. They are complem ...
's
Brian Chase
Brian Chase (born February 12, 1978) is an American drummer and drone musician who plays in the New York rock band Yeah Yeah Yeahs. He was ranked at #50 in Gigwise's list of ''The Greatest Drummers of All Time''. He plays drums with traditional ...
, and
David Shrigley
David John Shrigley (born 17 September 1968) is a British visual artist. He lived and worked in Glasgow, Scotland for 27 years before moving to Brighton, England in 2015.
Early life and education
Shrigley was born 17 September 1968 in Maccles ...
.
The album received high praise from NPR, A.V. Club, Alternative Press, and The Wire, and was reviewed by
Tune-Yards
Tune-Yards (stylized as tUnE-yArDs) is the American, Oakland, California–based music project of Merrill Garbus and Nate Brenner. Garbus's music draws from an eclectic variety of sources and utilizes elements such as loop pedals, ukulele, voca ...
' Merril Garbus for Talkhouse.
20-year anniversary
For Deerhoof and
Lightning Bolt's mutual 20-year anniversary, Matt Conboy directed a Pitchfork-premiered documentary called "Checking in at 20" about their respective drummers. 2014 also saw the release of Deerhoof's contribution to the ''BOATS'' compilation, an international arts project featuring and supporting Dalit "untouchable" children in south-east India and featuring samples of the Light of Love Children's Choir.
During the world tour for ''La Isla Bonita'', three complete-performance live videos were shot: their November 4 record release show in Brooklyn, a nine-song Boiler Room session recorded in London while both Rodriguez and Matsuzaki were ill with fevers and Saunier had a black eye, and a December 16 performance recorded at a tiny Tokyo rock club called Fever, resulting in a live album, ''Fever 121614''. The 2015 release included a downloadable video of the entire show, edited by longtime friend and collaborator Noriko Oishi. The LP/CD artwork included a massive collage of fan-contributed drawings of the band in manga style. Also in 2015 Deerhoof contributed a track in support of gay and transgender Hoosiers on the
Joyful Noise compilation ''50 Bands & a Cat for Indiana Equality''.
In August 2015, the band was the first act invited to perform improvisational site-specific noise music at
CERN
The European Organization for Nuclear Research, known as CERN (; ; ), is an intergovernmental organization that operates the largest particle physics laboratory in the world. Established in 1954, it is based in a northwestern suburb of Gene ...
's
Large Hadron Collider
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is the world's largest and highest-energy particle collider. It was built by the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) between 1998 and 2008 in collaboration with over 10,000 scientists and hundred ...
, as part of the Ex/Noise/CERN project, founded by particle physicist James Beacham, who stated, “Musical curiosity is similar to scientific curiosity and, on a personal level, Deerhoof has inspired me as much as Einstein”. The resulting film of the project quickly became one of the top ten most-watched videos ever produced by CERN and received wide coverage in the music, art, and science press, as well as positive responses from notable artists, musicians, and writers.
In 2016 Deerhoof released
''The Magic''. The album blends
glam metal
Glam metal (also known as hair metal or pop metal) is a subgenre of heavy metal that features pop-influenced hooks and guitar riffs, upbeat rock anthems, and slow power ballads. It borrows heavily from the fashion and image of 1970s glam r ...
, punk, and noise, but also includes a cover of "I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire" by
The Ink Spots
The Ink Spots were an American pop vocal group who gained international fame in the 1930s and 1940s. Their unique musical style presaged the rhythm and blues and rock and roll musical genres, and the subgenre doo-wop. The Ink Spots were widely ac ...
. The cover art was by Matsuzaki. Joseph Baughman created the stop-motion music video for the album's "The Devil and his Anarchic Surrealist Retinue". Baughman described his style as a
slow-motion
Slow motion (commonly abbreviated as slo-mo or slow-mo) is an effect in film-making whereby time appears to be slowed down. It was invented by the Austrian priest August Musger in the early 20th century. This can be accomplished through the use ...
improvisation
Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...
. The
clay animated video features chessboard pieces and multicolored
minotaurs
In Greek mythology, the Minotaur ( , ;. grc, ; in Latin as ''Minotaurus'' ) is a mythical creature portrayed during classical antiquity with the head and tail of a bull and the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, a being "pa ...
.
''The Magic'' was the first Deerhoof album to hit #1 on CMJ, and was highly praised by NPR, A.V. Club and Exclaim. A.V. Club invited them to participate in A.V. Undercover, where bands choose from an ever-dwindling list of songs to cover on video. They ended up with "Goody Two Shoes" by
Adam Ant
Stuart Leslie Goddard, better known as Adam Ant (born 3 November 1954), is an English singer, musician, and actor. He gained popularity as the lead singer of new wave group Adam and the Ants and later as a solo artist, scoring 10 UK top ten ...
but included an excerpt of "Hot for Teacher" by
Van Halen
Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead gu ...
. Those who pre-ordered ''The Magic'' from Polyvinyl were treated to a surprise cassette that included Deerhoof doing covers of
Def Leppard
Def Leppard are an English rock band formed in 1976 in Sheffield. Since 1992, the band has consisted of Rick Savage (bass, backing vocals), Joe Elliott (lead vocals), Rick Allen (drums, backing vocals), Phil Collen (guitar, backing vocals), a ...
,
Van Halen
Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead gu ...
,
David Bowie
David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...
,
Madonna
Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
,
Sonic Youth
Sonic Youth was an American rock band based in New York City, formed in 1981. Founding members Thurston Moore (guitar, vocals), Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar) and Lee Ranaldo (guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of the b ...
,
Malaria!
Malaria! was an experimental electronic band from West Berlin formed in 1981 by Gudrun Gut and Bettina Köster following the dissolution of Mania D with Karin Luner, Eva Gossling later Die Krupps and Beate Bartel (of Liaisons Dangereuses). ...
, and
Public Enemy
"Public enemy" is a term which was first widely used in the United States in the 1930s to describe individuals whose activities were seen as criminal and extremely damaging to society, though the phrase had been used for centuries to describe ...
. Their cover of "Fight the Power" appears on the
Planned Parenthood
The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is a nonprofit organization that provides reproductive health care in the United States and globally. It is a tax-exempt corporation under Internal Reve ...
benefit compilation ''Cover Your Ass''. They contributed
a cover of Xiu Xiu's "Hi", played in the style of White Reaper, to the ''Polyvinyl Plays Polyvinyl'' compilation.
The academic world has gradually come to take the musical, philosophical, and political aspects of Deerhoof's work seriously, an example of which can be seen in an article from The Night Mail about ''The Magic''. After a long world tour for ''The Magic'', Deerhoof was invited by
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea (musician), Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates element ...
to open their concerts in northern European arenas in November 2016. Deerhoof is confirmed to open for Red Hot Chili Peppers again in summer 2017. They were one of the headliners of 2017's
Big Ears Festival
The Big Ears Festival is an annual music festival in Knoxville, Tennessee, created and produced by AC Entertainment.
History
The festival was founded in 2009 by Ashley Capps, founder of AC Entertainment. The festival was originally organized b ...
.
Joyful Noise Recordings
In 2017 Deerhoof was chosen as
Joyful Noise Recordings
Joyful Noise Recordings is an independent record label from Indianapolis, Indiana. The label was founded in 2003 in Bloomington, Indiana by Karl Hofstetter, who also played drums on many of the label's first releases. Joyful Noise maintains an a ...
' Artist in Residence. Deerhoof and several Deerhoof-related collaborative projects will be releasing five new LPs in 2017. Proceeds will be donated to a variety of causes, the first of which will be
Brand New Congress
Brand New Congress is an American political action committee with the mission to elect hundreds of new progressive congressional representatives in line with the campaign's political platform.
Background
Brand New Congress is a volunteer-le ...
. On June 28 Deerhoof announced a new album titled ''
Mountain Moves
''Mountain Moves'' is the fourteenth studio album by Deerhoof. It was released on September 8, 2017 through Joyful Noise Recordings, Joyful Noise.
Production and release
Deerhoof announced ''Mountain Moves'' in June 2017. The album was produce ...
'' and premiered the first single "I Will Spite Survive" (featuring Jenn Wasner on guest vocals) on
Democracy Now!
''Democracy Now!'' is an hour-long American TV, radio, and Internet news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman (who also acts as the show's executive producer), Juan González, and Nermeen Shaikh. The show, which airs live each weekday at ...
. A second single "Your Dystopic Creation Does Not Fear You" (featuring rapper Awkwafina) was premiered on the Adult Swim Singles Series. ''Mountain Moves'' was released on September 8, 2017.
On May 29, 2020, the band released their fifteenth album, ''
Future Teenage Cave Artists''. They had previously released three singles from it: the title track, "The Loved One", and "Farewell Symphony". Future Teenage Cave Artists is notable in that it is Deerhoof's first overt concept record.
Greg Saunier
Greg Saunier (born 18 May 1969) is a musician, producer, and composer best known as the drummer and founding member of Deerhoof.
''Rolling Stone'' included Saunier alongside Brian Chippendale (of Lightning Bolt) and Zach Hill (of Hella, lat ...
said in an August 2020 interview that a "sort of a sequel" to ''Future Teenage Cave Artists'' would be "coming out in a couple months".
On December 21, 2021, the band released the live album ''Devil Kids''.
Musical style and legacy
Deerhoof's style has been described as
indie rock
Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...
,
noise pop
Noise pop is a subgenre of alternative and indie rock that developed in the mid-1980s in the United Kingdom and United States. It is defined by its mixture of dissonant noise or feedback with the songcraft more often found in pop music. Shoega ...
,
punk rock,
and "
experimental pop
Experimental pop is pop music that cannot be categorized within traditional musical boundaries or which attempts to push elements of existing popular forms into new areas. It may incorporate experimental techniques such as musique concrète, al ...
mired in a pure punk sense of adventure".
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
characterizes them as "highly revered indie rockers ... who play fractured, whimsical noise pop with an
avant-garde
The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...
edge",
while
MaineToday describes them as "the beloved punk band whose erratic style veers between pop,
noise
Noise is unwanted sound considered unpleasant, loud or disruptive to hearing. From a physics standpoint, there is no distinction between noise and desired sound, as both are vibrations through a medium, such as air or water. The difference arise ...
, and classic
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...
".
According to
Noisey
''Vice'' (stylized in all caps) is a Canadian-American magazine focused on lifestyle, arts, culture, and news/politics. Founded in 1994 in Montreal as an alternative punk magazine, the founders later launched the youth media company Vice Media, ...
, Deerhoof formed as a "
minimal noise
improv" act before shifting to "pop-infused
noise-punk
Noise rock (sometimes called noise punk) is a noise-oriented style of experimental rock that spun off from punk rock in the 1980s. Drawing on movements such as minimalism, industrial music, and New York hardcore, artists indulge in extreme l ...
". According to AllMusic, their early releases "had a more traditionally harsh,
no wave-inspired sound, though they also included the quirky tendencies that dominated their later efforts ...
hich
Ij ( fa, ايج, also Romanized as Īj; also known as Hich and Īch) is a village in Golabar Rural District, in the Central District of Ijrud County, Zanjan Province, Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also ...
mix noise, sugary melodies, and an
experimental
An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs when ...
spirit into utterly distinctive music that made them one of the most acclaimed acts of the 2000s and 2010s."
''Impose'' writes that since "their beginnings as a noise punk band ...
eerhoof havetaken leaps and bounds artistically and stylistically, experimenting with pop and punk in ways we could've never imagined ...
ndultimately
roving
A roving is a long and narrow bundle of fiber. Rovings are produced during the process of making spun yarn from wool fleece, raw cotton, or other fibres. Their main use is as fibre prepared for spinning, but they may also be used for specialised ...
that punk can fit into an artistic world." According to the
Los Angeles Philharmonic
The Los Angeles Philharmonic, commonly referred to as the LA Phil, is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. It has a regular season of concerts from October through June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a summer season at th ...
, they made "some of the most difficult and unclassifiable noise of the mid-'90s
eforeunexpectedly
ising Ising is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Ernst Ising (1900–1998), German physicist
* Gustav Ising (1883–1960), Swedish accelerator physicist
* Rudolf Ising, animator for ''MGM'', together with Hugh Harman often credited ...
to international prominence as one of indie rock's most renowned and influential groups ... too 'pop' for 'noise,' and too 'noise' for 'pop.'"
For ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', their breakthrough after many albums of "elliptical
art-pop
Art pop (also typeset art-pop or artpop) is a loosely defined style of pop music influenced by art theories as well as ideas from other art mediums, such as fashion, fine art, cinema, and avant-garde literature. The genre draws on pop art's ...
" came with ''
Friend Opportunity
''Friend Opportunity'' is the eighth studio album by American indie rock band Deerhoof. It was released on January 23, 2007, on Kill Rock Stars, ATP Recordings and 5 Rue Christine.
Twelve different front covers were designed for the album by th ...
'', which showcased "a band playing a constantly shifting mixture of
psychedelia
Psychedelia refers to the psychedelic subculture of the 1960s and the psychedelic experience. This includes psychedelic art, psychedelic music and style of dress during that era. This was primarily generated by people who used psychedelic ...
,
post-punk
Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...
,
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
and pop, which should have been difficult and forbidding, but was given an accessible focus by the sweet vocals and
expressionist
Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...
lyrics of bassist/chanteuse Satomi Matsuzaki. ...
he followup''
Offend Maggie'' is head-spinning bliss from beginning to end, and proves that the quartet are the best
prog-rock
Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Init ...
post-punk Afro-Oriental art-pop
folk-jazz
Folk jazz is a musical style that combines traditional folk music with elements of jazz, usually featuring richly texturized songs. Its origins can be traced back to the 1950s, when artists like Jimmy Giuffre and Tony Scott pursued distinct appro ...
band in the world. Deerhoof also experiment with
contemporary classical music
Contemporary classical music is classical music composed close to the present day. At the beginning of the 21st century, it commonly referred to the post-1945 modern forms of post-tonal music after the death of Anton Webern, and included seria ...
.
In 2005, Nick Sylvester wrote in ''
Pitchfork
A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves.
The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to ...
'' that they were "the best band in the world".
They are known for their anticapitalist, pro-social and radical DIY approach to art and life as exemplified by their work with and homages to
David Graeber
David Rolfe Graeber (; February 12, 1961September 2, 2020) was an American anthropologist and anarchist activist. His influential work in economic anthropology, particularly his books '' Debt: The First 5,000 Years'' (2011) and ''Bullshit Jobs ...
(an organizer of
Occupy Wall Street
Occupy Wall Street (OWS) was a protest Social movement, movement against economic inequality and the Campaign finance, influence of money in politics that began in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City's Financial District, Manhattan, Wall S ...
), their anti-marketing campaigns,
trenchant published commentary, and their use of a low-budget and eco-friendly style of production and touring, (for example, when they went on tour with the
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea (musician), Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates element ...
they all rode together with all their gear to arena gigs in a
Prius
The is a car built by Toyota which has a hybrid drivetrain, combining an internal combustion engine with an electric motor. Initially offered as a four-door sedan, it has been produced only as a five-door liftback since 2003.
In 2007, th ...
minivan
Minivan (sometimes called simply as van) is a North American car classification for vehicles designed to transport passengers in the rear seating row(s), with reconfigurable seats in two or three rows. The equivalent classification in Europe i ...
behind the Chili Peppers' fleet of busses and
semi-trailer
A semi-trailer is a trailer without a front axle. In the United States, the term is also used to refer to the combination of a truck and a semi-trailer; a tractor-trailer.
A large proportion of a semi-trailer's weight is supported by a tracto ...
s.)
The band has been appreciated by and/or influential to other artists, notably
David Bowie
David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...
,
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...
,
Questlove,
St. Vincent
Saint Vincent may refer to:
People Saints
* Vincent of Saragossa (died 304), a.k.a. Vincent the Deacon, deacon and martyr
* Saint Vincenca, 3rd century Roman martyress, whose relics are in Blato, Croatia
* Vincent, Orontius, and Victor (died 305) ...
,
Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Foo Fighters was initially formed as a one-man project by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. Following the success of the eponymous debut album, Grohl (lead vocals, guitar) re ...
,
Dirty Projectors
Dirty Projectors is an American indie rock band from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2002. The band is the project of singer-songwriter David Longstreth, who has served as the band's sole constant member throughout numerous line-up changes. The ...
,
Tune-Yards
Tune-Yards (stylized as tUnE-yArDs) is the American, Oakland, California–based music project of Merrill Garbus and Nate Brenner. Garbus's music draws from an eclectic variety of sources and utilizes elements such as loop pedals, ukulele, voca ...
,
Stereolab
Stereolab are an Anglo- French avant-pop band formed in London in 1990. Led by the songwriting team of Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier, the group's music combines influences from krautrock, lounge and 1960s pop music, often incorporating a repetit ...
,
Henry Rollins
Henry Lawrence Garfield (born February 13, 1961), known professionally as Henry Rollins, is an American singer, writer, spoken word artist, actor, and presenter. After performing in the short-lived hardcore punk band State of Alert in 1980, Rolli ...
,
Sleigh Bells, and
of Montreal. Deerhoof's songs are covered often by other artists (notably
Phil Lesh,
Los Campesinos!
Los Campesinos! are a seven-piece indie pop band from Cardiff, Wales, formed in early 2006 at Cardiff University. Though the band formed in Wales, none of the members are Welsh people, Welsh. The band has gone through several lineup changes dur ...
,
Marco Benevento
Marco Benevento (born July 22, 1977) is an American pianist, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer, who has been a fixture of the New York experimental music rock and jazz scene since 1999. He is the founder and recording e ...
,
David Bazan
David Bazan (; born January 22, 1976) is an American indie rock singer-songwriter from Phoenix, Arizona who now resides in Seattle, Washington. Bazan is the lead singer and creative force behind the band Pedro the Lion and was the lead singer ...
, and classical composer
Marcos Balter
Marcos Balter (born April 1, 1974) is a Brazilian contemporary classical music composer and the Fritz Reiner Professor of Musical Composition at Columbia University.
Life and professional career
Balter began his music studies at age five at th ...
).
Members
;Current
*
Greg Saunier
Greg Saunier (born 18 May 1969) is a musician, producer, and composer best known as the drummer and founding member of Deerhoof.
''Rolling Stone'' included Saunier alongside Brian Chippendale (of Lightning Bolt) and Zach Hill (of Hella, lat ...
– drums, vocals
(1994–present)
* Satomi Matsuzaki – vocals,
bass (1995–present), guitar
(1995–1997, 2005–2006)
* John Dieterich – guitar
(1999–present)
* Ed Rodríguez – guitar
(2008–present)
;Former
* Rob Fisk – guitar
(1994–1999), bass
(1994–1997), harmonica
(1994)
* Kelly Goode – keyboards
(1997–1999)
*
Chris Cohen
Christopher David Cohen (born 5 March 1987) is an English former professional footballer and is currently assistant manager at Southampton.
Primarily a midfielder, he was able to operate equally in the centre or on the left, but was also emplo ...
– guitar
(2002–2006), bass
(2005–2006)
Timeline
Discography
;Studio albums
* ''
The Man, the King, the Girl
''The Man, the King, the Girl'' is Deerhoof's first album. It was released on Kill Rock Stars.
Track listing
#"Tiger Chain"
#"Polly Bee"
#"Sophie"
#"A-Town Test Site"
#"Gold on Black"
#"For Those of Us on Foot"
#"Gore in Rut"
#"Wheely Freed Spea ...
'' (1997)
* ''
Holdypaws
''Holdypaws'' is the second album by the indie rock band Deerhoof. It was released in 1999 on Kill Rock Stars, and reissued on vinyl by the same label on November 22, 2019, to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Deerhoof. Jamie Stewart of Xiu Xiu ...
'' (1999)
* ''
Halfbird
''Halfbird'' is the third album by Deerhoof. It was released by Menlo Park Records in 2001.
Composition
''Halfbird'' works in "bluesy, punked-out" garage rock.
Track listing
# "Halfrabbit Halfdog" – 2:32
# "Six Holes on a Stick" – 2:03
# "Re ...
'' (2001)
* ''
Reveille
"Reveille" ( , ), called in French "Le Réveil" is a bugle call, trumpet call, drum, fife-and-drum or pipes call most often associated with the military; it is chiefly used to wake military personnel at sunrise. The name comes from (or ), th ...
'' (2002)
* ''
Apple O'
''Apple O'' is the fifth studio album by the indie rock band Deerhoof. It was released in 2003 on Kill Rock Stars and 5 Rue Christine, an offshoot of Kill Rock Stars. The album is the group's first with guitarist Chris Cohen.
The 2013 LP version ...
'' (2003)
* ''
Milk Man'' (2004)
* ''
The Runners Four
''The Runners Four'' is the seventh studio album by American indie rock band Deerhoof, released on October 11, 2005 by Kill Rock Stars, ATP Recordings and 5 Rue Christine. A vinyl edition with a different cover was released by the label Children ...
'' (2005)
* ''
Friend Opportunity
''Friend Opportunity'' is the eighth studio album by American indie rock band Deerhoof. It was released on January 23, 2007, on Kill Rock Stars, ATP Recordings and 5 Rue Christine.
Twelve different front covers were designed for the album by th ...
'' (2007)
* ''
Offend Maggie'' (2008)
* ''
Deerhoof vs. Evil'' (2011)
* ''
Breakup Song
A breakup song is a song describing the breakup of an intimate relationship, with associated emotions of sadness, frustration, anger, and sometimes of acceptance or relief. As one source states (discussing the upbeat breakup song " Better Things ...
'' (2012)
* ''
La Isla Bonita
"La Isla Bonita" is a song by American singer Madonna from her third studio album '' True Blue'' (1986). Written and produced by Madonna and Patrick Leonard, with additional lyrics by Bruce Gaitsch, the song was originally presented by Leonard ...
'' (2014)
* ''
The Magic'' (2016)
* ''
Mountain Moves
''Mountain Moves'' is the fourteenth studio album by Deerhoof. It was released on September 8, 2017 through Joyful Noise Recordings, Joyful Noise.
Production and release
Deerhoof announced ''Mountain Moves'' in June 2017. The album was produce ...
'' (2017)
* ''
Future Teenage Cave Artists'' (2020)
* ''Love-Lore'' (2020) (medley covers album)
* ''
Actually, You Can
''Actually, You Can'' is the seventeenth studio album by the experimental rock band Deerhoof
Deerhoof are an American musical group formed in San Francisco in 1994. They currently consist of founding drummer Greg Saunier, bassist and singe ...
'' (2021)
;EPs
* ''
Green Cosmos'' (2005)
* ''
Untitled
Untitled or (Untitled) may refer to:
Artworks
* '' Untitled (2004)'', by Banksy
* ''Untitled'' (1982 painting), by American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat
* ''Untitled'' (Devil), a 1982 painting by American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat
* ''Untitled ...
'' (2006)
* ''Deerhoof Plays the Music of The Shining'' (2018)
;Live albums
* ''
Koalamagic
Koalamagic is a live album released in 2001 by Deerhoof on the Australian label Dual Plover. The album includes five tracks, some of which are several songs put together, recorded over the course of the band's early, noise-oriented years, from 199 ...
'' (2001)
* ''
Bibidi Babidi Boo'' (2004)
* ''99% upset feeling'' (2011)
* ''
Fever 121614
''Fever 121614'' is a 2015 live album by Deerhoof. It received "generally favorable" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and forme ...
'' (2015)
* ''To Be Surrounded By Beautiful, Curious, Breathing, Laughing Flesh Is Enough'' (2020)
(with Wadada Leo Smith
Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith (born December 18, 1941) is an American trumpeter and composer, working primarily in the fields of avant-garde jazz and free improvisation. He was one of three finalists for the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for Music for ''Ten Free ...
)
* ''Devil Kids'' (2021)
;Collaborations
* ''
Nervous Cop'' (2003)
* ''
Balter/Saunier
''Balter/Saunier'' is a 2016 album of a collaboration between orchestral Ensemble Dal Niente, composer Marcos Balter, and experimental rock band Deerhoof. ''The Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based ...
'' (2016)
Deerhoof has also released a large number of 7-inch singles, split releases with other artists, tracks on compilations, and free downloadable EPs.
References
External links
*
Deerhoof- at Polyvinyl Records
*
*
{{Authority control
American experimental musical groups
Avant-garde music groups
Experimental pop musicians
American experimental rock groups
Art pop musicians
American art rock groups
Noise musical groups
Noise pop musical groups
American noise rock music groups
Rock music groups from California
Indie rock musical groups from California
Punk rock groups from California
Indie pop groups from San Francisco
Musical groups from San Francisco
1994 establishments in California
Musical groups established in 1994
Polyvinyl Record Co. artists
Kill Rock Stars artists
Flying Nun Records artists
Joyful Noise Recordings artists