Jennifer Finch (born August 5, 1966) is an American musician, designer, and photographer most notable for being the primary
bass player
A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), synthbass, keyboard bass or a low br ...
of the punk rock band
L7. Active in L7 from 1986 to 1996, Finch also wrote music and performed with her bands OtherStarPeople and
The Shocker in the interim before joining the reunited L7 in 2014.
Early life
Finch was born August 5, 1966 and grew up in
West Los Angeles
West Los Angeles is an area within the city of Los Angeles, California. The residential and commercial neighborhood is divided by the Interstate 405 freeway, and each side is sometimes treated as a distinct neighborhood, mapped differently by di ...
. She was adopted in 1967 by Robert Edward Finch, an aeronautics engineer, and his wife Sandra Jacobson; they later divorced in 1974. Finch credits the support of her adoptive father, who was also an amateur photographer, as being instrumental to her creative development.
Finch took an interest in photography at an early age and attended a summer art session at
Otis Parsons in 1980.
Career
Music
Finch began her musical career in the mid 1980s. She played bass in the San Francisco-based band
Sugar Babydoll
Pagan Babies were a short-lived American rock band formed by Kat Bjelland and Courtney Love in 1985. Love had initially conceived the band in Portland, Oregon with Bjelland under the name Sugar Babydoll, and the group was joined by bassist Jenn ...
(or Sugar Babylon) from 1984 - 1986. The band featured
Courtney Love
Courtney Michelle Love (née Harrison; born July 9, 1964) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and actress. A figure in the alternative and grunge scenes of the 1990s, her career has spanned four decades. She rose to prominence as ...
, future founder of
Hole
A hole is an opening in or through a particular medium, usually a solid body. Holes occur through natural and artificial processes, and may be useful for various purposes, or may represent a problem needing to be addressed in many fields of en ...
, and future
Babes in Toyland founder
Kat Bjelland
Katherine Lynne Bjelland (born December 9, 1963) is an American musician. She rose to prominence as the lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter of the alternative rock band Babes in Toyland, which she formed in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1987. ...
.
This line-up produced a demo recording which remains unreleased. Finch subsequently played in the short-lived Hollywood band
The Pandoras
The Pandoras is an all-female garage punk band from Los Angeles, California with a run from 1982 to 1991. The band is among the first handful of all-female rock bands to ever be signed. From the beginning, the band found a strong following in the ...
, formed by bassist Gwynne Kahn.
In 1986, Finch joined the Los Angeles-based punk rock group L7. In the
documentary film
A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in te ...
L7: Pretend We’re Dead, bandmate
Donita Sparks
Donita Sparks (born April 8, 1963) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter most notable for being the co-founder of the band L7. Sparks also initiated, performed, and released original material with her solo project, the band Donita S ...
described Finch as "persistent" and stated that after Finch joined the band, her networking skills and stage energy continued to significantly boost the momentum building within the group. She remained with L7 throughout the band's most successful period in the early 1990s. Finch contributed to the albums ''
L7'' (1988) ''
Smell the Magic
''Smell the Magic'' is the second studio album by American rock band L7, released in 1990 by Sub Pop. Originally issued as a 12" EP containing only the first six songs, it was reissued on CD in July 1991, expanded to album length with three mo ...
''(1990), ''
Bricks Are Heavy'' (1992), and ''
Hungry for Stink
''Hungry for Stink'' is the fourth studio album by L7, released in July 1994 by Slash Records. The album peaked at number 117 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart, as well as number 2 on the Heatseekers Albums chart.
"Fuel My Fire" was based on the ...
'' (1994). Finch was the sole songwriter during this period for several of L7's songs including "(Right On) Thru", "
Everglade
Everglade may refer to:
* Everglades, region of tropical wetlands in the US
* Everglade Township, Stevens County, Minnesota
Everglade Township is a township in Stevens County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 128 at the 2000 census. ...
", "One More Thing", and "Shirley".
In 1994, Finch and her L7 bandmate
Demetra "Dee" Plakas performed with Japanese musician
Hide,
also appearing in the original video for his song "
Doubt
Doubt is a mental state in which the mind remains suspended between two or more contradictory propositions, unable to be certain of any of them.
Doubt on an emotional level is indecision between belief and disbelief. It may involve uncertainty ...
".
[As seen on Hide's home video release, ''A Souvenir''.]
In 1994, Finch was featured in a music video for
Hole
A hole is an opening in or through a particular medium, usually a solid body. Holes occur through natural and artificial processes, and may be useful for various purposes, or may represent a problem needing to be addressed in many fields of en ...
for their breakthrough album ''
Live Through This
''Live Through This'' is the second studio album by the American alternative rock band Hole, released on April 12, 1994, by DGC Records. Recorded in late 1993, it departed from the band's unpolished hardcore aesthetics to more refined melodies ...
'', as the original bassist
Kristen Pfaff
Kristen Marie Pfaff (née Parco; May 26, 1967 – June 16, 1994) was an American musician, best known as the bassist for alternative rock band Hole from 1993 to 1994. Prior to Hole, Pfaff was the bassist and backing vocalist for Minneapolis-base ...
had died of an over-dose in June of that year. In 1995, after the death of her father, Finch adopted the name "Precious" as an homage to him. Finch officially departed L7 in 1996. In the bands 2016 documentary L7: Pretend We’re Dead, Finch cites health and money issues, as well as grieving over the loss of her father and the band’s roadie and friend Umbar as reasons for her departure.
After departing from L7, Finch wrote music and sang for her band OtherStarPeople with Xander Smith.
OtherStarPeople completed their debut record ''Diamonds In The Belly Of The Dog'' in 1998; the group were signed with
A&M Records
A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distr ...
/
Interscope and the album was released in August 1999.
Joshua Clover
Joshua Clover (born December 30, 1962 in Berkeley, California) is a writer and a Professor of English and Comparative Literature at the University of California Davis.
He is a published scholar, poet, critic, and journalist whose work has been t ...
of ''
Spin'' magazine described the OtherStarPeople record as bringing "less weight and more strangeness than Finch's old crew - it's L.A.-slick and punky-dirty".
Finch was also involved with
Betty Blowtorch
Betty Blowtorch is an all-female American hard rock band from Southern California.
Biography
The band was formed in 1998 by three members of Butt Trumpet. After releasing the 2001 album, ''Are You Man Enough?'', the group toured with Nashville ...
, appearing in the 2003 documentary film Betty Blowtorch And Her Amazing True Life Adventures.
Finch founded the punk rock group
The Shocker in Los Angeles in 2002. The band played dates on the
Warped Tour
The Warped Tour was a traveling rock tour that toured the United States plus three or four stops in Canada annually each summer from 1995 until 2019. It was the largest traveling music festival in the United States and the longest-running touri ...
in 2003 and 2005. The Shocker released ''Up Your Ass Tray as'' an EP in 2003, followed by a full-length album in 2006 on
Go-Kart Records
Go-Kart Records is an independent record label specializing in punk rock located in New York City that was most active from 1995 to 2005. It also has a European division in Mannheim, Germany.
History
In its May 1999 issue, '' Guitar World'' ...
. Finch served as the sole songwriter and primary singer of The Shocker through 2006.
In January 2011, Finch co-founded new band Sex in Progress along with Evie Evil of
Evil Beaver.
Finch produced a
Ramones' tribute album
''
Brats on the Beat
''Brats on the Beat: Ramones for Kids'' is a 2006 Ramones cover album, featuring 'kiddified' covers of classic Ramones songs. Songs are performed by members of various punk rock bands. The album was created in order to offer adults an alternativ ...
'' for the
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. The album features "kid friendly" versions of Ramones' songs with guest vocals and music provided by various
punk
Punk or punks may refer to:
Genres, subculture, and related aspects
* Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres
* Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
musicians.
In 2014, L7 reformed with the primary line up of Finch with
Suzi Gardner
Suzanne Gardner (born August 1, 1960) is an American musician and creative director best known for being a guitarist, vocalist, and co-founder of the punk rock band L7.
Early life
Gardner was born in Altus, Oklahoma on August 1, 1960 to A ...
,
Donita Sparks
Donita Sparks (born April 8, 1963) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter most notable for being the co-founder of the band L7. Sparks also initiated, performed, and released original material with her solo project, the band Donita S ...
, and
Dee Plakas. They toured extensively and released new singles in 2017 and 2018.
L7's latest full album ''
Scatter the Rats
''Scatter the Rats'' is a studio album by American rock band L7, released on May 3, 2019 through Blackheart Records. It is the band's first album in almost 20 years, following the band's 2014 reunion. It has received positive reviews.
Re ...
'' was released on
Blackheart Records
Blackheart Records is an American record label founded by rock musicians Joan Jett and Kenny Laguna. Artists include The Eyeliners, Girl in a Coma, the Cute Lepers, the Dollyrots, The Vacancies, Fea (band), Fea, Jackknife Stiletto, L7 (band), L7, ...
on May 3, 2019 to generally favorable reviews. Finch wrote the song "Garbage Truck". The band resumed a six-week national tour starting on May 10, 2019.
Photography
At the age of 13, Finch began to take photos of her friends in Los Angeles on a camera given to her by her father. These pictures eventually documented the early punk scene that she became involved in before joining L7 in 1986. Her photography (1979–1995) was on display at an ''
LA Weekly'' sponsored art show at Aidan Ryley Taylor Gallery in Hollywood, until November 18, 2006.
The collection, called "14 and Shooting" features a number of notable figures, including photographs of
The Red Hot Chili Peppers,
Bad Religion,
Red Kross, and
The Cramps
The Cramps were an American rock band formed in 1976 and active until 2006. Their lineup rotated frequently during their existence, with the husband-and-wife duo of singer Lux Interior and guitarist Poison Ivy the only ever-present members. ...
. John Albert of ''LA Weekly'' reflected that Finch's images often depict the musicians in more intimate moments as well as providing a generally dark perspective of youth in Southern California. Finch's photographs traveled to the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for display in January 2007.
Television and film
Finch has acted in the 1984 film ''
The Census Taker'' and in the 1994
John Waters
John Samuel Waters Jr. (born April 22, 1946) is an American filmmaker, writer, actor, and artist. He rose to fame in the early 1970s for his transgressive cult films, including '' Multiple Maniacs'' (1970), '' Pink Flamingos'' (1972) and '' Fe ...
film ''
Serial Mom
Serial may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media The presentation of works in sequential segments
* Serial (literature), serialised literature in print
* Serial (publishing), periodical publications and newspapers
* Serial (radio and televis ...
'' as part of the fictitious band the Camel Lips.
Finch appeared as herself in the 2007 documentary ''
Punk's Not Dead''.
Her music was featured in the 1999 film
Office Space
''Office Space'' is a 1999 American black comedy film written and directed by Mike Judge. It satirizes the worklife of a typical 1990s software company, focusing on a handful of individuals weary of their jobs. It stars Ron Livingston, Jennifer ...
and on the popular TV series ''
Degrassi: The Next Generation'' in 2008.
Finch appears in interviews and original footage throughout the documentary film ''L7: Pretend We're Dead'', directed by
Sarah Price and released in November 2016. The film was nominated for a VO5 NME Award for Best Music Film.
Personal life
In the early 1990s, Finch dated
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.' ...
's
Dave Grohl and later
Billy Corgan of
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 ...
. She was married to actor, musician and race car driver
Chris Pedersen from 2000–2007. Finch resides in
Culver City, California.
Discography
L7
*
''L7'' (1988)
*''
Smell the Magic
''Smell the Magic'' is the second studio album by American rock band L7, released in 1990 by Sub Pop. Originally issued as a 12" EP containing only the first six songs, it was reissued on CD in July 1991, expanded to album length with three mo ...
'' (1990)
*''
Bricks are Heavy'' (1992)
*''
Hungry for Stink
''Hungry for Stink'' is the fourth studio album by L7, released in July 1994 by Slash Records. The album peaked at number 117 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart, as well as number 2 on the Heatseekers Albums chart.
"Fuel My Fire" was based on the ...
'' (1994)
*''
Scatter the Rats
''Scatter the Rats'' is a studio album by American rock band L7, released on May 3, 2019 through Blackheart Records. It is the band's first album in almost 20 years, following the band's 2014 reunion. It has received positive reviews.
Re ...
'' (2019)
OtherStarPeople
*''Diamonds in The Belly of The Dog'' (1999)
The Shocker
*''Up Your Ass Tray'' EP (
Oglio Records
Oglio Records is an American record company started in 1993 by Carl Caprioglio. The label issues compilations of rare 1980s modern rock and new wave songs, many previously unreleased on CD. In addition to releasing new material by artists such ...
, 2003)
*''Up Your Ass Tray: The Full Length'' (
Go Kart
A go-kart, also written as go-cart (often referred to as simply a kart), is a type of sports car, close wheeled car, open-wheel car or quadracycle. Go-karts come in all shapes and forms, from non-motorised models to high-performance racing ...
, 2006)
References
External links
Jennifer Finch PhotographyRamones for Kids website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Finch, Jennifer
1966 births
Living people
American adoptees
American punk rock bass guitarists
Women bass guitarists
Women punk rock singers
L7 (band) members
Feminist musicians
Riot grrrl musicians
American abortion-rights activists
San Francisco State University alumni
Activists from California
Guitarists from Los Angeles
American women guitarists
20th-century American bass guitarists
20th-century American women musicians
Punk Rock Karaoke members
Women in punk