Live Skull is a

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 ...

experimental rock Experimental rock, also called avant-rock, is a subgenre of rock music that pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique or which experiments with the basic elements of the genre. Artists aim to liberate and innovate, with ...

band from

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, formed in 1982. In an overview of their abrasive no wave-influenced music, ''

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference to ...

'' said, "As part of the same New York avant-noisy scene that spawned

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 ...

Lydia Lunch Lydia Lunch (born Lydia Anne Koch; June 2, 1959)Martin Charles Strong. ''The Great Indie Discography''. 2003, page 85 is an American singer, poet, writer, actress and self-empowerment speaker. Her career began during the 1970s New York City no ...

, and

Swans Swans are birds of the family Anatidae within the genus ''Cygnus''. The swans' closest relatives include the geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Someti ...

, Live Skull records come complete with creepy lyrics, circular melodies and nod-out drum beats designed to lull you into their macabre world".

History

Live Skull formed in downtown New York City in 1982, founded by tandem guitarists Mark C. and Tom Paine (birth name: Lance Goldenberg). Both had previously been members of San Francisco band ''Crop'' along with brothers Ivan and Andrew Nahem (later of '' Ritual Tension''), before moving to New York in 1980. Live Skull's earliest lineup included Julie Hair on vocals and

Dan Braun Dan Braun (born circa 1962) is an American musician, composer, writer, editor, art director, and film producer. Early music career Dan Braun and his twin brother Josh have performed, separately and together, in bands including Circus Mort with s ...

(formerly of Spinal Root Gang and Circus Mort) on drums. They were soon joined by drummer James Lo and bassist Marnie Greenholz. With this lineup of the band, lead vocals were shared by C., Greenholz and Paine. In 1984, Live Skull released their self-titled debut 12" EP on Massive Records. After signing with prominent indie label

Homestead Records Homestead Records was a Long Island, New York-based sublabel of music distributor Dutch East India Trading that operated from 1983 to 1996. The label was known for not paying its artists and not spending any money on promotion. History The l ...

, they released their 1985 debut full-length, '' Bringing Home the Bait''. The follow-up, 1986's '' Cloud One'', featured slightly more accessible song structures. A live album titled '' Don't Get Any on You'' was recorded at

CBGB CBGB was a New York City music club opened in 1973 by Hilly Kristal in Manhattan's East Village. The club was previously a biker bar and before that was a dive bar. The letters ''CBGB'' were for '' Country'', '' BlueGrass'', and '' Blues'', Kri ...

later that year, followed by the ''

Pusherman Pusherman was an alternative rock band from London, England. Formed in 1994, the band's lineup consisted of Andy Frank (vocals), Meredith "Yank" Reid (vocals, harmonica), Bo Ellery (bass), Martin Hoyland (guitar), Tony Antoniou (guitar) and Harr ...

'' 12" EP.

Thalia Zedek Thalia Zedek (born 1961) is an American singer and guitarist. Active since the early 1980s, she has been a member of several notable alternative rock groups, including Live Skull and Uzi (band), Uzi both of which, according to ''Spin (magazine) ...

joined the band as lead singer in 1987, taking over most of the vocal duties so that the other members could concentrate on their instruments. Zedek had previously played in the

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

-area post-punk outfits White Women, Dangerous Birds and

Uzi The Uzi (; he, עוזי, Ūzi; officially cased as UZI) is a family of Israeli open-bolt, blowback-operated submachine guns and machine pistols first designed by Major Uziel "Uzi" Gal in the late 1940s, shortly after the establishment of the ...

. The band also replaced Lo with ex-Ruin drummer Richard Hutchins. Zedek and Hutchins debuted on 1987's '' Dusted'', which spawned a

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

music video for the song "5-D". This video later appeared on the ''Twelve O'Clock High Volume 1'' (1989, Atavistic) video compilation. The group next signed to the larger

Caroline Records Caroline Records is a record label originally founded in 1973. Initially founded in the United Kingdom to showcase British progressive rock groups, the label ceased releasing titles in 1976, and then re-emerged in the United States in 1986. ...

label, which issued 1988's six-song ''Snuffer'' 12" EP. Greenholz subsequently left and was replaced by Sonda Andersson, a former member of Rat at Rat R and cousin of avant-garde composer

Glenn Branca Glenn may refer to: Name or surname * Glenn (name) * John Glenn, U.S. astronaut Cultivars * Glenn (mango) * a 6-row barley variety Places In the United States: * Glenn, California * Glenn County, California * Glenn, Georgia, a settlement ...

. Released in 1989, '' Positraction'' was a more accessible, song-oriented effort that continued their generally positive critical reaction. Live Skull disbanded in 1990 due to sustained lack of commercial success, with Paine deciding to focus on an alternate career.

Post-breakup and other activity

C. was involved in various other New York music projects, including Spoiler; Int'l Shades (with ex-

drummer

Bob Bert Robert Bertelli, better known as Bob Bert, is an American rock drummer. Biography Based in Hoboken, New Jersey, Bert initially came to prominence as drummer for the experimental rock band Sonic Youth during the early to mid-1980s. Bert pla ...

), which released the ''Hash Wednesday'' album in 2005 on Cass Records; and Outpost 13 (including Kent Heine of The Holy Ghost and Stuart Argabright of Ike Yard). Paine received a

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admini ...

degree in film at the

University of South Florida The University of South Florida (USF) is a public research university with its main campus located in Tampa, Florida, and other campuses in St. Petersburg and Sarasota. It is one of 12 members of the State University System of Florida. USF is ...

Tampa Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough County ...

, and writes about world cinema. Braun later played with Swans (for a short time in 1982, and then again on their 1991 album ''

Body to Body, Job to Job ''Body to Body, Job to Job'' (stylized on the cover as ''Body To Body Job To Job.'') is the third compilation album by the American experimental rock band Swans. It was released simultaneously on LP, CD and audio cassette in 1991. It present ...

''),

the Del-Byzanteens The Del-Byzanteens was a New York-based no wave band active in the early 1980s. The band comprised Phil Kline (vocals, guitar); Jim Jarmusch (vocals, keyboards); Philippe Hagen (bass); Josh Braun (percussion, drums); and Dan Braun (drums, percuss ...

, Glenn Branca, Radio Firefight and Deep Six. Hair later played with 3 Teens Kill 4 and Bite Like a Kitty. C. and Greenholz briefly reunited in the band Fuse, which released a double 7" EP, ''Dana's Room'', in 1992 on the PCP Entertainment label. Greenholz, under the name Marnie Jaffe, co-founded Fairmount Girls in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

, Ohio, and played on their debut album, ''Eleven Minutes to Anywhere'', released on Deary Me Records in 1999. Lo later drummed for Wider and then for Chavez in the mid-1990s. Zedek moved back to Boston and fronted the blues-rock-oriented

Come Come may refer to: *Comè, a city and commune in Benin *Come (Tenos), an ancient town on Tenos island, Greece Music *Come (American band), an American indie rock band formed in 1990 *Come (UK band), a British noise project founded in 1979 **Come ...

, who signed to

Matador Records Matador Records is an independent record label, with a roster of mainly indie rock, but also punk rock, experimental rock, alternative rock, and electronic acts. History Matador was created in 1989 by Chris Lombardi in his New York City apart ...

. She has released several solo albums since Come's 2001 demise. Hutchins performed for several years in Of Cabbages and Kings, Phideaux and Digitalis. The latter band featured John Meyers (another former Rat at Rat R member) and Reverb Motherfuckers guitarist Skinny John, as well as early Live Skull member Hair. Digitalis split up around 1998, and Hair and Hutchins married in 2000. The couple were both members of Hungry March Band for many years. In the late 2000s, Hutchins was also a member of

Lubricated Goat Lubricated Goat are an Australian noise rock band which originally formed in 1986 by multi-instrumentalist Stu Spasm. They achieved brief notoriety in November 1988 for appearing nude on the ABC TV program '' Blah Blah Blah'', wearing only thei ...

and Lubricated Goat frontman

Stu Spasm Stuart Gray (born 1961), better known by his moniker Stu Spasm, is an Australian musician and composer best recognized as the frontman for the experimental noise rock outfit Lubricated Goat. Biography Spasm (Gray) commenced his musical journe ...

's side project LoveStruck. Hutchins currently performs in the Art Gray Noizz Quintet and Isolation Society which also features Julie Hair, and Ian Wilson formerly in Star Spangles.

Reunion

On January 16, 2016, Mark C., Jaffe and Hutchins reunited as Live Skull to perform and record several new songs at

Martin Bisi Martin Bisi (born 1961) is an American producer and songwriter. He is known for recording important records by Sonic Youth, Swans, John Zorn, Material, Bill Laswell, Helmet, Unsane, The Dresden Dolls, Cop Shoot Cop, White Zombie, Boredoms, A ...

's B.C. Studio, as part of the studio's semi-private, 35th anniversary "Recording of the Century" event. In November 2019, the band released their album ''Saturday Night Massacre'', followed by ''Dangerous Visions'' in 2020. The band's current core consists of Mark C., Rich Hutchins, Kent Heine and Dave Hollinghurst. Thalia Zedek and Marnie Jaffe occasionally join them in studio and live shows.

Band members

; Current members *Mark C. –

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

synth A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

(1982–1990, 2016–present) *Richard Hutchins –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

(1987–1990, 2016–present) *Kent Heine - bass (2018–present) *Dave Hollinghurst -

(2019–present) ; Former members *Tom Paine – guitar, vocals (1982–1990) * Marnie Jaffe – bass, vocals (1982–1988, 2016–2018) *James Lo – drums (1982–1987) *

– vocals, guitar,

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

(1987–1990, 2018) *

– drums (1982) *Julie Hair – vocals (1982) *Sonda Andersson – bass (1988–1990) *Hannah Moorhead – bass (2021; touring member)

Discography

Studio albums

*'' Bringing Home the Bait'' (1985,

) *'' Cloud One'' (1986, Homestead Records) *'' Dusted'' (1987, Homestead Records) *'' Positraction'' (1989,

/What Goes On Records) *''Saturday Night Massacre'' (2019, Bronson Recordings) *''Dangerous Visions'' (2020, Bronson Recordings)

EPs

*''

Live Skull Live Skull is a post-punk/experimental rock band from New York City, formed in 1982. In an overview of their abrasive no wave-influenced music, '' Trouser Press'' said, "As part of the same New York avant-noisy scene that spawned Sonic Youth, L ...

'' (1984, Massive Records) *''Pusherman'' (1986, Homestead Records) *''

Snuffer A candle snuffer, candle extinguisher, or douter is an instrument used to extinguish burning candles, consisting of a small cone at the end of a handle. The use of a snuffer helps to avoid problems associated with blowing hot wax and it avoids t ...

'' (1988, Caroline Records/What Goes On Records)

Live albums

*'' Don't Get Any on You'' (1987, Homestead Records)

Live videos

*''Live Skull'' (1988, Atavistic/Jettisoundz) *''Live Skull Live'' (1989, Videophile)

Compilation appearances

*''Untitled'' on ''Bang Zoom Issue #6'' cassette (1983, Bang Zoom) *''Corpse'' on ''Tellus #1'' cassette (1983,

Tellus Audio Cassette Magazine Launched from the Lower East Side, Manhattan in 1983 as a subscription only bimonthly publication, the ''Tellus Audio Cassette Magazine'' utilized the audio cassette medium to distribute no wave downtown music and audio art and was in activity f ...

) *''I Was Wrong'' on ''Speed Trials'' (1984, Homestead Records) *''Common Cruelty'' on ''Terminal!''8" flexi (1984, ''Terminal'' fanzine issue No.18) *''Pulverized by Gratitude'' on ''USA/Germany'' cassette (1985, Tellus Audio Cassette Magazine) *''Bad Hospital'' on ''Tellus #10 - All Guitars!'' cassette (1985, Tellus Audio Cassette Magazine) *''Flake Out'' on ''Plow!'' (1985, Organik) *''Fort Belvedere'' on ''The Wailing Ultimate - The Homestead Records Compilation'' (1986, Homestead Records) *''Alive Again'' on ''Human Music'' (1988, Homestead Records) *''Paul Revere's Bush (Tree Girl)'' on ''Sounds and Shigaku Limited Present: Beautiful Happiness'' (1988, Sounds and Shigaku Limited) *''5·D'' video on ''Twelve O'Clock High'' (1989, Atavistic/Jettisoundz) *''Tri-Power'' on ''Like a Girl, I Want You to Keep Coming'' (1989,

Giorno Poetry Systems Founded in 1965, Giorno Poetry Systems was an American artist collective, record label, and non-profit organisation founded by poet and performance artist John Giorno with the direct aim to connect poetry and related art forms to a larger audience ...

) *''Details of the Madness'' on ''BC 35 / The 35 Year Anniversary of BC Studio'' (2018, Sleeping Giant Glossolalia/Bronson Recordings) *''Up Against the Wall'' on ''BC 35 Volume Two / The 35 Year Anniversary of BC Studio'' (2019, Bronson Recordings) *''Off the Runway'' & ''Debbie's Headache (Live)'' on ''Quarantine Tales from the Red Desert'' (2020, Bronson Recordings)

References

External links

Live Skull
on

Discogs Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the la ...

Live Skull
on

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

Live Skull
on

Bandcamp Bandcamp is an American online audio distribution platform founded in 2007 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with headquarters in Oakland, California, US. On March 2, 2022, Bandcamp ...

page
Live Skull recording of ''Corpse''
on ''

'' #1
''Bad Hospital''
on ''

'' #10: All Guitars! cassette (1985)
''Pulverized by Gratitude'' on ''USA/Germany'' cassette
(1985) ''

'' #8 {{Authority control Indie rock musical groups from New York (state) American noise rock music groups American experimental rock groups Musical groups established in 1982 Musical groups disestablished in 1990 Homestead Records artists Caroline Records artists Musical groups from New York City 1982 establishments in New York City No wave groups de:Schramm (Film)