New Bad Things (later No Bad Things) were a

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

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 ...

band active during the 1990s. They recorded for

Candy Ass Records Candy Ass Records was an independent record label in Portland, Oregon that was run by Jody Bleyle, a member of the bands Team Dresch and Hazel and of the queercore bands Family Outing and Infinite Xs. The label is best known for the 1995 release ...

, Rainforest Records, Lissy's Records, Pop Secret, Punk in my Vitamins Records,

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 known ...

, and Freewheel Records.

History

The band formed in 1992 for a one-off opening set at a

Sebadoh Sebadoh () is an American indie rock band formed in 1986 in Northampton, Massachusetts, by Eric Gaffney and Lou Barlow, with multi-instrumentalist Jason Loewenstein completing the line-up in 1989. Barlow co-created Sebadoh as an outlet for his ...

concert in Portland, and initially comprised Matthew "Hattie" Hein, Luke Hollywood, "Prince" Mattie Gaunt, Jasin Fell and Dave French.DePasquale, Ron " New Bad Things Biography, ''

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 ...

'', Macrovision Corporation Their first single was "I Suck" (backed with "Concrete" and "Knott St."), which was picked up by

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

, and reached number sixteen in the 1993

Festive 50 The Festive Fifty was originally an annual list of the year's 50 (though the exact figure varied above and below this number) best songs compiled at the end of the year and voted for by listeners to John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show. It was usually do ...

.Details of New Bad Things Peel sessions at the BBC's ''Keeping It Peel'' website
BBC They recorded their debut album, ''Freewheel!'' in 1992, released on the local indie label

. The album was described as having a "sloppy charm", and drew comparisons with the likes of

Beat Happening Beat Happening is an American indie pop band formed in Olympia, Washington in 1982. Calvin Johnson, Heather Lewis, and Bret Lunsford have been the band's continual members. Beat Happening were early leaders in the American indie pop and lo-fi mo ...

.Abebe, Nitsuh " ''Freewheel!'' Review, ''

'', Macrovision Corporation Second album ''Society'' followed in 1994, released on the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

label Lissy's. ''Ennui Go'' was released in 1997, by which time the band's sound was more pop-oriented,Abebe, Nitsuh " ''Ennui Go'' Review, ''

'', Macrovision Corporation and in the same year Hein left to pursue a solo career. An album of previously-unreleased and rare tracks, ''C-sides'', was released in 1999, containing tracks ranging chronologically from their earliest recordings to their latest. Later band members included: Christine Denkewalter, Lars Holmstrom, Eric von Borstel and Andrew Leavitt. The band toured Europe twice and recorded John Peel sessions for Radio One in the UK each time. The band name changed to No Bad Things in 2001. Members also recorded as: Matthew Hein (solo), Wallpaper (David French), Awesome (Luke Hollywood with guest appearances from other NBT alumni), Gashdig, Popewyrm, Incinerators & Diamond Tuck (Jasin Fell), Denk (solo), The Loach Clips (Lars), and Prince Mattie Gaunt (solo). Leavitt later joined The Fairways. New Bad Things feature in the documentary film ''X-Ray Visions: a Look Inside Portland's Legendary X-Ray Café''.Chandler, John (2008)
''X-Ray Visions'' (review)
, ''Portland Monthly Magazine'', August 2008 The bands' songs have been covered by Hefner ("Goethe's Letter to Vic Chesnutt"),

The Delgados The Delgados are a Scottish indie rock band formed in Glasgow in 1994. The band is composed of Alun Woodward (vocals, guitar), Emma Pollock (vocals, guitar), Stewart Henderson (bass guitar), and Paul Savage (drums). Biography The band was for ...

("The Dirge") and

Tullycraft Tullycraft is an American indie pop band from Seattle, Washington, that formed in 1995. They have been associated with the genre of twee pop; in fact, they are considered to be one of the true pioneers of the American twee pop movement. They are ...

("Misgiving").

Album discography

* ''Freewheel'' (Candy Ass, 1992) * ''Society'' (Lissy's, UK only) * ''Ennui Go'' (Pop Secret, 1997) * ''C-Sides'' ( Blackbean & Placenta Tape Club, 1999)

References

{{Authority control Musical groups from Portland, Oregon 1990s establishments in Oregon 1990s disestablishments in Oregon Musical groups established in the 1990s Musical groups disestablished in the 1990s