Nymphs are an American alternative rock band that performed in the late 1980s and early 1990s with lead singer

Inger Lorre Inger Lorre (born Lori Ann Wening) is an American singer who is best known for her band Nymphs. Music career Nymphs Nymphs spent the mid-to-late '80s honing their craft in New Jersey, but they soon decided to try to make it big in California. T ...

. The band was signed to

Geffen Records Geffen Records is an American record label established by David Geffen and owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M Records imprint. Founded in 1980, Geffen Records has been a part of Interscope Geffen A&M since 1999 and h ...

, and released their debut album in 1991. Nymphs are known for their wild stage shows and their rebellious attitude towards record companies. The band formed in 1985 and broke up in 1992, formed again in 2016, and broke up the same year, later reforming in 2017.

Members (past and present)

- (Vocals) * Geoff Siegel - (Lead Guitar) *Sam Merrick - (Guitar) *Cliff D. (aka Cliff Jones) - (Bass) *Mario Tremaine - (Guitar) *Morpheus Black - (Guitar) *Jordan Lawson - (Bass) *Aaron Cruz - (Guitar) *Eric James Contreras - (Drums) *Angelique Congleton - (Bass) *Thomas "TJ" Jefferson - (Guitar)

Band history

Lorre and Bobby Belltower formed the band in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

in the mid 1980s. The band moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

to pursue their musical careers and caught the attention of punk rock singer Keith Morris who managed the band for a time. After two members returned to

, Lorre and Siegel recruited guitarist Sam Merrick, drummer Alex Kirst and bass player Cliff D. (Cliff Jones). The band was hoping to sign with an alternative label such as

Alternative Tentacles Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label established in 1979 in San Francisco, California. It was used by Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single " California Über Alles". After realizing the potential for an independent labe ...

, but their reputation led to interest from the major labels. However, the band's wild behavior led to some companies losing interest. Nymphs made an appearance in the 1990 film '' Bad Influence'' as a band playing in a club.

Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the " Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of proto-punk band The Stooges, who w ...

sang vocals on the track "Supersonic" from the debut album. It was at about this time that Nymphs began to have problems with their label. Almost two years had passed since Nymphs had completed their album. Lorre was losing her battle with heroin and in an alcohol induced fit she urinated on the desk of A&R man Tom Zutaut. "''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' quipped, 'Talk about being pissed at your record label.'" Things came to a head when

performed fellatio on her then-boyfriend,

Rodney Eastman Rodney Eastman (born July 20, 1967) is a Canadian actor best known for his role of Joey Crusel in '' A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors'' and '' A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master''. He is also a musician in a band named Kin ...

, on stage during their set at the Marquis club in

Anaheim, California Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the 10th-most ...

in 1992. Shortly afterwards, Lorre was fired from the band after she refused to go onstage during a concert that year in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

opening for Peter Murphy. The band broke up soon after. After Nymphs,

went on to record with

Jeff Buckley Jeffrey Scott Buckley (November 17, 1966 – May 29, 1997), raised as Scott Moorhead, was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. After a decade as a session guitarist in Los Angeles, Buckley amassed a following in the early 1990s by ...

and release solo albums. Alex Kirst went on to play drums for

. Geoff Siegel went on to do A&R for

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region i ...

and

Giant records In folklore, giants (from Ancient Greek: ''gigas'', cognate giga-) are beings of human-like appearance, but are at times prodigious in size and strength or bear an otherwise notable appearance. The word ''giant'' is first attested in 1297 fro ...

. Sam Merrick briefly returned to his original band,

Leaving Trains The Leaving Trains were an American indie rock band from Los Angeles, California. The Leaving Trains were founded in 1980 by Falling James Moreland, a frontperson who became known for her chaotic performances and penchant for (male-to-female) cro ...

. He now plays guitar in

Boise, Idaho Boise (, , ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho and is the county seat of Ada County. On the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is east of the Oregon border and north of the Nevada border. The downtown ar ...

based band a.k.a. Belle. Alex Kirst died on January 13, 2011 as the result of a car accident. His body was found just before midnight near Date Palm and Gerald Ford Drive in

Cathedral City, California Cathedral City, colloquially known as "Cat City", is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. Situated between Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage, the city has the second larg ...

. He was 47. Kirst is the brother of guitarist Whitey Kirst, who has also played with

. In the summer of 2016,

announced Nymphs were re-forming and going back into the studio with new material for the first time in over 20 years. A new album and touring would follow. The news spread through various magazines, television interviews and online social media. The new band lineup would bring back

(vocals) with all new members including Mario Tremaine (guitar), Jordan Lawson (bass), Aaron Cruz (guitar) and Eric James Contreras (drums). However, after several brief studio rehearsals, a cover of

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album ...

Hard Candy Christmas "Hard Candy Christmas" is a song written by composer-lyricist Carol Hall for the musical ''The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas''. Near the end of the original play, individual girls of the brothel sing lines of the verses as they are preparing to ...

for

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technolog ...

, and an appearance at

The Viper Room The Viper Room is a nightclub and live music venue located on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, California, United States. It was established as The Viper Room in 1993 and was partly owned by actor Johnny Depp. The other part owner was Sal J ...

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Picture ...

, the newly formed Nymphs called it quits almost as quickly as they got started. November 18, 2016 a reissue of Nymphs' one and only Geffen release from 1991, now an underground classic was released by Rock Candy Records in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the original Geffen release. The reissue was remastered and included a 16-page full-color booklet containing a 3,500 word essay, enhanced artwork with previously unseen photos, interviews and band history. As of April 2017 Nymphs’ lineup consists of Inger Lorre (vocals-keyboards), Joe Perez (lead guitar), T.J. (rhythm guitar), Angelique Congleton (bass-vocals) and Eric James Contreras (drums). The new Nymphs lineup is writing/rehearsing/recording new material to be released and for an upcoming European tour. A live recording from a 2016 show at the famous Viper Room in Hollywood was released in 2017.

Discography

* '' The Nymphs'' (1991) Geffen 36,000 * '' A Practical Guide to Astral Projection'' (1992) Geffen 5,000

References

External links

*
Inger Lorre biography
at worldwildtribe.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Nymphs, The Alternative rock groups from California Geffen Records artists Musical groups from Los Angeles Musical groups established in 1985 Musical groups disestablished in 1992 1985 establishments in California