Clem Snide is an
alt-country
Alternative country (commonly abbreviated to alt-country; also known as alternative country rock, insurgent country, Americana, or y'allternative) is a loosely defined subgenre of country music and/or country rock that includes acts that diffe ...
band featuring
Eef Barzelay (guitar, vocals), Brendan Fitzpatrick (bass) and Ben Martin (drums).
History
"Clem Snide" is a character in several novels by
William S. Burroughs, including ''
Naked Lunch
''Naked Lunch'' (first published as ''The Naked Lunch'') is a 1959 novel by American author William S. Burroughs. The novel does not follow a clear linear plot, but is instead structured as a series of non-chronological "routines". Many of thes ...
'', ''
The Ticket That Exploded'' and ''
Exterminator!''. The band Clem Snide was started by songwriter and singer
Eef Barzelay, Jason Glasser, William J. Grabek Jr., and drummer Eric Paull in Boston in 1991. A few years later, with the addition of bassist Jeff "SweetBread" Marshall, the band made its first record, ''
You Were a Diamond'', with producer
Adam Lasus. After building up a local following they attracted the attention of Seymour Stein, who then signed them to the Sire label for whom they recorded ''
Your Favorite Music'' in 1999.
A couple years later Clem Snide released their third album ''
The Ghost of Fashion'' on indie stalwart SpinArt Records. The record received some mainstream attention due to the song "Moment in the Sun", which was used as the theme song for the second season of the
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
program ''
Ed''.
After an ill-fated post-9/11 tour, the band began to unravel, but not before completing two more records: ''
Soft Spot'' (2003) and ''
End of Love'' (2005). After beginning work on another record, the strains of life in the music industry became too great and Clem Snide broke up. Barzelay went on to release two solo records, ''
Bitter Honey'' and ''
Lose Big''.
In 2009, the band re-grouped and released their sixth record ''
Hungry Bird'' on 429 Records. On February 23, 2010, Clem Snide released their seventh long-player, ''
The Meat of Life'', also on 429 Records.
The band's music featured in the series ''
Californication'', when "Faithfully" was played during the end credits of "Waiting for a Miracle", the fourth episode of season 5 (originally broadcast January 2012).
In February 2013, Clem Snide released a new track, "The Woods", which was written for "Senses", the second episode of the
Professor Brian Cox-presented
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
science and nature show ''
Wonders of Life''.
Track at the official Bandcamp
"No One's More Happy Than You" from '' The Ghost of Fashion'' was featured in the eleventh episode of season 7 of ''The Good Wife
''The Good Wife'' is an American legal political drama television series that aired on CBS from September 22, 2009, to May 8, 2016. It focuses on Alicia Florrick, the wife of the Cook County State's Attorney, who returns to her career in law ...
'' that aired on January 10, 2016.
In 2017, Clem Snide's cover of " Beautiful" was used in the Netflix
Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
show ''Love
Love is a feeling of strong attraction and emotional attachment (psychology), attachment to a person, animal, or thing. It is expressed in many forms, encompassing a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most su ...
'', playing over the end credits of Season 2 Episode 4.
Discography
Albums
* '' You Were a Diamond'' - CD - Tractor Beam Records - 1998
* '' Your Favorite Music'' - CD - Sire Records
Sire Records (formerly Sire Records Company) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group and distributed by Warner Records.
History Beginnings
The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gotteh ...
/ spinART Records - 1999 (vinyl in 2010 via Microfiche Records)
* '' The Ghost of Fashion'' - CD - spinART Records - 2001 (vinyl in 2011 via Microfiche Records)
* '' Soft Spot'' - CD - spinART Records - 2003
* '' End of Love'' - CD - spinART Records - 2005
* '' Suburban Field Recordings: Volume One/Early Home Recordings: Volume One'' - MP3/iTunes
iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...
- SpinArt Records - 2005
* '' Suburban Field Recordings: Volume Two'' - MP3/iTunes - spinART Records - 2006
* ''Have a Good Night: Live Recordings 1999-2005'' - Self-released - 2006
* '' Hungry Bird'' - CD - 429 Records - February 24, 2009
* '' The Meat of Life'' - CD - 429 Records - February 23, 2010
* '' Suburban Field Recordings: Volume three'' - Amazon MP3/iTunes - snideco - November 23, 2010
* ''We leave only ashes CD 2013
* ''Birthing Pains'' - Mr It Productions - 2013
* ''Girls Come First'' - Amazon MP3/iTunes - Zahpwee Music - March 3, 2015
* ''Forever Just Beyond'' - Ramseur Records - March 27, 2020
* ''Beyond Forever Just Beyond'' - Ramseur Records - June 23, 2021
* ''Oh Smokey'' - Foreign Leisure Records - September 2024
EPs
* '' Moment in the Sun EP'' - CD - spinART Records - 2002
* '' A Beautiful EP'' - CD - spinART Records - 2004
* ''A Beautiful EP'' - CD - Fargo Records - 2004 (European release)
* '' Clem Snide's Journey EP'' (Vinyl, Digital Download)- Bandcamp release - June 29, 2011
* '' Smothered & Covered Vol. 1'' - June 11, 2021
Singles
* "I Love the Unknown" - CD - Cooking Vinyl
Cooking Vinyl is a British independent record label, based in Acton, London, England. It was founded in 1986 by former manager and booking agent Martin Goldschmidt and his business partner Pete Lawrence. Goldschmidt remains the current owner an ...
- 1999 (European release)
* "Ice Cube" - CD - Cooking Vinyl - 2001 (European release)
* "Song for Bob Crane/Frustrated Poet" - 7" - Self Starter Foundation - 2001
* "Moment in the Sun" - CD - Cooking Vinyl - 2001
Non-album compilation tracks
* " Tears on My Pillow", a cover of Little Anthony and the Imperials, from '' Stubbs the Zombie: The Soundtrack'' (2005)
* "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Your Grievance", from '' The Late Great Daniel Johnston: Discovered Covered''
* "Keep Your Feelings to Yourself", from '' This Is Next Year: A Brooklyn-Based Compilation''
* "Accident", from ''Never Kept a Diary'' Compilation on Motorcoat records
* "The Ballad of David Icke", from '' Future Soundtrack for America''
References
External links
Clem Snide's
official site. urrently unavailable
Clem Snide
on Microfiche Records site.
* Clem Snideat Allmusic.
Clem Snide's Journey EP
{{Authority control
American alternative country groups
Indie rock musical groups from Massachusetts
Musical groups established in 1991
1991 establishments in Massachusetts
SpinART Records artists
429 Records artists