Shudder to Think
Encyclopedia
Shudder to Think is an American
indie rock
group. Formed in 1986
, they released three albums on the Washington, D.C.
-based label Dischord Records
and were a post-hardcore
band, although they drew upon a wide range of stylistic influences, including pop
.
(vocals and guitar
), Chris Matthews (guitar), Stuart Hill (bass
) and Mike Russell (drum
s). In this incarnation, the band released two singles and one album (Curse, Spells, Voodoo, Mooses, 1989
) before being signed by the Dischord label. Three albums were then released (Ten-Spot, 1990
, Funeral at the Movies, 1991
, and Get Your Goat, 1992
), before the band gained greater exposure by touring with Fugazi and the Smashing Pumpkins; with their May 7, 1992 show in Albig
, Germany
being released by Tobby Holzinger as Your Choice Live Series Vol.21
.
Swiz ex-bassist Nathan Larson (guitars) and ex-Jawbox
drummer Adam Wade
replaced Matthews and Russell in 1992 (while the specific dates for the line up change are unknown, it's certain that Nathan Larson was gigging with the band prior to the release of Get Your Goat; the 1992 Live at Dobbs DVD bootleg has Craig Wedren quoting that Get Your Goat is 'out in May' and Nathan Larson is clearly the guitarist at that time). The band subsequently signed to Epic
, with whom Pony Express Record
was released in 1994
. The album's angular, mathematical post-modernism earned it a devoted cult following
. The video for "Hit Liquor" appeared on "Candy Sale", a season five episode of Beavis and Butt-head
, where the song came under extremely strong criticism.
Over the next few years, Wedren successfully battled Hodgkin's Disease, Larson recorded an album with side project band Mind Science of the Mind, and Wade left the group. He was replaced by Kevin March
, formerly drummer with Dambuilders
.
They released another album, 50,000 B.C., in 1997
. The band also worked on music for soundtracks including First Love, Last Rites
and High Art
. In 1998, the band wrote and performed two songs for the film Velvet Goldmine
.
However, 1998
marked Larson's departure and the end of the group. Wedren has pursued a solo career, including an appearance on the Down to You
soundtrack with Didn't Mean to Do You Harm, and contributed backing vocals to Verve Pipe's 1999
eponymous album
.
Both Larson and Wedren have gone on to create highly regarded music for films. David Wain
, founder of comedy troupe The State
, was a high-school friend of Wedren's, and Wedren's music has appeared in many television series and films stemming from the troupe and its alumni, such as Reno 911 and Wet Hot American Summer
. Wedren also makes solo music, and released his debut album, Lapland, in 2005. Larson has formed a new band called Hot One
.
. The band continued to perform shows throughout 2008 and 2009, releasing a live album entitled Live from Home. Without Larson, the band played what was billed as a "final" show on September 2, 2009 at the Bowery Ballroom
in New York City.
went as far as covering part of "X-French Tee Shirt" in their song "Nowhere Fast" during Lollapalooza
. Jeff Buckley
also listed Shudder to Think as a favorite band of his. Pearl Jam
also invited Shudder to Think to open for them on a tour of Australia in 1998, and even played a snippet of the Shudder song "Pebbles" during their set. Cursive mentions the band in their song "Sink to the Beat" off their EP Burst and Bloom.
, embraced "pop influences and a skewed sense of songwriting" while coming from a hardcore punk
background "courtesy of their affiliation" with Dischord. Reviewer Charles Spano characterized some of the band's work as the result of the group skewing "their pop brilliance with Ric Ocasek
grooves, a[ David] Bowie
and [...] Roxy Music
glam
bent [...], and the theatrics of Queen
."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
group. Formed in 1986
1986 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1986.-January-June:*January 23 – The first induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame takes place...
, they released three albums on the Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
-based label Dischord Records
Dischord Records
Dischord Records is a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label specializing in the independent punk music of the D.C.-area music scene. The label is co-owned by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to release Minor Disturbance by The Teen Idles...
and were a post-hardcore
Post-hardcore
Post-hardcore is a genre of music that developed from hardcore punk, itself an offshoot of the broader punk rock movement. Like post-punk, post-hardcore is a term for a broad constellation of groups...
band, although they drew upon a wide range of stylistic influences, including pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
.
History
The band's first lineup was Craig WedrenCraig Wedren
Craig Wedren is the former lead singer of Shudder to Think and now the lead for the newer pop-mash project, "BABY".Wedren has also contributed vocals to the musical act Tweaker with Chris Vrenna, formerly of Nine Inch Nails, The Verve Pipe's self-titled album, the musical act Cex, The Dead...
(vocals and guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
), Chris Matthews (guitar), Stuart Hill (bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
) and Mike Russell (drum
Drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s). In this incarnation, the band released two singles and one album (Curse, Spells, Voodoo, Mooses, 1989
1989 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1989.-Events:*January 14 – Paul McCartney releases Снова в СССР exclusively in the USSR...
) before being signed by the Dischord label. Three albums were then released (Ten-Spot, 1990
1990 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1990.-Events:*January 21 – MTV's Unplugged premieres on cable television with British band Squeeze...
, Funeral at the Movies, 1991
1991 in music
See also:* 1991 in music Record labels established in 1991-Summary:The year 1991 is the year that grunge music made its popular breakthrough. Nirvana's Nevermind, led by the surprise hit single "Smells Like Teen Spirit", becomes the most popular U.S. album of the year...
, and Get Your Goat, 1992
1992 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1992.-January–February:*January 11**Nirvana's Nevermind album goes to #1 in the US Billboard 200 chart, establishing the widespread popularity of the Grunge movement of the 1990s....
), before the band gained greater exposure by touring with Fugazi and the Smashing Pumpkins; with their May 7, 1992 show in Albig
Albig
Albig is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in Rhenish Hesse in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
being released by Tobby Holzinger as Your Choice Live Series Vol.21
Your Choice Records
Your Choice Records was a German independent record label founded in 1988 by producer Tobby Holzinger. The label specialized in independent punk music, including live releases of German and other international acts...
.
Swiz ex-bassist Nathan Larson (guitars) and ex-Jawbox
Jawbox
Jawbox was an alternative rock band from Washington, D.C., U.S.. Its original members were J. Robbins , Kim Coletta and Adam Wade...
drummer Adam Wade
Adam Wade (drummer)
Adam Wade Adam Wade Adam Wade (born 3 July 1968, Washington, DC, is an American drummer.He was a member of Jawbox, Shudder To Think, Sweet 75 and The Jealous Sound-External links:*Allmusic entry []*Floodwatch Music Interview, 2008*Modern Drummer...
replaced Matthews and Russell in 1992 (while the specific dates for the line up change are unknown, it's certain that Nathan Larson was gigging with the band prior to the release of Get Your Goat; the 1992 Live at Dobbs DVD bootleg has Craig Wedren quoting that Get Your Goat is 'out in May' and Nathan Larson is clearly the guitarist at that time). The band subsequently signed to Epic
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
, with whom Pony Express Record
Pony Express Record
Pony Express Record is a 1994 album by the Washington, D.C.-based post-hardcore group Shudder to Think. It was their first album to be recorded for Epic records...
was released in 1994
1994 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1994.-January–February:*January 25 – Alice in Chains release their Jar of Flies album which debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, becoming the first ever EP to do so....
. The album's angular, mathematical post-modernism earned it a devoted cult following
Cult following
A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a specific area of pop culture. A film, book, band, or video game, among other things, will be said to have a cult following when it has a small but very passionate fan base...
. The video for "Hit Liquor" appeared on "Candy Sale", a season five episode of Beavis and Butt-head
Beavis and Butt-Head
Beavis and Butt-head is an American animated television series created by Mike Judge. The series originated from Frog Baseball, a 1992 short film by Judge. After seeing the short, MTV signed Judge to develop the concept. Beavis and Butt-head originally aired from March 8, 1993 to November 28, 1997...
, where the song came under extremely strong criticism.
Over the next few years, Wedren successfully battled Hodgkin's Disease, Larson recorded an album with side project band Mind Science of the Mind, and Wade left the group. He was replaced by Kevin March
Kevin March
Kevin P. March is an American business executive, and currently Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice-President of technology manufacturing giant, Texas Instruments.-Education:...
, formerly drummer with Dambuilders
Dambuilders
-History:The Dambuilders was a band in the early 1990s Boston rock scene. The founding members - Dave Derby, Tryan George and Eric Masunaga - hail from Hawaii and had played in a number of bands before moving to Boston in 1990. The band began as the Dambuilders in Hawaii in a three-piece and...
.
They released another album, 50,000 B.C., in 1997
1997 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1997.-January:*January 9 – David Bowie performs his 50th Birthday Bash concert at Madison Square Garden, New York City, USA with guests Frank Black, The Foo Fighters, Sonic Youth, Robert Smith of The Cure, Lou Reed, and Billy...
. The band also worked on music for soundtracks including First Love, Last Rites
First Love, Last Rites
First Love, Last Rites is a collection of short stories by Ian McEwan. It was first published in 1975 by Jonathan Cape and re-issued in 1997 by Vintage.- Context :...
and High Art
High Art
High Art is an independent film directed by Lisa Cholodenko and starring Ally Sheedy and Radha Mitchell.- Synopsis :Sydney , age 24, is a woman who has her whole life mapped out in front of her...
. In 1998, the band wrote and performed two songs for the film Velvet Goldmine
Velvet Goldmine
Velvet Goldmine is a 1998 British/American drama film directed and co-written by Todd Haynes. The film tells the story of a pop star based mainly on David Bowie's 'Ziggy Stardust' character and is set in Britain during the days of glam rock in the early 1970s.Sandy Powell received another Academy...
.
However, 1998
1998 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1998.-Events:*January 28 – "Weird Al" Yankovic gets LASIK surgery to cure his myopia...
marked Larson's departure and the end of the group. Wedren has pursued a solo career, including an appearance on the Down to You
Down to You
Down to You is a 2000 romantic comedy film about losing a first love. It was directed by Kris Isacsson. The main characters are Alfred 'Al' Connelly Imogen and Cyrus...
soundtrack with Didn't Mean to Do You Harm, and contributed backing vocals to Verve Pipe's 1999
1999 in music
-Events:*January 7**After eight years of marriage, Rod Stewart and supermodel wife Rachel Hunter announce their separation.**Paul McCartney attends the first of his stepdaughter Heather's first housewares collection in Georgia....
eponymous album
The Verve Pipe (album)
The Verve Pipe is the self-titled album by Michigan rock band the Verve Pipe, released on July 27, 1999. The band's second release for RCA Records, the album followed the platinum-selling Villains and its mammoth single, "The Freshmen". The band worked with Soundgarden producer Michael Beinhorn and...
.
Both Larson and Wedren have gone on to create highly regarded music for films. David Wain
David Wain
David Benjamin Wain is an American comedian, writer, actor and director. He is most widely known for the feature films Role Models and Wet Hot American Summer, the 1990s' sketch comedy series The State and for producing/directing/writing the Adult Swim series Childrens Hospital...
, founder of comedy troupe The State
The State (TV series)
The State is a half-hour sketch-comedy television show, originally broadcast on MTV between December 17, 1993 and July 1, 1995. The show combined bizarre characters and scenarios to present sketches that won the favor of its target teenaged audience...
, was a high-school friend of Wedren's, and Wedren's music has appeared in many television series and films stemming from the troupe and its alumni, such as Reno 911 and Wet Hot American Summer
Wet Hot American Summer
Wet Hot American Summer is a 2001 satirical comedy film written by David Wain and Michael Showalter, and directed by Wain. The film takes place during the last day at a fictional Jewish summer camp in 1981, before closing for the summer...
. Wedren also makes solo music, and released his debut album, Lapland, in 2005. Larson has formed a new band called Hot One
Hot One
Hot One is a US rock band formed in 2005. Its members are guitarist/vocalist Nathan Larson, bassist/vocalist Emm Gryner, drummer Kevin March, and guitarist Jordan Kern. The band is characterized by a glam rock/post-punk sound and overtly political lyrical content...
.
Reunion
Wedren, Larson, and March performed a brief set together on September 17, 2007 at The Mercury Lounge in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. The band continued to perform shows throughout 2008 and 2009, releasing a live album entitled Live from Home. Without Larson, the band played what was billed as a "final" show on September 2, 2009 at the Bowery Ballroom
Bowery Ballroom
The Bowery Ballroom is a music venue in the Bowery section of New York City. The structure, at 6 Delancey Street, was built just before the Stock Market Crash of 1929. It stood vacant until the end of WWII, when it became a high-end retail store. The neighborhood subsequently went into decline...
in New York City.
Influence on other bands
Shudder to Think has been listed as an influence by other bands - IncubusIncubus (band)
Incubus is an American rock band from Calabasas, California. The band was formed in 1991 by vocalist Brandon Boyd, lead guitarist Mike Einziger, and drummer Jose Pasillas while enrolled in high school and later expanded to include bassist Alex "Dirk Lance" Katunich, and Gavin "DJ Lyfe" Koppell;...
went as far as covering part of "X-French Tee Shirt" in their song "Nowhere Fast" during Lollapalooza
Lollapalooza
Lollapalooza is an annual music festival featuring popular alternative rock, heavy metal, punk rock and hip hop bands, dance and comedy performances, and craft booths. It has also provided a platform for non-profit and political groups. The music festival hosts more than 160,000 people over a...
. Jeff Buckley
Jeff Buckley
Jeffrey Scott "Jeff" Buckley , raised as Scotty Moorhead, was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was the son of Tim Buckley, also a musician...
also listed Shudder to Think as a favorite band of his. Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included Eddie Vedder , Jeff Ament , Stone Gossard , and Mike McCready...
also invited Shudder to Think to open for them on a tour of Australia in 1998, and even played a snippet of the Shudder song "Pebbles" during their set. Cursive mentions the band in their song "Sink to the Beat" off their EP Burst and Bloom.
Musical style
The band, which has been classified as post-hardcorePost-hardcore
Post-hardcore is a genre of music that developed from hardcore punk, itself an offshoot of the broader punk rock movement. Like post-punk, post-hardcore is a term for a broad constellation of groups...
, embraced "pop influences and a skewed sense of songwriting" while coming from a hardcore punk
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
background "courtesy of their affiliation" with Dischord. Reviewer Charles Spano characterized some of the band's work as the result of the group skewing "their pop brilliance with Ric Ocasek
Ric Ocasek
Ric Ocasek is an American musician and music producer. He is best known as lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist for the rock band, The Cars....
grooves, a
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
and [...] Roxy Music
Roxy Music
Roxy Music was a British art rock band formed in 1971 by Bryan Ferry, who became the group's lead vocalist and chief songwriter, and bassist Graham Simpson. The other members are Phil Manzanera , Andy Mackay and Paul Thompson . Former members include Brian Eno , and Eddie Jobson...
glam
Glam rock
Glam rock is a style of rock and pop music that developed in the UK in the early 1970s, which was performed by singers and musicians who wore outrageous clothes, makeup and hairstyles, particularly platform-soled boots and glitter...
bent [...], and the theatrics of Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...
."
Band members
- Craig WedrenCraig WedrenCraig Wedren is the former lead singer of Shudder to Think and now the lead for the newer pop-mash project, "BABY".Wedren has also contributed vocals to the musical act Tweaker with Chris Vrenna, formerly of Nine Inch Nails, The Verve Pipe's self-titled album, the musical act Cex, The Dead...
- lead vocals & guitar (1986–1998, 2007–2009) - Stuart Hill - bass (1986–1998)
- Chris Matthews - guitar (1986–1992)
- Mike Russell - drums (1986–1992)
- Nathan Larson - guitar (1992–1998, 2007–2008)
- Adam WadeAdam Wade (drummer)Adam Wade Adam Wade Adam Wade (born 3 July 1968, Washington, DC, is an American drummer.He was a member of Jawbox, Shudder To Think, Sweet 75 and The Jealous Sound-External links:*Allmusic entry []*Floodwatch Music Interview, 2008*Modern Drummer...
- drums (1992–1996) - Kevin March - drums (1996–1998, 2007–2009)
- Mark Watrous - guitar (2007–2009)
- Jesse KrakowJesse KrakowJesse Krakow is a New York City based bassist/musician. He has toured with Shudder To Think, playing bass on their 2009 live album "Live From Home." He has also collaborated with Tatsuya Yoshida and Ron Anderson for live performances as RonRuins, was previously in Anderson's band PAK, and is...
- bass (2007–2009)
Albums
- Curses, Spells, Voodoo, Mooses (1989, Sammich Records)
- Ten Spot (1990)
- Funeral at the Movies (1991)
- Get your Goat (1992, Dischord RecordsDischord RecordsDischord Records is a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label specializing in the independent punk music of the D.C.-area music scene. The label is co-owned by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to release Minor Disturbance by The Teen Idles...
) - Pony Express RecordPony Express RecordPony Express Record is a 1994 album by the Washington, D.C.-based post-hardcore group Shudder to Think. It was their first album to be recorded for Epic records...
(1994, EpicEpic RecordsEpic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
) - 50,000 B.C. (1997)
Live Albums
- Your Choice Live SeriesYour Choice RecordsYour Choice Records was a German independent record label founded in 1988 by producer Tobby Holzinger. The label specialized in independent punk music, including live releases of German and other international acts...
(1993, Your Choice RecordsYour Choice RecordsYour Choice Records was a German independent record label founded in 1988 by producer Tobby Holzinger. The label specialized in independent punk music, including live releases of German and other international acts...
) - Live From Home (2009)
Singles
- It Was Arson (1988, Sammich)
- Catch of the Day (1990, Trout, split w/ Unrest)
- Medusa Seven (1990, Hoss)
- Hit Liquor / No Room 9, Kentucky 7" (1992, Dischord)
- Hit Liquor (1994, Dischord)
- X - French T-Shirt / Shake Your Halo Down 7" (1994, Dischord)
- S/T (Live) (1994, Epic)
Soundtracks
- First Love, Last RitesFirst Love, Last RitesFirst Love, Last Rites is a collection of short stories by Ian McEwan. It was first published in 1975 by Jonathan Cape and re-issued in 1997 by Vintage.- Context :...
soundtrackSoundtrackA soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
(et al.) 1998 - High ArtHigh ArtHigh Art is an independent film directed by Lisa Cholodenko and starring Ally Sheedy and Radha Mitchell.- Synopsis :Sydney , age 24, is a woman who has her whole life mapped out in front of her...
soundtrackSoundtrackA soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
(et al.) 1999 - Velvet GoldmineVelvet GoldmineVelvet Goldmine is a 1998 British/American drama film directed and co-written by Todd Haynes. The film tells the story of a pop star based mainly on David Bowie's 'Ziggy Stardust' character and is set in Britain during the days of glam rock in the early 1970s.Sandy Powell received another Academy...
soundtrackSoundtrackA soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
1998
Compilations
- Funeral at the Movies/Ten Spot
- O Come All Ye Faithful (Rock For Choice) - 1996