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Curtis Matthew Kirkwood (born January 10, 1959) is an American musician, best known as the guitarist, singer and primary songwriter for
alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...
group
Meat Puppets Meat Puppets are an American rock band formed in January 1980 in Phoenix, Arizona. The group's original lineup was Curt Kirkwood (guitar/vocals), his brother Cris Kirkwood (bass guitar/vocals), and Derrick Bostrom (drums). The Kirkwood brothe ...
, and for playing with
Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...
on MTV Unplugged in New York.


Biography

Curt Kirkwood formed the Meat Puppets along with his brother Cris on bass, and drummer Derrick Bostrom. The trio went on hiatus in 1996 after a long career in which they were hailed as one of the premier and innovative indie bands, who also briefly achieved mainstream success in the early 1990s. As the group's lead vocalist and primary songwriter (including solely penning most of the band's best-known songs: "Plateau," "Oh, Me," "Lake of Fire," "Up on the Sun," "Backwater," etc.), Curt is the sole member of the original trio to have played in all of the band's incarnations since 1980. He re-formed the Meat Puppets in 1999 with Kyle Ellison (guitar), Andrew Duplantis (bass) and Shandon Sahm (drums) to complete one studio album, '' Golden Lies'', released in 2000. The new lineup disbanded in 2002 after the departure of Duplantis. After the Meat Puppets, Kirkwood toured as a solo act before banding together with
Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...
bassist
Krist Novoselic Krist Anthony Novoselic (; ; born May 16, 1965) is an American musician, politician and activist. Novoselic co-founded and played bass on every album for the rock music, rock band Nirvana (band), Nirvana. Novoselic and Kurt Cobain formed the ban ...
and Sublime drummer Bud Gaugh to form Eyes Adrift. They released a self-titled album in 2002 and toured the United States. After Novoselic's departure, Kirkwood and Gaugh formed another band,
Volcano A volcano is commonly defined as a vent or fissure in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most oft ...
, which released a self-titled album in 2004 before Kirkwood decided to focus on his solo career. His first solo album ''
Snow Snow consists of individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water througho ...
'' was released in October 2005. He is also an artist and created the cover art for several
Meat Puppets Meat Puppets are an American rock band formed in January 1980 in Phoenix, Arizona. The group's original lineup was Curt Kirkwood (guitar/vocals), his brother Cris Kirkwood (bass guitar/vocals), and Derrick Bostrom (drums). The Kirkwood brothe ...
albums and merchandise, as well as for Stephen Beachy's novel ''The Whistling Song''. In 2006, the Meat Puppets re-formed with Cris back on bass and drummers Ted Marcus and Shandon Sahm serving as replacements for Derrick Bostrom until he returned to the band in 2018. Since reforming, the band has released five new albums, '' Rise to Your Knees'' (2007), '' Sewn Together'' (2009), '' Lollipop'' (2011), '' Rat Farm'' (2013) and '' Dusty Notes'' (2019). Kirkwood was extensively interviewed for the 2012 book, ''Too High to Die: Meet the Meat Puppets'', by author Greg Prato.


Personal life

Kirkwood is the grandson of Carl W. Renstrom, who was owner of Tip-Top Products and a multi-millionaire from
Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...
.David Holthouse
"Shooting Star"
''Phoenix New Times'', November 12, 1998. Retrieved June 28, 2015.


Discography


Meat Puppets


Nirvana

* '' MTV Unplugged in New York'' (1993)


Eyes Adrift

* '' Eyes Adrift'' (2002)


Volcano

* ''
Volcano A volcano is commonly defined as a vent or fissure in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most oft ...
'' (2004)


Solo

* ''
Snow Snow consists of individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water througho ...
'' (2005)


The Dean Ween Group

* ''The Deaner Album'' (2016)


References


External links


Interview with Curt Kirkwood by Jarrod Dicker

Meat Puppets' new official website
maintained by the band and Anodyne Records.
Meat Puppets' original website
, maintained by original drummer Derrick Bostrom
Live Repository
* - a music blog primarily focusing on live Meat Puppets. * * , Kirkwood designed cover for book by Lee Ranaldo, "Hello From the American Desert" {{DEFAULTSORT:Kirkwood, Curt 1959 births Living people American male singers American punk rock singers American punk rock guitarists Musicians from Phoenix, Arizona Meat Puppets members Music of Austin, Texas Guitarists from Arizona American male guitarists 20th-century American guitarists Eyes Adrift members Volcano (supergroup) members Rock musicians from Arizona