Babes in Toyland was an American

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

band formed in

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

, Minnesota, in 1987. The band was formed by Oregon native

Kat Bjelland Katherine Lynne Bjelland (; born December 9, 1963) is an American musician. She rose to prominence as the lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter of the alternative rock band Babes in Toyland, which she formed in 1987. She has been noted for her ...

(lead vocals and guitar), with

Lori Barbero Lori Anne Barbero (born November 27, 1961) is an American musician. She rose to prominence as the drummer of the alternative rock band Babes in Toyland, which she formed in 1987. After the dissolution of Babes in Toyland in 2001, Barbero subsequ ...

(drums) and Michelle Leon (bass), who was later replaced by

Maureen Herman Maureen Herman (born July 25, 1966) is an American musician and writer. She rose to prominence as the second bassist of the alternative rock band Babes in Toyland, which she joined in 1992, replacing original bassist Michelle Leon. After Herman ...

in 1992.

Courtney Love Courtney Michelle Love (née Harrison; born July 9, 1964) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and actress. A figure in the alternative and grunge scenes of the 1990s, Love has had a career spanning four decades. She rose to promi ...

had a brief stint in the band in 1987 as a bass player before being kicked out and forming

Hole A hole is an opening in or through a particular medium, usually a solid Body (physics), body. Holes occur through natural and artificial processes, and may be useful for various purposes, or may represent a problem needing to be addressed in m ...

in 1989. Between 1989 and 1995, Babes in Toyland released three studio albums: ''

Spanking Machine ''Spanking Machine'' is the debut studio album by American punk rock band Babes in Toyland, released on April 16, 1990. Background and production The working title of the album was ''Swamp Pussy'', which later ended up becoming the opening son ...

'' (1990), the commercially successful ''

Fontanelle A fontanelle (or fontanel) (colloquially, soft spot) is an anatomical feature of the infant human skull comprising soft membranous gaps ( sutures) between the cranial bones that make up the calvaria of a fetus or an infant. Fontanelles allow ...

'' (1992), and ''

Nemesisters ''Nemesisters'' is the third and final studio album recorded by Babes in Toyland. It was produced by Tim Mac, and released in 1995 by Reprise Records. Recording The album was recorded under engineer and producer Tim Mac at AmRep Studios in Min ...

'' (1995), before becoming inactive in 1997 and eventually disbanding in 2001. While the band was inspirational to some performers in the

riot grrrl Riot grrrl is an underground feminist punk movement that began during the early 1990s within the United States in Olympia, Washington, and the greater Pacific Northwest, and has expanded to at least 26 other countries. A subcultural movement ...

movement in the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common ...

, Babes in Toyland never associated themselves with the movement.

Studio albums

Extended plays

Live albums

Compilation albums

Singles

Chart positions

Other contributions

Videography

The best places to catch a Babes in Toyland video in the US were through various MTV outlets. The music videos for "Bruise Violet" and "Sweet '69" were Buzzworthy Clip Features, and "Sweet '69" was the cheapest video ever made to be played on the network at the time. The "Sweet '69" music video was made on a $5,000 budget. Beavis and Butthead episodes were another notable place to catch clips for "Ripe" and "Bruise Violet''. 120 minutes also played music videos by the band. They also guest-hosted the show on July 9, 1995.

Music videos

References

External links

{{Babes in Toyland (band) Discographies of American artists