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The Spinanes were an American
indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...
band Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary * Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania * Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, ...
, primarily active during the 1990s. The band was founded by and initially consisted only of singer-songwriter/guitarist Rebecca Gates and drummer
Scott Plouf Built to Spill is an American indie rock band that formed in Boise, Idaho, in 1992. Centered on lead vocalist and guitarist Doug Martsch, the only permanent member, Built to Spill has released nine albums since its inception. Martsch originall ...
. They released three albums on the
Sub Pop Sub Pop is an independent record label founded in 1986 by Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman. Sub Pop achieved fame in the early 1990s for signing Seattle bands such as Nirvana (band), Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Mudhoney, central players in the gru ...
label before Gates retired the name in 2001 and began releasing music as a solo artist; Plouf began playing with
Built to Spill Built to Spill is an American indie rock band that formed in Boise, Idaho, in 1992. Centered on lead vocalist and guitarist Doug Martsch, the only permanent member, Built to Spill has released nine albums since its inception. Martsch originall ...
in 1996 and left The Spinanes shortly thereafter to become their permanent drummer.


History

The duo formed in
Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...
, in 1991, just as worldwide interest in the music scene of 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 ...
was beginning to crest. The Spinanes played one of their first shows at the
International Pop Underground Convention The International Pop Underground Convention (or IPU) was a 1991 punk and alternative rock music festival in Olympia, Washington. The six-day convention centered on a series of performances at the Capitol Theater. Throughout August 20–25, 1 ...
in August 1991 in
Olympia, Washington Olympia is the capital city of the U.S. state of Washington. It had a population of 55,605 at the 2020 census, making it the state of Washington's 23rd-most populous city. Olympia is the county seat of Thurston County, and the central city ...
. After releasing two singles on the local label IMP Records in 1992, they were signed by Sub Pop, who issued the single "Spitfire" in mid-1993, followed that October by their first full-length album, ''Manos''. Much was made of The Spinanes' unorthodox lineup – specifically, the lack of bass guitar – but it proved invaluable in helping them forge a more singular, original sound. In a March 2010 review, nearly two decades after the album's release,
eMusic eMusic is an Online music store, online music and audiobook store that operates by subscription. In exchange for a monthly subscription eMusic users can download a fixed number of MP3 tracks per month. eMusic was established in 1998, is headquart ...
praised them for having "a sense of
negative space In art and design, negative space or negative volume is the empty space around and between the subject(s) of an image. In graphic design this is known as white space. Negative space may be most evident when the space around a subject, not th ...
that's rare for a rock band", then went on to describe their sound as "Gates's dreamy murmur and resonant, open-tuned
riff A riff is a short, repeated motif or figure in the melody or accompaniment of a musical composition. Riffs are most often found in rock music, punk, heavy metal music, Latin, funk, and jazz, although classical music is also sometimes based ...
s up top, Plouf's inexorable attack at the bottom, and nothing but air between them." ''Manos'' became the first album released by Sub Pop to hit No. 1 on the
college radio Campus radio (also known as college radio, university radio or student radio) is a type of radio station that is run by the students of a college, university or other educational institution. Programming may be exclusively created or produced ...
chart A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphics, graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can repres ...
s; its second single, "Noel, Jonah and Me", received considerable airplay on college and
alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (Kamen Rider), Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * Alternative comics, or independent comics are an altern ...
radio stations and
video Video is an Electronics, electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving picture, moving image, visual Media (communication), media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, whi ...
outlets such as
MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
's
120 Minutes ''120 Minutes'' is a television program in the United States dedicated to the Alternative rock, alternative music genre, that originally aired on MTV from 1986 to 2000, and then aired on MTV's associate channel MTV2 from 2001 to 2003. After it ...
. A video was also made for a third single, "Sunday", in 1994, but the duo's appearances over the following two years were largely limited to separate guest spots on their friends' records.
Merge Records Merge Records is an independent record label based in Durham, North Carolina. It was founded in 1989 by Laura Ballance and Mac McCaughan. It began as an outlet for music from their band Superchunk and music created by friends, and has expand ...
re-issued ''Manos'' in 2018. Gates provided
backup vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are us ...
on
Elliott Smith Steven Paul Smith (August 6, 1969 – October 21, 2003), known as Elliott Smith, was an American musician and singer-songwriter. He was born in Omaha, Nebraska, raised primarily in Texas, and lived much of his life in Portland, Oregon, whe ...
's "St. Ides Heaven" (from his self-titled album), as well as on multiple tracks on
Ben Lee Benjamin Michael Lee (born 11 September 1978) is an Australian musician and actor. Lee began his career as a musician at the age of 14 with the Sydney band Noise Addict, but he focused on his solo career when the band broke up in 1995. He app ...
's first album, ''
Grandpaw Would ''Grandpaw Would'' is the first solo studio album by Australian musician Ben Lee, released in 1995 as his band Noise Addict disbanded. Critical reception ''Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on ...
''. Plouf did a brief stint in
Team Dresch Team Dresch is an American punk rock band originally formed in 1993 in Olympia, Washington. History In 1993, Donna Dresch formed Team Dresch with herself playing guitar and bass, Jody Bleyle on guitar and vocals, Kaia Wilson on guitar and voc ...
, and appeared on their first single, "Hand Grenade"; he also played on the
Beck Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970), known mononymously as Beck, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi mus ...
album ''One Foot in the Grave''. The Spinanes regrouped in 1996 for the release of their second album, ''Strand'', which was bookended by the singles "Madding" and "Lines and Lines". Elliott Smith, in turn, provides backup vocals, as does
John Moen John Moen is a musician and member of The Decemberists, Black Prairie, Boston Spaceships, Eyelids, and Perhapst. Moen has played the drums since he was 15 years old. Prior to joining The Decemberists, Moen played with over 20 bands including s ...
(of Dharma Bums and
The Decemberists The Decemberists are an American indie rock band from Portland, Oregon, formed in 2000. The band consists of Colin Meloy (lead vocals, guitar), Chris Funk (guitar, multi-instrumentalist), Jenny Conlee (piano, keyboards, accordion, backing vocals ...
). Around the same time, Plouf began playing with Built to Spill, but due to that band's signing with
Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (known as Warner Bros. Records Inc. until 2019) is an American record label. A subsidiary of Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division ...
, he was unable to continue with both bands full-time, and in 1997, he made the decision to leave The Spinanes. Gates then relocated to
Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
, reconfigured The Spinanes as a three-piece with bassist Joanna Bolme and drummer
Jerry Busher Jerry Busher is an American drummer and multi-instrumentalist. He is known for his work with Fidelity Jones, Fugazi and Scream. Career Jerry Busher is a musician, audio engineer and artist from the Washington DC area. He played drums in Fidelit ...
, and began work on another album at
Easley McCain Recording Easley McCain Recording is an American recording studio, based in Memphis, Tennessee, notable for recording musicians such as Tav Falco's Panther Burns, Oblivians, Grifters, Pavement, Sonic Youth, Come, White Stripes, Townes Van Zandt, ...
in
Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...
. Additional tracks were recorded with John McEntire (of
Tortoise Tortoises ( ) are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin for "tortoise"). Like other turtles, tortoises have a shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard, and like o ...
and
The Sea and Cake The Sea and Cake is an American indie rock band based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. As part of the Chicago school of post-rock, the group formed in the mid-1990s from members of The Coctails (Archer Prewitt), Shrimp Boat (Sam Prekop ...
) at his Soma Electronic Music Studios, one of which features vocalist
Sam Prekop Sam Prekop (born October 18, 1964) is an American musician in the band The Sea and Cake. He also has released five solo albums. Early life Prekop was born in London, but grew up in Chicago. He studied at the Kansas City Art Institute. Career ...
(also of The Sea and Cake). The resulting album, '' Arches and Aisles'', was released in June 1998. An album consisting of early Spinanes singles, '' Imp Years'', came out in 2000. Gates shed the Spinanes moniker in 2001 and released ''Ruby Series''.


Discography


Albums

* '' Manos'' (Sub Pop, 1993; Merge re-issue, 2018) * ''
Strand Strand or The Strand may refer to: Topography *The flat area of land bordering a body of water, a: ** Beach ** Shoreline * Strand swamp, a type of swamp habitat in Florida Places Africa * Strand, Western Cape, a seaside town in South Africa * ...
'' (Sub Pop, 1996) * '' Arches and Aisles'' (Sub Pop, 1998)


EPs

* '' Imp Years'' (Merge Records, 2000)


Singles

* ''Madding (Single Version)/10 Metre Platform'' (Sub Pop, 1996) * ''All Sold Out'' (Sub Pop, 1996)


Compilation appearances

* "Jad Fair Drives Women Wild" on ''
International Pop Underground Convention The International Pop Underground Convention (or IPU) was a 1991 punk and alternative rock music festival in Olympia, Washington. The six-day convention centered on a series of performances at the Capitol Theater. Throughout August 20–25, 1 ...
'' (
K Records K Records is an independent record label in Olympia, Washington, founded in 1982. Artists on the label included early releases by Beck, Modest Mouse and Built to Spill. The record label has been called "key to the development of independent mu ...
, 1991) * "Stupid Crazy" on ''
Rock Stars Kill ''Rock Stars Kill'' is a compilation of various artists released by Kill Rock Stars on September 1, 1994. The compilation was released simultaneously as a vinyl LP with accompanying 7″ single, cassette, and CD. Track listing LP ;Side one # T ...
'' (
Kill Rock Stars Kill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in February 1991 by Slim Moon and Tinuviel Sampson, and based in both Olympia, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, but it was orig ...
, 1994) * "Grand Prize" on ''Wild and Wooly: The Northwest Rock Collection'' (Sub Pop/
Experience Music Project The Museum of Pop Culture (or MoPOP) is a nonprofit museum in Seattle, Washington, United States, dedicated to contemporary popular culture. It was founded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen in 2000 as the Experience Music Project. Since then ...
, 2000)


References


External links


"Noel, Jonah, and Me" music video (from ''Manos'')"Sunday" music video (from ''Manos'')
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spinanes, The American indie rock groups Musical groups from Illinois Musical groups from Portland, Oregon Musical groups from Olympia, Washington Musical groups established in 1991 1991 establishments in Oregon Musical groups disestablished in 2000 Sub Pop artists American musical duos