Unsane is an American

noise rock Noise rock (sometimes called noise punk) is a noise music, noise-oriented style of experimental rock that spun off from punk rock in the 1980s. Drawing on movements such as minimal music, minimalism, industrial music, and New York hardcore, a ...

trio that was formed in New York City in 1988. Its music touches on elements of

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (commonly abbreviated to hardcore or hXc) is a punk rock music genre#subtypes, subgenre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots ...

and

metal A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...

. The writer Patrick Kennedy wrote, "While developing the blueprint for noise-metal bands to follow, Unsane cut a remarkable swath through

underground music Underground music is music with practices perceived as outside, or somehow opposed to, Popular music, mainstream popular music culture. Underground styles lack the commercial success of popular music movements, and may involve the use of avant-g ...

, inspiring a devoted, cult-like following around the world."

History

In 1988, the singer/guitarist Chris Spencer, bass guitarist Pete Shore and drummer Charlie Ondras were students at

Sarah Lawrence College Sarah Lawrence College (SLC) is a Private university, private liberal arts college in Yonkers, New York, United States. Founded as a Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in 1926, Sarah Lawrence College has been coeducational ...

when they formed Lawn-Chair-Blisters before changing the name to Unsane. The band signed to Circuit Records and recorded tracks with

Wharton Tiers Wharton Tiers (born 1953, in Philadelphia) is an American audio engineer, record producer, drummer and percussionist. Biography After receiving a diploma from Villanova University (Radnor Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania), he moved to Ne ...

for what was supposed to be their first album, ''Improvised Munitions'', but the label did not release it. Unsane became part of the scene of loud, noisy, like-minded rock groups in New York City's East Village in the early 1990s. They often played gigs with bands like

Pussy Galore Pussy Galore is a fictional character in the 1959 Ian Fleming James Bond novel '' Goldfinger'' and the 1964 film of the same name. In the film, she is played by Honor Blackman. The character returns in the 2015 Bond continuation novel '' Tri ...

Cop Shoot Cop Cop Shoot Cop was a noise rock group founded in New York City in 1987. They disbanded in 1996. The band were frequently classified as industrial rock, but were often quite different from many bands so dubbed: having a distinctive instrumental l ...

Surgery Surgery is a medical specialty that uses manual and instrumental techniques to diagnose or treat pathological conditions (e.g., trauma, disease, injury, malignancy), to alter bodily functions (e.g., malabsorption created by bariatric surgery s ...

Helmet A helmet is a form of protective gear worn to protect the head. More specifically, a helmet complements the skull in protecting the human brain. Ceremonial or symbolic helmets (e.g., a policeman's helmet in the United Kingdom) without protecti ...

and the Reverb Motherfuckers. Members of Unsane also played in other bands such as

Boss Hog Boss Hog is an American punk blues band including the husband and wife duo of Jon Spencer (guitar) and Cristina Martinez (vocals) along with Jens Jurgensen (bass), Hollis Queens (drums) and Mickey Finn (keyboard). The band achieved some noto ...

and the Action Swingers. The band's first album, ''

Unsane ''Unsane'' is a 2018 American psychological thriller film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Jonathan Bernstein and James Greer. The film stars Claire Foy, Joshua Leonard, Jay Pharoah, Juno Temple, Aimee Mullins, and Amy Irving. M ...

'', was released in 1991, and was known for its harsh music and gruesome cover art with a photo of a decapitated man on a New York subway track wearing a Members Only jacket. The band obtained this photograph from a friend who was working at the time with the police department, which was investigating the scene of the accident. In 1992, Ondras died of a

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a morphinan opioid substance synthesized from the Opium, dried latex of the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy; it is mainly used as a recreational drug for its eupho ...

overdose and was replaced by Vincent Signorelli (formerly of

Foetus A fetus or foetus (; : fetuses, foetuses, rarely feti or foeti) is the unborn offspring of a viviparous animal that develops from an embryo. Following the embryonic stage, the fetal stage of development takes place. Prenatal development is a ...

and Swans). In 1994, Shore left the band for unknown reasons and was replaced by Dave Curran. The band toured heavily, and released '' Total Destruction'' in 1993 on

Matador Records Matador Records is an independent record label, with a roster of mainly indie rock, but also punk rock, experimental rock, alternative rock, and electronic acts. History Matador was created in 1989 by Chris Lombardi in his New York City ap ...

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

. Their third album, '' Scattered, Smothered & Covered'', was issued by

Amphetamine Reptile Amphetamine Reptile Records (or AmRep Industries) is a record label founded in 1986 by Tom Hazelmyer in Washington state. The label specializes in noise rock and also released ''Strap It On'', the debut album by alternative metal band Helmet wh ...

in 1995. The

music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...

for the song "Scrape", made for a mere $200, had significant play on

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 ...

. The video alternates between lo-fi rehearsal footage of Unsane and a series of serious

skateboarding Skateboarding is an extreme sport, action sport that involves riding and Skateboarding trick, performing tricks using a skateboard, as well as a recreational activity, an art form, an entertainment industry Profession, job, and a method of tr ...

wipeouts. The band continued touring heavily (including a spell opening for

Slayer Slayer is an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California, formed in 1981 by guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical style made them ...

). Their next album, ''

Occupational Hazard An occupational hazard is a hazard experienced in the workplace. This encompasses many types of hazards, including chemical hazards, biological hazards (biohazards), psychosocial hazards, and physical hazards. In the United States, the Nation ...

'', was released by

Relapse Records Relapse Records is an American independent record label based in Upper Darby Township, Pennsylvania. It was founded by Matthew F. Jacobson in 1990. The label features many grindcore, death metal, metalcore and sludge metal artists. History The ...

in 1998. Later that same year, Spencer was attacked by four people after playing a concert in

Vienna, Austria Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. He was hospitalized with internal bleeding and underwent major surgery. As a result of his injury, and having toured over ten months of the year, the band decided to take a long break in 2000. Unsane regrouped in 2003 and released the CD/DVD compilation '' Lambhouse: The Collection 1991-1998'' the same year. This was followed by their fifth album, '' Blood Run'', in 2005.

Ipecac Syrup of ipecac (), or simply ipecac, is a drug that was once widely used as an expectorant (in low doses) and a rapid-acting emetic (in higher doses). It is obtained from the dried rhizome and roots of the ipecacuanha plant ('' Carapichea ipe ...

released the band's sixth studio album, ''

Visqueen Visqueen is a brand of polyethylene plastic Plastic film, sheeting (typically low-density polyethylene) produced by British Polythene Industries Limited. It is the registered trade mark of British Polythene Limited in numerous countries throughou ...

'', in 2007. Unsane-2

Their song "Committed" was used in the Activision/Neversoft video game ''

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater ''Tony Hawk's Pro Skater'', released as ''Tony Hawk's Skateboarding'' in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and parts of Europe, is a 1999 skateboarding video game developed by Neversoft and published by Activision. It is the first installment in ...

''. Another Activision title, '' True Crime: New York City'', uses the song "D Train". Unsane released their seventh album, '' Wreck'', on March 20, 2012, and toured with

Melvins Melvins (sometimes the Melvins) are an American rock band formed in 1983 in Montesano, Washington. Their early work was key to the development of both grunge and sludge metal. Primarily a trio, they have also performed as a quartet, with eith ...

in April and May that year. Unsane released their eighth studio album, '' Sterilize'', on September 29, 2017. In 2019, Spencer announced the formation of a new band, Human Impact, with ex-Swans members Phil Puleo and Chris Pravdica. Spencer subsequently announced his departure from Unsane in August 2019, first in an interview about Human Impact with the Italian-language music zine ''Equilibrio Precario'', and then in English in a comment on a

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

post of the same article. In early 2021, Unsane released ''Improvised Munitions''. It was originally envisioned as the band's debut album in 1989, but the band's former label shut down prior to its release. On August 27, 2021, Chris Spencer announced the formation of a new lineup of Unsane via the band's

Instagram Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...

page, alongside new members Eric Cooper and Jon Syverson, with the specific focus on performing the band's early material.

Activities outside the band

During the band's break between 2000 and 2003, Spencer moved to

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, where he formed a new band with Curran called The Cutthroats 9 and released an album on

Man's Ruin Records Man's Ruin Records was an independent record label owned and founded by San Francisco Bay Area artist Frank Kozik. In total, the record label released over 200 singles and albums, with most of the artwork designed by Kozik. After the 1995 rele ...

. Curran formed J.J. Paradise Players Club, and Signorelli opened a tattoo shop in Middle Village Queens. Signorelli later formed

A Storm of Light A Storm of Light is an American heavy metal band from New York City, formed in 2008. They have been categorized as post-rock, post-metal, doom metal, sludge metal and hard rock, but have moved toward a darker and heavier metal sound. Rock-A-Ro ...

with Josh Graham (

Neurosis Neurosis (: neuroses) is a term mainly used today by followers of Freudian thinking to describe mental disorders caused by past anxiety, often that has been repressed. In recent history, the term has been used to refer to anxiety-related con ...

, ex-

Red Sparowes Red Sparowes is an American, Los Angeles-based post-rock band, comprising current and former members of Isis, Marriages, The Nocturnes, Halifax Pier, Angel Hair and Pleasure Forever. Their sound is characteristic of soundscape-influenced exper ...

Battle of Mice Battle of Mice was an American post-metal Supergroup (music), supergroup consisting of Julie Christmas, Josh Graham, Joel Hamilton, Tony Maimone, and Joe Tomino. The band's name was derived from a saying by Alexander the Great pertaining to a m ...

, Blood and Time) on guitar and vocals, Domenic Seita (ex-Tombs and Asea) on bass guitar, and Pete Angevine (Satanized) on additional drums and percussion. A Storm of Light spent most of the spring touring with Neurosis and they released their first album in 2008. In 2008 Spencer formed the band Celan with Ari Benjamin Meyers (Redux Orchestra), Niko Wenner (

Oxbow __NOTOC__ An oxbow is a U-shaped metal pole (or larger wooden frame) that fits the underside and the sides of the neck of an ox or wikt:bullock, bullock. A bow pin holds it in place. The term "oxbow" is widely used to refer to a U-shaped meand ...

), Roeder and Xavi (both ex-flu-ID) and, in 2009, they released the well-reviewed album ''Halo'' on the Berlin label Exile on Mainstream Records and toured Europe. Spencer now plays in

band Human Impact. In 2015 Spencer formed UXO with Steve Austin of

Today is the Day Today Is the Day is an American noise rock and Avant-garde metal, experimental metal band that originally formed in Nashville, Tennessee. The band's diverse sound combines influences from areas such as noise music, avant-garde metal, grindcore ...

, Aarne Victorine, and Pat Kennedy. The band released its self-titled album in 2016 on Reptilian Records. In 2019 Spencer formed Human Impact with ex-members of Swans and

and confirmed his departure from Unsane.

Members

Current line-up

* Chris Spencer – vocals, guitar (1988–2000, 2003–2019, 2021–present) *Eric Cooper – bass (2021–present) * Jon Syverson – drums (2021–present)

Former members

* Charlie Ondras – drums (1988–1992; died 1992) *Pete Shore – bass (1988–1994) *Anthony DeLuca – drums (1992) * Vincent Signorelli – drums (1992–2000, 2003–2019) *Dave Curran – bass (1994–2000, 2003–2019)

Discography

Studio albums

* ''

'' (

Matador A bullfighter or matador () is a performer in the activity of bullfighting. ''Torero'' () or ''toureiro'' (), both from Latin ''taurarius'', are the Spanish and Portuguese words for bullfighter, and describe all the performers in the activ ...

) - 1991 * '' Total Destruction'' (Matador/

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

) - 1993 * '' Scattered, Smothered & Covered'' (

) - 1995 * ''

'' (

Relapse In internal medicine, relapse or recidivism is a recurrence of a past (typically medical) condition. For example, multiple sclerosis and malaria often exhibit peaks of activity and sometimes very long periods of dormancy, followed by relapse or r ...

) - 1998 * '' Blood Run'' (Relapse) - 2005 * ''

'' (

) - 2007 * '' Wreck'' (

Alternative Tentacles Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label established in 1979 by Dead Kennedys vocalist Jello Biafra and guitarist East Bay Ray in San Francisco, California, with the intention to release the Dead Kennedys' self-produced single " C ...

) - 2012 * '' Sterilize'' (

Southern Lord Southern Lord is an American heavy metal record label that was founded in 1998 by Greg Anderson. It initially specialized in experimental metal: particularly doom metal, stoner rock, and drone metal. The label later expanded its line-up to i ...

) - 2017

Compilation albums

* '' Singles 89–92, LP/CD'' (Matador) - 1992 * '' Lambhouse: The Collection 1991–1998'' (Relapse) - 2003 * ''Improvised Munitions & Demo'' (Lamb Unlimited) - 2021

Live albums

* ''Peel Sessions'' (Matador) - 1994 * ''Attack in Japan'' (Rebel) - 1995 * '' Amrep Xmas'' ( Man's Ruin) - 1997

Singles

* "Scumbait #1" split with

Cows Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, bovid ungulates widely kept as livestock. They are prominent modern members of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Mature female cattle are called co ...

, Pagans, Bastards (Unsane - "Burn") (Treehouse) - 1989 * "This Town" single (Treehouse) - 1989 * "Concrete Bed" single ( Glitterhouse) - 1990 * "Vandal-X"/"Streetsweeper" single (

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 ...

) - 1990 * "Jungle Music" single (PCP) - 1991 * Split 7" with

Slug Slug, or land slug, is a common name for any apparently shell-less Terrestrial mollusc, terrestrial gastropod mollusc. The word ''slug'' is also often used as part of the common name of any gastropod mollusc that has no shell, a very reduced ...

(cover of Slug's "Breathe the Thing Out") (

) - 1992 * "Body Bomb" 7" red vinyl single (

) - 1994 * "Sick"/"No Soul" single ( Man's Ruin) - 1996 * "Committed"/"Over Me" single (Galaxia) - 1998 * "This Plan"/"Ha, Ha, Ha" single (DC Records) - 2001 * "Fix It"/"Wrung" single for Bash 17 (

Amphetamine Reptile Records Amphetamine Reptile Records (or AmRep Industries) is a record label founded in 1986 by Tom Hazelmyer in Washington state. The label specializes in noise rock and also released ''Strap It On ''Strap It On'' is the debut studio album by Amer ...

) - July 2017

The Peel Sessions

The band recorded three sessions. The first two were released as an EP in 1994, while the third session remains unreleased. * May 21, 1991 * November 26, 1992 * June 7, 1994

References

External links

{{Authority control Alternative rock groups from New York (state) Alternative Tentacles artists American noise rock music groups American post-hardcore musical groups Amphetamine Reptile Records artists Ipecac Recordings artists Matador Records artists Musical groups from New York City Musical trios from New York (state) Relapse Records artists Southern Lord Records artists