Blonde Redhead
Template:Short description Template:About Template:Redirect Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox musical artist Blonde Redhead is an American alternative rock band composed of Kazu Makino (vocals, keyboards, rhythm guitar) and identical twin brothers Simone Pace (drums, keyboards) and Amedeo Pace (lead guitar, bass, keyboards, vocals) that formed in New York City in 1993. The band's earliest albums were noted for their noise rock influences, though their sound evolved by the early 2000s with the releases of Misery is a Butterfly (2004) and 23 (2007), which both incorporated elements of dream pop, shoegaze and other genres.<ref name="Carr, Eric">Template:Cite web</ref> They have released ten studio albums and have toured internationally.
Career
Amedeo and Simone Pace were born in Milan, Italy,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and grew up in Montreal (Saint-Léonard), but later moved to Boston to study jazz. After earning Bachelor's degrees, they entered the New York City underground music scene. Blonde Redhead formed in New York in 1993 after Amedeo and Simone met Kazu Makino, a film student at the time, through mutual friends.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> John Lurie stated in his memoir that he introduced the twins to Kazu, a long time friend. The band named themselves after a song on the 1981 EP A Taste of DNA by the no wave group DNA. For the group's first decade, Amedeo and Makino were romantically involved.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite news</ref>
Blonde Redhead's self-titled debut album was released in 1995.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Shortly afterwards, fourth member Maki Takahashi left the band and was replaced by her friend Toko Yasuda as bassist. Yasuda played on the band's second album La Mia Vita Violenta also released in 1995.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Both records appeared on the New York label Smells Like.<ref name=":1" /> The band continued as a trio.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Their third album, Fake Can Be Just as Good, was released through Touch & Go in 1997.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The band enlisted the help of Vern Rumsey of Unwound, who filled the role of guest bassist, while the subsequent albums have featured the Icelandic musician Skúli Sverrisson.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
On their fourth album, In an Expression of the Inexpressible, Guy Picciotto of Fugazi was hired as producer.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Picciotto also contributed in the construction to the song "Futurism vs. Passéism Part 2" as well as lending it his vocals to the 1998 release. In 2000 Picciotto also co-produced Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons with Ryan Hadlock, an album about the relationship between Makino and Amedeo Pace.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The four-year delay between Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons and Misery Is a Butterfly is attributed to Makino's recovery time after being trampled by a horse.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Much of the visual and lyrical imagery of Misery Is a Butterfly is reflective of the accident, especially in the music video for "Equus." It was the last time Picciotto produced the band.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In 2006 Makino recorded vocals for the film Sisters.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Alan Moulder mixed the trio's album 23 which was released on 4AD, in April 2007.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In mid-2008, they wrote and recorded the score of the documentary feature film The Dungeon Masters.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and was released on February 12, 2010; a soundtrack album was released in July 2010.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2009, Blonde Redhead collaborated with Devestations on "When the Road Runs Out" for the AIDS benefit album Dark Was the Night produced by the Red Hot Organization.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In March 2010 the band included a demo version of the song "Not Getting There" on a 4AD sampler entitled Fragments From Work In Progress.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Their eighth album, Penny Sparkle, was released in September 2010 through 4AD.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The album was again mixed by Alan Moulder,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and reached 79 in the Billboard 200 chart.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> For the subsequent tour the band added a key-board player.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The band released a six-track remix EP in July 2011.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
A year later, the band started the project for their next album but without the support of 4AD. Self-financed, the band embarked on a haphazard recording schedule with producer Drew Brown.<ref name=":0" /> Simone Pace noted about Brown's involvement that "he has so much experience and definitely dictated the direction of the record; the choices of instruments, concept and that it was minimal." He forced the band to use analogue instruments.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In April 2014 their song "For the Damaged Coda" was used in an episode of the first season of the cartoon Rick and Morty. The use of this song was again repeated in April 2017 in the third season. The use of the song became an important plot device regarding the character "Evil Morty" for the series. Around 2018 this song became an Internet meme expressing the sadness one feels at the worst moments of one's life.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The band released their ninth album, Barragán, on September 2, 2014, through Kobalt.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref> It was preceded by the single "No More Honey" that appeared in June.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It was followed by the second single, "Dripping,"<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> which included a video.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The band also provided the soundtrack to the Danish film The Commentator.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In June 2016 it was announced that the band would release the box set Masculin Féminin on September 30 through The Numero Group.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It contains 37 tracks, which cover the first two albums, associated singles, radio sessions and unreleased demos from the period.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2017, the band released the EP 3 O'Clock, which comprises four songs and featured contributions from Eyvind Kang, Michael Leonhart, Sam Owens and Mauro Refosco, among others.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In September 2019, Kazu Makino released her first solo album, Adult Baby, which featured Ryuichi Sakamoto (on piano, field recordings, and "organic instruments"), Ian Chang and Greg Saunier (drums), and Mauro Refosco (percussion).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The band toured the US in 2022 on select dates supporting Tool.<ref>Maynard James Keenan: Why I Picked Blonde Redhead to Open for Tool, Revolver, 6 January 2022.</ref> The following year, the band announced the release of their tenth album, Sit Down for Dinner, on September 29, 2023, through section1.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In November, they released a reworked version of "Damaged Coda" entitled "More Coda" for Rick and Morty.<ref name="coda">Template:Cite web</ref> On June 14, 2024, Blonde Redhead performed at the Forum Melbourne in Melbourne, appearing as part of the 2024 RISING: festival, supported by Melbourne-based singer, Georgia Knight.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Members
Current members
- Kazu Makino – vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards, bass (1993–present)
- Amedeo Pace – lead guitar, vocals, bass, keyboards (1993–present)
- Simone Pace – drums, keyboards (1993–present)
Former members
- Maki Takahashi – bass (1993–1995)
- Toko Yasuda – bass (1995–1996)
Timeline <timeline> ImageSize = width:800 height:auto barincrement:24 PlotArea = left:85 bottom:80 top:10 right:10 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy Period = from:1993 till:{{#time:m/d/Y}} TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:4 ScaleMajor = increment:3 start:1993 ScaleMinor = increment:1 start:1993
Colors =
id:vocals value:red legend:Vocals id:lguitar value:teal legend:Lead_guitar id:rguitar value:brightgreen legend:Rhythm_guitar id:bass value:blue legend:Bass id:keys value:purple legend:Keyboards id:drums value:orange legend:Drums id:studio value:black legend:Studio_album id:EP value:gray(0.6) legend:EP id:bars value:gray(0.95)
BackgroundColors = bars:bars
LineData =
layer:back color:studio at:01/19/1995 at:09/04/1995 at:03/11/1997 at:09/08/1998 at:06/06/2000 at:03/15/2004 at:04/10/2007 at:09/13/2010 at:09/02/2014 at:09/29/2023
color:EP at:10/03/2000 at:02/03/2005 at:12/11/2017
BarData =
bar:Kazu text:Kazu Makino bar:Amedeo text:Amedeo Pace bar:Maki text:Maki Takahashi bar:Toko text:Toko Yasuda bar:Simone text:Simone Pace
PlotData =
width:13 color:vocals bar:Kazu from:start till:end
color:lguitar bar:Amedeo from:start till:end
color:bass bar:Maki from:start till:04/01/1995 bar:Toko from:04/01/1995 till:06/08/1996
color:drums bar:Simone from:start till:end
width:3 bar:Kazu from:start till:end color:rguitar bar:Amedeo from:start till:end color:vocals bar:Simone from:01/01/1998 till:end color:keys
width:7 bar:Amedeo from:10/31/1995 till:end color:bass bar:Kazu from:01/01/2004 till:end color:keys
width:9 bar:Amedeo from:01/01/2014 till:end color:keys
</timeline>
Gallery
Discography
Albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
BEL (FL) <ref name="BELFL">Template:Cite web</ref> |
BEL (WA) <ref name="BELWA">Template:Cite web</ref> |
FRA <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
GRE <ref name="GRE">Template:Cite web</ref> |
ITA <ref name="ITA">Template:Cite web</ref> |
JPN <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
SWI <ref name="SWI">Template:Cite web</ref> |
UK <ref name="UK">Peaks in the UK:
|
UK Indie <ref name="UK" /> | ||||
| Blonde Redhead |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| La Mia Vita Violenta |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Fake Can Be Just as Good |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| In an Expression of the Inexpressible |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Misery Is a Butterfly |
|
180 | — | — | 77 | — | 50 | — | — | — | 41 | ||
| 23 |
|
63 | 52 | — | 77 | — | 38 | 196 | 100 | 152 | 13 | ||
| Penny Sparkle |
|
79 | 57 | 65 | 89 | 18 | — | — | — | — | 41 | ||
| Barragán |
|
180 | 68 | 86 | 104 | — | — | — | — | — | —Template:Efn | ||
| Sit Down for Dinner |
|
—Template:Efn | 91 | — | 127 | — | — | — | — | — | 50 | ||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | |||||||||||||
EPs
| Year | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Mélodie Citronique | Touch and Go |
| 2005 | The Secret Society of Butterflies | 4AD/Beggars Banquet |
| 2017 | 3 O'Clock | Kobalt/Ponderosa/Asa Wa Kuru |
Singles
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK <ref name="UK"/> |
UK Indie <ref name="UK" /> | ||||||||||||
| "Amescream / Big Song" | 1993 | — | — | rowspan="2" Template:N/a | |||||||||
| "Vague / Jet Star" | 1994 | — | — | ||||||||||
| "10 Feet High / Valentine" | 1995 | — | — | La Mia Vita Violenta | |||||||||
| "Flying Douglas / Harmony" | — | — | |||||||||||
| "Symphony of Treble / Kasuality" | 1997 | — | — | Fake Can Be Just as Good | |||||||||
| "Limited Conversation / Slogan" | 1998 | — | — | In an Expression of the Inexpressible (Japanese edition) | |||||||||
| "Elephant Woman" | 2004 | 82 | 26 | Misery Is a Butterfly | |||||||||
| "Equus" | 84 | 19 | |||||||||||
| "23" | 2007 | — | — | 23 | |||||||||
| "Silently" | — | — | |||||||||||
| "Here Sometimes" | 2010 | — | — | Penny Sparkle | |||||||||
| "No More Honey" | 2014 | — | — | Barragán | |||||||||
| "Dripping" | — | — | |||||||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | |||||||||||||
Other charted songs
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Rock <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | |||
| "For the Damaged Coda" | 2000 | 15 | Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons |
Soundtracks
| Year | Film |
|---|---|
| 2008 | The Dungeon Masters |
| 2012 | The Commentator |
Compilations and remix albums
| Year | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Freedom of Expression on Barragán | Asa Wa Kuru |
| Masculin Féminin | Numero | |
| 2025 | The Shadow Of The Guest | section1 |
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
- Blonde Redhead official website
- Blonde Redhead at 4AD
- Template:AllMusic
- Template:Discogs artist
- 1993 establishments in New York City
- Musical groups established in 1995
- Alternative rock groups from New York (state)
- American experimental rock groups
- American noise rock music groups
- American dream pop musical groups
- Indie rock musical groups from New York (state)
- American shoegaze musical groups
- Touch and Go Records artists
- 4AD artists
- Sibling musical groups
- French-language musical groups from the United States
- Italian-language musical groups from the United States