The House Of Love: The House Of Love 1988 + Fontana Or The Butterfly Album 1990 + Babe Rainbow 1992

 

The House of Love put together a long-running career built on shiny ringing guitars, dreamily psychedelic melodies, bursts of noise, and Guy Chadwick's dryly observant, sometimes cutting

songs. Their initial incarnation leaned into the noisy side of their sound, recording for Creation and releasing some of the label's early signpost songs like "Christine" and "Shine On." Once the band signed to a major label, their '90s output became more polished, but also more nuanced; 1990's self-titled LP is considered to be a classic alternative album by many. All the elements of their early recordings surfaced on further albums made as the group reunited over the years, though they were a little softer around the edges, and on 2022's State of Grace they explored country-rock and the blues. 
                        

The House of Love were formed in 1986 in Camberwell, London, by former Kingdoms singer and guitarist Guy Chadwick: he had been inspired to start a new band after seeing the Jesus and Mary

Chain in concert at London's Electric Ballroom. He wrote a new song called "Christine", which gave him ideas for progress: "The idea of the sound of the group and what kind of musicians to look for... female vocals... a good take on the Velvets' sonics... and of course the image." Chadwick teamed up with an old friend, drummer Pete Evans, and recruited the rest of the initial House of Love lineup via an advert in Melody Maker. 
                      

This brought together an international band of London-born lead guitarist Terry Bickers (ex-

Colenso Parade), described as "a genius guitar player," by Creation Records' Alan McGee, German rhythm guitarist/co-singer Andrea Heukamp and her bass guitarist boyfriend Chris Groothuizen (from New Zealand). Chadwick opted to name his new band The House of Love after Anaïs Nin's book A Spy in the House of Love There was a considerable age differential in the band: Chadwick, by now aged 30, was nearly ten years older than Terry Bickers. 
                           

The following year, the House of Love moved over to Fontana and released two singles, "Never" and "I Don't Know Why I Love You." By the end of 1989, Bickers left the group; he was replaced by Simon Walker. The House of Love's second untitled album -- often referred to as "The Butterfly Album" -- was

released in early 1990 and saw the band adding production values to their sound, giving it an arena-ready feel without losing the inherent drama found in Chadwick's tales of love and loss. After the group's 1990 tour, Walker left the group and was replaced by Simon Mawby. The House of Love returned in early 1992 with Babe Rainbow, which received favorable reviews that were unmatched by sales figures. The continuing lack of commercial success began to wear on the group, leading to their 1993 disbandment after the release of Audience with the Mind.  
                             

  

In 2005, Chadwick and Bickers made amends, played several gigs, and released Days Run Away.  A brand-new album was released from a re-formed House of Love lineup that featured original drummer

Evans, She Paints Words in Red, which was released in April 2013. Chadwick gathered a new crop of musicians -- guitarist Keith Osbourne, drummer Hugo Degenhardt, and bassist Harry Osbourne -- and began recording a new batch of songs. Betraying a heavy blues-rock and C&W troubadour influence, the House of Love's seventh album, State of Grace, was issued in 2022 by Cherry Red, mere months after the label released Burn Down the World, a complete collection of the group's '90s recordings.
                               

ALBUMS ON THIS POST

01. The House of Love 1988
02. The House of Love / Fontana or The Butterfly Album 1990
03. Babe Rainbow 1992

01.  THE HOUSE OF LOVE 1988 DELUXE EDITION

                                   

For all of the band's later highlights, there's no question that this is where the group shone the best; still

hungry, still focused, and not plagued by the personality conflicts that would cause Terry Bickers' acrimonious departure, the quartet served up a half-hour-long delight. Guy Chadwick's yearning vocals and ear for memorable melodies matched beautifully with Bickers' fantastic guitar, and if the recorded results didn't really show the latter at full strength (Chadwick essentially told him what to play, and he only cut loose in concert), it's still something.
                            

The House Of Love – The House Of Love
Label: Cherry Red – CRCDBOX61
Format: CD, Album, Reissue, Remastered, Deluxe Edition, 30th Anniversary Edition
Country: UK
Released: Sep 28, 2018
Genre: Rock
Style: Indie Rock

CD1.  THE ALBUM        

                         

   
01. Christine    3:27
02. Hope    2:57
03. Road    3:45
04. Sulphur    3:06
05. Man To Child    2:51
06. Salome    2:30
07. Love In A Car    4:00
08. Happy    2:54
09. Fisherman's Tale    3:45
10. Touch Me    3:04
11. Shine On (Demo - Album Bonus 7")    3:56
12. Christine (Demo - Album Bonus 7")    4:02

Flac Size: 274 MB

CD2.  SINGLES, B-SIDES, RARITIES        

                         

   
01. Shine On    3:20
02. Love    2:25
03. Flow    2:36
04. Real Animal    2:59
05. Plastic    2:04
06. Nothing To Me    3:11
07. The Hill    2:58
08. Loneliness Is A Gun    2:25
09. The Hedonist    4:05
10. Welt    3:18
11. Destroy The Heart    2:46
12. Blind    2:39
13. Mr. Jo    3:56
14. Shine On (Guy Chadwick Demo)    3:26
15. Real Animal (Demo)    5:34
16. Touch Me (Demo)    4:34
17. Happy (Demo)    4:47
18. Road (Alternative Version)    4:03
19. Salome (Alternative Version)    2:45
20. Fisherman's Tale (Alternative Version)    3:27
21. Destroy The Heart (Demo)    3:19
22. Shine On (Fuck Version) (Flexidisc)    2:18

Flac Size: 471 MB

CD3.  DEMOS            

                     

01. Road (Longer Early Mix 2/88)    3:59
02. Sulphur (Early Mix 2/88)    3:01
03. Happy (Early Mix 2/88)    3:07
04. Fisherman's Tale (Early Mix 2/88)    3:47
05. Touch Me (Early Mix #1 2/88)    3:02
06. Salome (Longer Early Mix 2/88)    2:46
07. Shine On (Band Demo)    4:01
08. Real Animal (16 Track Demo)    4:39
09. Christine (16 Track Demo)    4:08
10. Hold On To Me (16 Track Demo)    3:54
11. Hope (Alternative Version 3/88)    2:52
12. Man To Child (Alternative Version 2/88)    2:52
13. Love In A Car (Alternative Version 3/88)    4:24
14. Modern World (Demo - Alias Welt)    3:06
15. Little Girl (Alias Mr Jo) (Alternative Version)    4:25
16. Sulphur (Alternative Version)    2:32
17. Happy (Alternative Version)    2:53
18. Touch Me (Alternative Version)    3:06
19. Shine On (Rehearsal)    3:22
20. Real Animal (Rehearsal)    3:22
21. Destroy The Heart (Rehearsal - No Guitar)    2:50

Flac Size: 469 MB

 CD4.  BBC SESSIONS 1988 - 89       

                         

    
01. Destroy The Heart    2:46
02. Nothing To Me    3:52
03. Plastic    2:04
04. Blind    2:42
05. The Hedonist    3:06
06. Don't Turn Blue (Alias Soft As Fire)    3:17
07. Safe    5:11
08. Love In A Car    4:47
09. In A Room    3:23
10. The Beatles And The Stones    3:23
11. Christine    3:56
12. Loneliness Is A Gun    2:30

Flac Size: 276 MB

CD5.  LIVE        

                        

01. Christine (Live, Vredenburg, Utrecht)    3:27
02. Man To Child (Live, Vredenburg, Utrecht)    3:11
03. Road (Live, Vredenburg, Utrecht)    4:21
04. Shine On (Live, Vredenburg, Utrecht)    3:41
05. Plastic (Live, Groningen)    2:07
06. Sulphur (Live, Groningen)    2:55
07. Touch Me (Live, Groningen)    2:57
08. Nothing To Me (Live, Groningen)    3:49
09. I Don't Know Why I Love You But I Do (Live, Groningen)    4:04
10. Never (Live, Top Rank, Brighton)    3:08
11. Se Dest (Live, Top Rank, Brighton)    3:47
12. The Hedonist (Live, Top Rank, Brighton)    2:29
13. Soft As Fire (Live, Top Rank, Brighton)    3:06
14. Fisherman's Tale (Live, Le Cigale, Paris)    3:49
15. Happy (Live, Le Cigale, Paris)    3:12
16. Love In A Car (Live, Le Cigale, Paris)    4:24
17. Destroy The Heart (Live, Le Cigale, Paris)    2:46
18. I Wanna Be Your Dog (Live, Le Cigale, Paris)    3:15

Flac Size: 361 MB

LINE - UP

Guy Chadwick - vocals, guitars
Terry Bickers - lead guitar, backing vocals
Chris Groothuizen - bass guitar
Pete Evans - drums

WITH

Andrea Heukamp - guitar and backing vocals on "Christine"

02.  THE HOUSE OF LOVE / FONTANA OR THE BUTTERFLY ALBUM 1990

                     

Following the combination of indie success and massive hype leading up to the band's first album proved

to be too much for the original lineup, with Bickers leaving after a series of problems and pressures once the group signed to Fontana. Yet rarely has a fraught series of recording sessions resulted in something so flat-out stunning. The House of Love's second self-titled album in a row -- third counting the German singles comp -- remains something of a high-water mark in what can loosely be termed U.K. post-punk music, acting as an effective final statement before the onslaughts of Madchester, grunge, and Brit-pop.
                         

The House Of Love – Fontana Or The Butterfly Album
Label: Fontana – 842 293-2, PolyGram – 842 293-2
Format: CD, Album
Country: US
Released: 1990
Genre: Rock
Style: Indie Rock

TRACKS

                    

01. Hannah    5:44
02. Shine On    4:00
03. Beatles And The Stones    4:23
04. Shake And Crawl    3:40
05. Hedonist    3:36
06. I Don't Know Why I Love You    3:30
07. Never    3:43
08. Someone's Got To Love You    3:40
09. In A Room    4:05
10. Blind    3:44
11. 32nd Floor    4:05
12. Se Dest    5:02

LINE - UP

                                  

Guy Chadwick – vocals, guitars
Terry Bickers – lead guitar, backing vocals
Chris Groothuizen – bass guitar
Pete Evans – drums

Flac Size: 574 MB

03.  BABE RAINBOW 1992

                        

Babe Rainbow is the only House of Love studio album to feature Simon Walker (ex-Dave Howard Singers

as well as being Chris Groothuizen and Pete Evans’ bandmate in My White Bedroom). Walker had replaced Terry Bickers as lead guitarist in December 1989 and would himself leave the band in mid-1992 (to be replaced by Simon Mawby of The Woodentops). Former House of Love member Andrea Heukamp returned as a guest performer to add extra guitar and backing vocals. 
                                

The House Of Love – Babe Rainbow
Label: Fontana – 512 549-2
Format: CD, Album
Country: UK
Released: 1992
Genre: Rock
Style: Alternative Rock, Ethereal

TRACKS

                   

01. You Don't Understand    3:50
02. Crush Me    3:48
03. Cruel    5:47
04. High In Your Face    4:44
05. Fade Away    3:24
06. Feel   3:55
Songwriter – Warne Livesey    
07. Girl With The Loneliest Eyes   3:42
Songwriter – Warne Livesey    
08. Burn Down The World    5:54
09. Philly Phile    4:23
10. Yer Eyes    4:11

LINE - UP

                            

Guy Chadwick - lead vocals, guitars, bass guitar
Simon Walker - guitars
Chris Groothuizen - bass guitar, backing vocals
Pete Evans – drums

WITH

                       

Warne Livesey - guitar, hurdy-gurdy, keyboards, backing vocals
Andrea Heukamp - guitar, backing vocals
Pandit Dinesh – tablas

Flac Size: 312 MB

The Gits: Discography 1992 - 1994 (2 Albums)

 

While the Gits were a band who made a strong impression with their music during their all too brief run, it was how the group suddenly ended that would come to dominate their story. Playing a unique and

passionate fusion of first-era punk, hard rock, and streetwise blues, the Gits had a sound that set them apart from their peers in Seattle in the late '80s and early '90s, when the city was hip deep in the grunge explosion. The Gits also had a fearless and charismatic frontwoman in lead singer Mia Zapata, but just as the group seemed poised to move up to the next level of popular acceptance, the potential of both the Gits and Zapata were snuffed out when she was raped and murdered in the summer of 1993. 
                         

She was not the ending dwarfing the beginning and the middle. She was an artist full of sparks, wisdom; the usual mundane and spectacular damage that the great ones turn into exquisite noise and poetry, and the kind of voice and presence you might encounter once or twice in your life, if

you’re very lucky. Mia Zapata was the greatest rock singer of her time. Mia Zapata (1965 – 1993), the vocalist and front person for The Gits (1986 – 1993), was not the type of voice one usually associates with a punk rock band. She had the sizzle, sass, shriek, grace, rasp, and fury of a classic blues shouter (what if Janis Joplin had fronted Fugazi, we must ask?). Although there was a purity, an accuracy to her voice, she could point it at the stars and scoop cigarette butts out of the venue floor, all at the same time; it sounded like a voice on fire, it sounded desperate and angry and pleading and commanding, all at the same time.
                           

The Gits were formed at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio in mid-1986, grabbing and swapping

pieces of art, thrash, noise, punk rock, classic rock, and all the sorts of magical silly and bookish jingle bells that an old-school liberal arts education handed you; for the next few years they worked on turning it all into something tough, sensitive, both brutal and kind. Andy, Matt, Mia, and Steve moved to Seattle in middish 1989, landing in a house on Capitol Hill. 
                          

The band's first official release was the single "Precious Blood", released in 1990 by the local Big Flaming Ego Records. This was quickly followed up by two more releases, "Second Skin" on Broken Rekids

(1991) and "Spear & Magic Helmet" on Empty Records (1991), as well as the Bobbing For Pavement compilation (Rathouse/Broken Rekids, 1991). In 1992 the band recorded and released their debut album, Frenching the Bully. In the spring of 1993, former music journalist and musician Tim Sommer had planned to sign the Gits to Atlantic Records, where he was working in the A&R department. Sommer said he had made a deal to sign the Gits to Atlantic four days before Zapata's death. 
                         

Shortly after 2:00 a.m. on July 7, 1993, Zapata left the Comet Tavern, a dive bar in Capitol Hill that was a popular hangout for the Seattle music community. Her body was discovered at 3:20 a.m. near the intersection of 24th Avenue South and South Washington Street. Zapata had been beaten, raped,

and strangled, and it is believed she encountered her attacker shortly after 2:15 a.m. Her body was not initially identified as she had no identification on her when she was found. An episode of Forensic Files revealed that she was identified after the medical examiner, who was a fan of the Gits and had been to their concerts, recognized her. According to the medical examiner, if she had not been strangled, she would have died from the internal injuries suffered from the beating. According to court documents, an autopsy found evidence of a struggle in which Zapata suffered blunt impact to her abdomen and a lacerated liver.
                                           

DISCOGRAPHY

                     

01. Frenching the Bully (C/Z Records) (1992)
Reissued on Broken Rekids, 2003
02. Enter: The Conquering Chicken (C/Z Records) (1994)
Reissued on Broken Rekids, 2003

01.  FRENCHING THE BULLY 1992

                            

Frenching the Bully is the debut studio album by Seattle punk rock band the Gits. It was originally

released as a 12-track album on C/Z Records in 1992 and was later reissued in 2003 with bonus tracks and different cover art on the Broken Rekids label. It was reissued again in 2025 by Sub Pop. The River Cities' Reader called it "A stunning document of the talent ... [of] singer Mia Zapata ... She sings with such conviction, ferocity, and expressiveness that the lyrics become irrelevant.
                               

The Gits – 1992 - Frenching The Bully
Label: Broken Rekids – SKIP 103
Format: CD, Album, Reissue, Remastered 2003
Country: US
Released: 1992    
Genre: Rock
Style: Alternative Rock, Punk

TRAXS

                      

01. Absynthe   3:13
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen, Dresdner
02. Another Shot Of Whiskey   2:41
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen    
03. Insecurities   1:45
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen    
04. Slaughter Of Bruce   3:16
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen    
05. Kings And Queens   1:59
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen    
06. It All Dies Anyway   4:07
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen    
07. While You're Twisting, I'm Still Breathing   2:37
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen    
08. A   1:24
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen    
09. Wingo Lamo   2:11
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen    
10. Spear And Magic Helmet   2:37
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen    
11. Cut My Skin It Makes Me Human   2:16
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen    
12. Here's To Your Fuck   1:52
Lyrics By – Diagnole
Music By – Spleen    
13. Second Skin   2:51
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen
    

RECORDED LIVE @ X-RAY CAFE        

    
14. Twisting, Breathing    2:38
15. Insecurities    1:48
16. Slaughter    3:14
17. Absynthe    3:04
18. Whiskey    2:40
19. Wingo    2:19
20. Fuck    1:50
21. Second Skin    3:13
---    
22. Twisting (Single Version)    2:43

LINE - UP

                       

Vocals – Mia Zapata
Bass – Matt Dresdner
Drums – Steve Moriarty
Guitar – Joe Spleen

NOTES

Originally released on C/Z records in 1992.
Remixed, remastered, and back in the hands of The Gits.
Tracks 1-13 originally recorded at Avast!
Tracks 14-21 were recorded live at X-Ray Cafe, Portland Oregon, in June of 1993.
Track 22 is the single version. 

Flac Size: 429 MB

02.  ENTER: THE CONQUERING CHICKEN 1994

                   

Enter: The Conquering Chicken is the Gits' second full-length album, recorded in 1993 and released posthumously in 1994 on C/Z Records. Lead singer and songwriter Mia Zapata was raped and strangled to

death in July 1993 during production of the record. The remainder of the band completed the album with what they had finished so far, and disbanded shortly thereafter. Enter: The Conquering Chicken shows Mia Zapata pushing the blues influences that informed her vocal style to the forefront more directly than on Frenching the Bully, with songs like "A Change Is Gonna Come" (a recontextualized cover of soul singer Sam Cooke's original) and "Precious Blood." 
                         

The Gits – 1994 - Enter: The Conquering Chicken
Label: Broken Rekids – SKIP 106
Format: CD, Album, Reissue, Remastered 2003
Country: US
Released: 1994    
Genre: Rock
Style: Alternative Rock, Punk

TRAXS

                

01. Bob (Cousin O.)   3:03
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen, Dresdner    
02. Guilt Within You Head   2:25
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen    
03. Seaweed   2:24
Lyrics By – Zapata    
04. A Change Is Gonna Come   4:13
Written-By – Sam Cooke    
05. Precious Blood   3:45
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen, Zapata    
06. Beauty Of The Rose   2:36
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen    
07. Drunks   1:37
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen    
08. Italian Song  2:07 
Lyrics By – Alighieri
Music By – Spleen    
09. Social Love I   2:39
Arranged By – Spleen
Lyrics By, Music By – Zapata    
10. Social Love II   1:50
Arranged By – Spleen
Lyrics By, Music By – Zapata    
11. Daily Bread   4:32
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen, Dresdner    
12. Sign Of The Crab   2:33
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen    
13. Drinking Song   2:54
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen, Dresdner
14. I'm Lou      1:55
15. New Fast One   1:55
Lyrics By – Zapata
Music By – Spleen
    

RECORDED LIVE IN PDX        

    
16. Crab    2:46
17. Seaweed    2:29
18. Rose    2:44
19. Whirlwind    2:59
20. New Fast One    2:44
21. Bob    3:03
22. A Change Is Gonna Come   4:02
Written-By – Sam Cooke
    

LINE - UP

                    

Vocals – Mia Zapata
Bass – Matt Dresdner
Drums – Steve Moriarty
Guitar – Joe Spleen

NOTES

Originally recorded in 1993.
Originally released by C/Z Records in 1993.
Remixed, remastered, and back in the hands of The Gits.
Tracks 11, 14-22 unreleased material or an alternate version.
Tracks 16-22 recorded live in PDX.
On the disc it says Enter: The Conquering Bully. This is a joke. 

Flac Size: 454 MB