Lunachicks: Babysitters On Acid 1990 + Jerk Of All Trades 1995 + Pretty Ugly 1997

 

Lunachicks are an American punk rock band from New York City. The band formed in 1987 and

had been on hiatus since 2001, with the band reuniting in 2019. The band cited influences including the Ramones, Kiss, and the MC5. Lunachicks are a rowdy, irreverent, and influential N.Y.C. band with a sound rooted in punk, hard rock, heavy metal, and twisted pop. Emerging in the late 1980s, the band amassed a rabid fan base in the '90s with their notorious live shows and uncompromising studio albums like Babysitters on Acid, Jerk of All Trades, and Luxury Problem.
                    

The Lunachicks were formed by singer Theo Kogan, guitarist Gina Volpe, and bassist Sydney "Squid"

Silver while all three were students at Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in New York; they met up with Sindi Benezra, another rock-minded student who played guitar, and began writing songs, most informed by the more outrageous elements of popular culture or the concerns of semi-crazed teenagers (one early tune involved the non-accidental death of two of their teachers). 
                     

With the arrival of drummer Becky Wreck, the group's first solid lineup was in place. Souping up their

shows with outré costumes and deliberately offensive theatrics, the Lunachicks became regulars on what became known as the "Scumrock" scene (largely comprised of other noisy pre-grunge bands with equal portions of fuzzy guitar and snarky wit), and one memorable show was attended by Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth. Gordon and Moore were taken with the Lunachicks and told their friend Paul Smith of Blast First Records to check out the band. 
                   

With drummer Becky Wreck (Susan Rebecca Lloyd) on board they released a self-titled four-song EP

in 1989, and the album Babysitters on Acid, both produced by Wharton Tiers. The record was only available in Europe until it was re-released on Go-Kart Records in 2001. The band later expressed their strong dislike for the album's production, and the fact that they did not earn any money from Blast First. The band went on to tour with the Dictators in 1991.
                   

the band amassed a rabid fan base in the '90s with their notorious live shows and uncompromising

studio albums like Babysitters on Acid, Jerk of All Trades, and Luxury Problem. Despite going on hiatus in 2004, the bandmembers remained active -- post-Lunachicks projects include Theo and the Skyscrapers and Bantam -- and in 2021, they reunited for a series of shows and chronicled their rise from punk upstarts to feminist icons in the memoir Fallopian Rhapsody: The Story of the Lunachicks. 
                  

LUNACHICKS - BABYSITTERS ON ACID 1990

                 

Unsurprisingly, like many punk revivalists in the 1990s, the Lunachicks were busy with pop culture

references (The Brady Bunch, James Bond) and offensive lyrics ("Lord, I hope they never come back!/ok kid, step on the oven rack/you wanna know how the baby is?/don't worry, she's almost done"), all the while relying too deeply on heavy metal riffs and sloppy drumming, as if the idea of methodically recreating the dubious skill of the punk movement didn't carry with it its own irony. 
                                 

But no other group had a singer like Theo Kogan, who was Ari Up, the Dwarves, and Courtney

Love all at once. Famous for dressing up in blood-splattered wedding dresses and scowling through songs like her life revolved around Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers, Kogan would take the band from an all-girl Queens of the Stone Age to a band that was aggressive and satirical, but in a non-threatening way.
                     

Lunachicks – Babysitters On Acid
Label: Blast First – BFFP 52 CD
Format: CD, Album
Country: UK
Released: Jul 23, 1990
Genre: Rock
Style: Punk

TRAXS

               

01. Jan Brady    3:10
02. Glad I'm Not Yew    2:29
03. Babysitters On Acid    4:07
04. Makin' It (With Other Species)    1:39
05. Mabel Rock    3:04
06. Theme Song    6:40
07. Born 2b Mild    2:23
08. Pin Eye Woman 665    3:45
09. Cookie Core    2:18
10. Octopussy    3:35
11. Sugar Luv    3:47
12. Complication    2:16

LINE - UP

               

Vocals – Theo Kogan
Bass – Sydney Silver
Drums – Becky Wreck
Lead Guitar – Gina Volpe
Rhythm Guitar – Sindi Benezra Valsamis
Lyrics By – Gina (tracks: 11), Syd (tracks: 9), Theo (tracks: 1 to 10, 12)
    

Flac Size: 476 MB

LUNACHICKS - JERK OF ALL TRADES 1995

                    

Although Lunachicks often get lumped in with riot grrrl bands like Bratmobile and Bikini Kill, they

often display a wackiness and love of gross-out humor that aligns them more with male punkers like NOFX. What's more, Lunachicks simply have better chops and catchier hooks than many of their peers, an attribute that makes Jerk of all Trades a surprisingly fun listen. 
                      

Theo Kogan's commanding voice leads the charge with admirable skill, recalling Siouxsie Sioux and

even Nina Hagen, while addressing some hilariously juvenile subject matter on songs like "Ring + Run" and "Buttplug." 
                   

Lunachicks – Jerk Of All Trades
Label: Go-Kart Records – gk 013
Format: CD, Album
Country: US
Released: May 23, 1995
Genre: Rock
Style: Punk

TRAXS

                      

01. Drop Dead    2:52
02. Fingerful    4:13
03. F.D.S.    2:45
04. Light As A Feather    3:15
05. Edgar    3:27
06. Dogyard    2:22
07. Buttplug    1:12
08. Bitterness Barbie    3:13
09. Deal With It    3:38
10. Brickface + Stucco    3:12
11. Jerk Of All Trades    2:22
12. Spoilt    3:54
13. Ring + Run    1:46
14. Fallopian Rhapsody    4:27
15. Insomnia    3:44
16. Why Me   6:12
Vocals [Xtra Screams] – Chloe Sweeney, Lauren Pine, Lyle Derek, Miss Guy

LINE - UP

            

Vocals – Theo Kogan
Bass – Sydney Silver
Drums - Chip English
Guitar – Sindi Benezra Valsamis
Lead Guitar, Vocals – Gina Volpe

Flac Size: 660 MB

LUNACHICKS - PRETTY UGLY 1997

                 

On Pretty Ugly, Lunachicks play as fast as ever, but display a melodic flair that owes as much to girl

groups as it does to riot grrrl groups. Right out of the gate the band delivers a delightful piece of bubblegum simplicity with the gleefully Ramones-inspired "Yeah," and the intensity of that track -- not to mention its melodic appeal -- is maintained for most of the disc. 
               

There's a sweetness to the material which belies Lunachicks' reputation for gross-out gimmickry and

feminist anger. As Pretty Ugly proves, Lunachicks are a band who, more than anything else, love the genderless fun of playing rock & roll. 
                    

Lunachicks – Pretty Ugly
Label: Go-Kart Records – gokartcd24, Go-Kart Records – GK00024
Format: CD, Album
Country: US
Released: Feb 18, 1997
Genre: Rock
Style: Punk

TRAXS

                  

01. Yeah    1:58
02. Throwin It Away    2:19
03. The Day Squid's Gerbil Died    2:56
04. Dear Dotti    2:50
05. Mr. Lady    3:01
06. Spork    1:12
07. What's Left    4:23
08. Gone Kissin    2:46
09. Don't Want You    3:33
10. The Baby    2:09
11. At Percent    1:28
12. Wing Chun    2:08
13. Mmm Donuts    2:24
14. Missed It    4:26 

LINE - UP

         

Vocals – Chip, Gina, Sindi, Squid (Sydney Silver) (7), Theo Kogan
Bass – Squid (Sydney Silver) (7)
Drums – Chip English
Flute [Skin Flute] – Theo Kogan
Guitar – Gina Volpe, Sindi Benezra Valsamis
Jew's Harp – Squid (Sydney Silver) (7)
Triangle – Gina Volpe

Flac Size: 492 MB