Throwing Muses (1986)

Throwing Muses is the 1986 debut album of the band Throwing Muses, released on British independent label 4AD. This was the first album by an American band to be released on 4AD, which had concentrated primarily on British-based acts up to this point. The release marked a shift in the label's direction; a year later 4AD would sign Pixies based in part on the band's connection to Throwing Muses, and by the mid-1990s much of the label's roster was made up of American bands.

Production

All the songs on the album were written by Kristin Hersh, with the exception of "Green", written by Tanya Donelly. The album was produced by Gil Norton, who went on to produce albums for Pixies. The band considers the album to be untitled, with Throwing Muses the name they give to another album released in 2003.

Reception

AllMusic calls the album a "powerful debut" whose "startling collision of punk energy, folky melodicism, and Kristin Hersh's mercurial voice and lyrics...puts the work of most self-consciously 'tortured' artists to shame." The review praises the record's "fluid, effortless emotional shifts"—also described as "violent, vibrant mood swings". The album was also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Spin called it, "a record of dense textures, guitar splatter and belljar lyrics. The fragmented sound of Throwing Muses, a college girl's dining hall conversation set to antagonistic electric screeching, was painful, self-loathing, man-love-hating, ".

Personnel

• Kristin Hersh – guitars, vocals, synthesizer
• Tanya Donelly – guitars, vocals, percussion
• Leslie Langston – bass
• David Narcizo – drums, percussion
• Dave Knowles – keyboards
• Ronald Stone – additional guitar
• Technical
• Gil Norton – production
• Richard Donelly – photography