VERUCA SALT: The Most OVERHYPED Band of the Mid 90's?
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- Опубликовано: 28 июл 2024
- The strange history of the band VERUCA SALT, best known for hits Seether and Volcano Girls
0:00 - How Louise Post & Nina Gordon Met
3:14 - Forming Veruca Salt/Indie Label Deal
6:18 - History of Seether/American Thighs
10:15 - Second Album
11:36.- Breakup/Reunion
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Veruca Salt, named after a character from "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," became synonymous with 90s rock. However, the band members were unaware that "Veruca Salt" also referred to a plantar wart. The band's journey began in 1992 when Louise Post and Nina Gordon, inspired by their shared love of music, formed the group.
Both Post and Gordon, coming from musical families that eventually divorced, found solace in music. Post, already a musician, and Gordon, initially reluctant to pursue music, formed a bond. Despite Gordon's early struggles with instruments, she eventually learned the guitar with the help of her brother Jim Shapiro. The band aimed to create a unique sound, blending their influences like Prince, The Beatles, and My Bloody Valentine.
Veruca Salt initially started as a duo, playing folk music in Chicago coffee houses. They expanded to a four-piece, adding Jim Shapiro on drums and Jim Lack on bass. The band's name was chosen from "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," not because they were fans, but because they identified with the character's assertiveness.
As Chicago's music scene gained national attention, Veruca Salt's popularity soared. Their first gig was in Wicker Park, a hub for Chicago's independent music scene. The band's demo tape, taken to Minty Fresh Records by a local funk band, led to the recording of their single "Seether/All Hail Me."
"Seether" became a local hit, gaining traction on radio stations and catching the attention of major labels. Minty Fresh Records signed Veruca Salt, and they recorded their debut album, "American Thighs," in just 10 days. The album's success attracted Geffen Records, who signed the band to a five-album deal.
The Geffen deal, though financially lucrative, brought criticism and accusations of selling out. Veruca Salt faced backlash from the media, and their early live shows were criticized. Despite the challenges, "American Thighs" went platinum, and the band toured with acts like Hole and Live.
In 1996, Veruca Salt released the EP "Blow It Out Your Ass It's Veruca Salt" in response to critics. Their second album, "Eight Arms to Hold You" (1997), produced hits like "Volcano Girls." However, internal conflicts led to members leaving, and by 1998, only Louise Post remained.
Post continued with new members, releasing "Resolver" in 2000, but the band's momentum slowed. Veruca Salt went on hiatus in 2012, and during this time, Post and Gordon mended their friendship. The original lineup reunited in 2013, releasing "Ghost Notes" in 2015. The band actively supports various causes but lost master recordings in the 2008 Universal Studios fire.
Despite setbacks, Veruca Salt persists. In 2022, Louise Post released demos from the late '90s, and she plans to release a solo album in 2023. The band remains a resilient force in the ever-changing landscape of rock music. 
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Coming this Friday…A highly requested punk band that is a really great and different group. And Wednesday....more 80's era rock.
the starting line!
you should do a story on the british group "Suede"
Have you done the Whitesnake 1987 story yet? When Coverdale dumped the whole band for a more photogenic one? Or something...?
Hopefully Friday is Social Distortion and Wednesday is Queensryche 🙏
Where's your helmet video at?
American Thighs is a great album. There were a ton of overhyped bands from the 90s, but for me, Veruca Salt isn't one of them.
It's like he decided to do research on this band he wasn't too familiar with in order to do a video and came across one article about them being overhyped. I've never heard this about them. American Thighs was a huge success.
I completely agree. It's in my top 10 of 'guitar-based' albums from the 90s.
The whole things just flows really well as one cohesive piece...
They are for me. Seether is the most perfect example of this.
Starts off kick ass then turns lame
In some ways I prefer Eight Arms to Hold You.
Their recent Ghost Notes album is also amazing.
Was the song not bashy bashy smashy smashy enough for you? lol
I love Louise's & Nina's voices & harmonies, always thought they sounded great together, & they wrote a lot of great tunes. Would never say they were overhyped.
Yeah, i agree, their vocal harmonies were fantastic and the songs were at least on par with most of the other 90s alternative bands, although not as outstanding as the juggernauts of that era, like "Cannonball" for example. They were a solid, very lovable band and certainly not overhyped.
@@pfzt I honestly don't remember them being hyped anymore thsn any other band that was releasing albums at that time. Course that was a long time ago these days, & with all the brain cells I massacred since then I can't say that with certainty.
I mean yeah, you can't fight the seether.
Watch the live cut of Seether at the Glastonbury concert and you will never say this band was overhyped.
Agreed! Love this song.
Love Veruca Salt. They hit the perfect balance between being poppy enough to be addictively catchy but grungy enough to have honest grit.
Not over hyped. They were the real deal
Their comeback album, Ghost Notes, is amazing
The album is good, only problem I have with it is the way it was recorded. It sounds shrill, especially when you turn up the volume a bit, which for me, makes it to hard to listen to it.
@@mor4725 I concur. But "Eyes on You", "Prince of Wales"- ugh- such great songs... :-)
Veruca Salt is a great band. Louise Post and Nina Gordon are very talented.
As a die hard metalhead I always loved Veruca Salt, there were a lot of great girl bands in the 90's like Belly , The Breeders, Julianna Hatfield but my favorite was always Veruca Salt.
Don't forget L7
Sleater Kinney
Plus Lunachicks and Babes in Toyland.
I would say turn in your metalhead card because this group has incredibly weak vocals (sounds like an amateur kiddie rock group) and they couldn't play a metal tune to save themselves.
@@Th-tg4zm Scissor-Rock.
Overhyped ? No way. Nina and Louise had natural talent, wrote some really good pop tracks, and are the biggest influence of so many of the bands like Paramore that were huge in the early 2000s.
Their harmonies are top notch and they sounded exactly like their albums when they played live. A rarity among bands nowadays.
I loved them. Eight Arms to Hold You is a killer album.
And I had a MASSIVE crush on Louise.
Yep. We all did.
Actually, I still have.... :O
"Who's that sexy dark haired chick wailing like a banshee?!" Me to my sister when first watching the Volcano Girls music video.
Yes, God!
I still love Veruca Salt. They may have been overhyped at the time but to me they'll always feel like one of the 90s' most underrated bands. American Thighs is a classic and 2015's Ghost Notes was an excellent renaissance record.
The EP in between their first 2 full records is also brilliant. It's probably my favorite recorded music by them.
Overhyped??!! BLASPHEMY! I saw Veruca Salt in concert in 1994 and to this day they were one of the best live shows I have ever attended.
American Thighs is a prime example of 90s music. Solid album. Eight Arms to Hold You was equally as good.
Veruca Salt was not overhyped. They were awesome. American Thighs and Eight Arms To Hold You are amazing.
I remember reading about them and how great they were before American Thighs was released in a few rock magazines. When that record finally came out and I bought it, I felt the positive buzz I had read about them was warranted. That album will always be one of my 90's favorites.
I met them at a bar in Wicker Park, IL after a show around 93. I love American Thighs even today with some other hits.
Source: GenX at 54.
They were underhyped. One of the best bands of that era. Eight Arms to Hold You is an absolute masterpiece.
Love the shift to 90s alternative. Could you throw in some 80s next? The Smiths could be a good topic. New Order/Joy Division would be awesome as well
Yes, those bands are on my to do list and more 80s coming this week and in new year!
yeah new order/joy division would be killer
@@rnrtruestories or something a bit more off the beaten track?
Volcano Girls is still a banger of a track!
You don't know what you're talking about. Veruca Salt have always been terrific. Their vocal harmonies alone set them apart.
Surprised to hear that the 2nd album didn’t do as well as American Thighs. I remember there being two relatively big hits on there Volcano Girls was played quite regularly and then the follow up to that was Shutterbug which also got played quite frequently. I’m wondering if there might have been a follow up single to Seether on American Thighs that I’m unaware of. I could have sworn that was the only video off that album.
I was there, they weren’t overhyped at all, no more than any other smaller alt rock band of the time, American Thighs was a great album and a great example of guitar driven 90’s rock
Dude, they f'n rocked -- nothing but solid tunes from Veruca Salt.
Love them, getting to finally see them live really made me realize how fantastic they are. Loved the albums but so amazing live
I love Eight Arms to Hold You. Surprised that it didn't do as well. Oh and since you were looking for suggestions... have you thought about doing one on Rainbow?
Louise had a great album Sleepwalker that came out in June which she also toured behind.
Always great to see where these bands feom the 90's Alt Rock came from and where they are now!!!
Still one of my favorite bands to date! Louise post has been very active musically this year.
I love American Thighs. It's still a great album.
I saw them live at KROQ almost acoustic Christmas in 94. They were up against STP in their prime and Bad Religion but it was still a memorable performance
I was there that night too, and I remembered they sounded good. I remember Hole and Live had awesome performances too!
STP had a prime?
@@stevenhenry5267core and purple, that’s it
@@stevenhenry5267 I should say before Scott was a total shitshow
They had a living room setup and did a cover of the Charlie Brown Xmas song at one point. It was cool
@@luckytaco97 Awesome! We stood in line for tickets all night for that one. Managed to sneak down near the front towards the end of the show
Can you do video on silverchair or on band Days of the new.
Silverchair were an embarrassment, a pure and simple Nirvana cover band. I was at one of their gigs in Australia, and the punters were going crazy. Absolutely electric atmosphere. But, I was the odd man out.
The two were both banging Bob Rock behind each others back. That’s what actually killed the band as eventually they both found out about each other.
You got to be kidding me
I remember hearing at the time that was one of the replacement band members they were both banging
I had a crush on Nina & bought 8 arms to hold you, Bob Rock really brought out their sound & the whole album was amazing!
"8 Arms ..." & "Resolver" are some of my favourite albums ever.
Loved this band back in the day. Thank you! xo
Our pleasure!
Volcano Girls is still an excelllent track. Nina and Louise harmonize incredibly well together.
Saw them open for Bush in the 90’s they were great. Lots of people had their albums
I saw them with Bush also in Michigan.
Love Bush, now that’s a highly UNDER rated band, everyone moves straight from grunge to nu metal, in rock history & gloss right over bands like Bush. It’s boring, we know enough about Pearl Jam, Nirvana, & Soundgarden, can we please start talking about bands that didn’t fit inside a genre box?
@@koobs4549 excellent idea 👍👍👍
Their 2015 album Ghost Notes is great from start to finish. I'm so glad they got back together for this masterpiece.
Lovely gals and pretty good alternative music. I was not yet into music when their breakout song "Seether" came out, but I was really into "Volcano Girls" despite it's more glossier style of rock music.
Volcano Girls is such a good song, one of my all time favorites. Louise is so hot!!
"All Hail Me" is a great song too.
@@markcheetah4960 Benjamin is really good too, I always liked that one.
@@stephenhood2948 Love it!!!
Very underrated band. "Eight Arms..." is one of the best rock albums of the 90's.
I agree. Not a single song to hit the skip button.
I was 15 when I Met my now husband when Volcano Girls came out. I Hated rock music but my husband loves it. He Loves Marilyn Manson, White Zombie. But that song just brings back so many memories. Driving down the country road to his house with the windows rolled down with this song blaring. Me hating rock but there is always that one song or a few that take you to a time and this is that song to me❤
seether was a great song - I remember when it came out, had an immediate punch. I knew 0 about anything about the band, it was just a cool sounding song on the radio.
Hey! Cowboy Junkies shoutout! Appreciate that. If they were more rock and roll I would suggest them as a future video topic. Go see them live. They are amazing
Great suggestion! Saw a book on them in the bookstore recently
Local H is another good Chicago band (from nearby Zion, IL) that was popular in the 90s
I had the misfortune of seeing Veruca Salt twice. Both times I got free tickets. The first time was in a club and it was like watching four people that never played together in their lives, and had no idea how to write songs. Then in 1993 they played the WMRQ Jingle Bell Jam at the Oakdale Theater in Wallingford, CT. and once again I had access to free tickets. I said "There's no way they could have been that bad. Maybe it was a bad night for them" and went to the show. Yes, they were THAT BAD.
they seem to have problems singing off key as the night progresses. Maybe their voices get tired.
Awesome video. I love Veruca Salt!!
0, 1...
2, 3...
4 days without you.
8, 9...
Now we're 5 times 2.
Every one of their albums is really precious to me for very different reasons. Thanks for making this. They’re definitely one of my top ten of all time favorites
I knew the radio songs, but didn't become a fan until I saw them play "Shutterbug" on SNL.
They were one of the most interesting alternative rock bands ever
I like when Rock and Roll True Stories talks about one hit wonders or underground rock bands of the 90s. 😊
Veruca Salt is a great band! every song, every album! Love Them!
Being in my teens when Volcano Girls dropped, I loved that song. I could never get into any of their other music though. I still can’t to this day. But I still blast Volcano Girls. If they kept that sound for all their songs, I would be a huge fan.
Great video sir. Lots of research and a thorough presentation of the facts. 🙌
I remember them coming up in Chicago back in the day. Steve was a friend of my brother back then. Always thought they were totally overrated. There were soooo many better local bands.
I saw v salt , madder rose and some band called hole. One of the best shows I ever saw. There was around two to three hundred in the crowd. I miss that shit. I miss that shit!
So I gotta ask about the hendrix poster behind ya... It's pretty radical! Where do I find one ?
Sorry for the late reply I got it from displate a dude who made it has some sick posters
@@rnrtruestories all good, got a link ? I'd love to obtain one
They were a great band & deserved the fame. This video shows some stills from their live version of Seether from some big UK festival.... check it cause it's AWESOME
kind of weird but i had a friend that claimed to have stolen Louis Post's panties in the mid 90s 😂
Ask your friend if they smell different to a gentile chick's undies.
I saw them back in '94 at the KROQ ACP, and although not my favorite band back then they did have a good live sound and played well and loud. Ah to be 16 years old again!
I might be late to the party, but I love the cuts to you. A face to the voice. I love your channel.
Oh thank you!
There was a period in the mid 90's where I was going to just about any concert that came through town. Found myself at the Boathouse in Norfolk, VA where Veruca Salt was playing a gig because I saw a video and liked the guitar tone. I remember it being a good show until they stopped it to plead with the crowd to stop moshing. Nina kept saying "You have to stop hurting people!" and threatened to leave. I just thought that was kind of weird. There was some irate dude next to me as well and he was mad because people were moshing at a veruca salt concert. He was a bigger guy and kept violently shoving people that were thrown into him back in the pit. This action was accompanied frequently with a comment of "This isn't f**king Slayer!" Ah, the memories.
Listened to Industrial and Metal in the 90’s but I loved Veruca Salt!! Definitely not overhyped out here in the east.
Good to see someone else falling into the Veruca Salt rabbit hole. First concert I went to was them opening for Bush in '96
Have you ever heard of the band Floater from Oregon. Came out the same time tool did and in my opinion are just as good. An in depth video about them might be epic. Not easy though. Like the videos. Thanks
Not overhyped at all, just had an "easier than others" path to getting signed and took a lot of heat for the perception that they hadn't earned their success like most of their contemporaries did. Post and Gordon were fantastic song writers. "Earthcrosser" is, in my opinion, a painfully underrated tune that perfectly encapsulates life on the road for a rock musician. It's also almost absurd to me that Jim Shapiro didn't even know how to play the drums until he was asked to be in the band. Goes a long way towards explaining why their live performances probably weren't top notch in the beginning.
AT is one of the greatest albums of all time, they were geniuses and should be more known.
They were my favorite band through the mid 90's. As far as why they split up, it's interesting to see them not want to discuss it now. IIRC Nina and Louise were both banging one of the replacement band members (I don't remember which one) which was the final straw that caused Nina to leave
Gen X here. I liked Veruca Salt and 1) they weren't overhyped or even hyped at all, I heard the song Seether on college radio and most of my friends heard it the same way; 2) their album was quite decent, and Seether was actually a major song, and my friends and I - all music industry folks in Nashville - LOVED the fact they took their name from Willy Wonka - if anything they were considered underrated and cool; unfortunately they didn't have the songwriting chops to fulfill a long-term career. I still turn up Seether when it comes on the radio. One classic song and a handful of acceptable album cuts are much more than most bands achieve.
You should try to get interviews with some of these bands👍🏻
can remember being at some random festival they were playing at and people in the crowd pleading with them to exit the stage lol
I always wanted more from this band, Volcano Girls was an amazing song and it was the only one that got any local airplay here on rock radio stations....if they ended up having more songs like that I would have been a huge fan!
I don't think they were overhyped. If anything, they probably deserved to be hyped a bit more considering they're mostly viewed as a bit of a one hit wonder. Great band, American Thighs is a solid album.
Love “All Hail Me”, hilarious vid as well.
Every band after 1992 was riding the coattails of Nirvana. It was hard to avoid.
Every *American band
@jester6-1-6 Neither Silverchair or Bush are American bands and they received the riding Nirvana's coattails criticism the most.
Not pavement
Veruca Salt is amazing! What do you mean overhyped?!?
By the press I stated it several times I. The video
@@rnrtruestories You clickbaiter. VS were overrated.
Love VS! One of my GOATs. The records with both Louise & Nina are fantastic. The ones when they split are good also, but it definitely wasn't the same.
And I'm not sure the "overhype" thing was real. Maybe it happened in Chicago early on?
I remember Veruca Salt. They came and went like a shooting star. All the rage in thr 90s and then gone. They were part of the alt girl rock wave of the time. I'll give them credit - Seether was an era-defining song. It was classic mid-90s pop rock.
I'll always associate them , Liz Phair, and The Breeders as they were all big bands during my college and mid 20s life.
The character of Veruca Salt in Dahl's novel did not unabashedly go after what she wanted - she complained incessantly and acted like a child until she got what she wanted, no matter how banal or trite the object in question. Not the same thing, dude.
Nice details. I wasn't aware of any hype, other than seeing the videos. I liked them, and lusted after those sg/melody makers in Volcano Girls. Just started listening to them again a couple of years ago. American Thighs is solid.
American Thighs is one of the best albums of the 1990’s. I listen to it all the time
Got to support them on a gig one night. Really nice people and they played a really killer set with great songs
They were definitely not the most overhyped band of the 90s. They had some really good songs on American Thighs, and Eight Arms To Hold You had MANY great rock songs. They also backed up the attitude their music portrayed. I worked for a radio station when they were popular and we had a bootleg cd of some covers they did - it was smokin' hot. I probably still have it in a box somewhere. I really wanted this band to go on for a while. I don't remember much of what Louise Post did afterward, but I loved both of Nina's solo CDs and especially love her cover of Straight Outta Compton.
So were they the most overhyped band of the mid-90's?
Awsome upload dude!!
Great video.
I first heard them on KROQ. I love them. Great Videos too.
Definitely not overhyped. The harmonies, melodies, technical abilities, the hard edges with Posts leads. Awesome band
Shout out to the, now gone, Missoula Independent. Your coverage of the local arts scene is forever missed.
8:57 Louise Gordon was always my favorite of the three ladies.
Louise was such a sniper. I LOVED this band. They have legitimately great tunes. Overhyped or not, they backed it up, on record and live.
Whenever I hear Liz Phair's name, all I can think about is "Why Can't I?" sadly.
Forget the hype angle. Seriously good rock and roll from that crew. Timeless. I dare you to take a serious listen. 😉
If you haven't already, be sure to check out Nina's cover of Straight Outta Compton on here
Nina was hott af 🔥
Nah Louise was way hotter!🔥🔥🔥
Never heard of em. And I was a teenager in the 90s
Maybe overhyped in Chicago, but not where I grew up in the 90’s. Everybody liked them. They were a band with a great presence and great sound with hooks galore!! Ah the 90’s, oh how I miss you so……
I totally forgot about this band. I remember first seeing them on MTV when i was in Mount Fuji.
Damn i never heard of Veruca Salt and ive listened and know alot of 70s , 80, and 90s bands ..
You should give that first album a listen mate. It’s really quite good.
I never bought any of their albums but any time I heard Veruca Salt on the radio it got turned up. ❤️
At 13:06, I believe Nina Gorden is talking to Maya Ford (bassist for The Donnas) about a Prince album.
Is that Maya Ford??