The Aquanettas were an all-female band from New York City that one New York Times writer said played "classic, basic rock-and-roll: just rugged guitar riffs and lyrics about the more bothersome aspects of romance".Schoemer, Karen In Rocking East Village, The Beat Never Stops New York Times article. Published: June 8, 1990 Their music was influenced by classic rock such as Led Zeppelin and punk bands such as X, mixed with surf rock overtones. The band was formed in the late 1980s in New York City by vocalist Deborah Schwartz and guitarist Jill Richmond along with bassist Claudine Troise and drummer Stephanie Seymour. The Aquanettas toured nationally and secured a record deal with Canadian record label Nettwerk Productions who distributed their recordings through IRS Records in the United States. They released one album for IRS/Nettwerk, two independent EPs and three singles before breaking up in 1995.
The Aquanettas (1987–1995) Lead vocalist Deborah Schwartz had moved from Voorheesville to Manhattan in January 1986Kahn, Brenda WomanRock Interviews Debby Schwartz after spending three months in Los Angeles, California where she met guitarist Jill Richmond. Schwartz began her career in New York with an experimental/performance art group called The Summit Ensemble. When Richmond joined her in New York one year later, they formed The Aquanettas along with bassist Claudine Troise and drummer Stephanie Seymour. It is reported that the band took their name from actress Burnu Acquanetta.
When the band played the New Music Seminar in NYC they signed a deal with Canadian record label Nettwerk Productions,Parks, Trey music-reviewer.com review of Debby Schwartz solo CD and interview. July 1998 who distributed their albums through IRS Records in the United States, and toured nationally, including as a support act for Nine Inch Nails. Called "a seminal all-female group from the early '90s" by some writers,The Inventures overview of the band Birdy, drummer Stephanie Seymour's band after The Aquanettas. singer Joan Osborne has covered their songs in concertFarber, Jim NY Daily News A Night of Full-Blown Joan in her New York Homecoming, Osborne sings Loud and Proud April 22, 1996 and is a fan, so much so she would later make Schwartz her first signing on her Womanly Hips label.Rolling Stone"Joan Osborne Signs Artists To Her Label" November 22, 1997 After being dissatisfied with the lack of promotion by IRS Records, they asked to be released and toured Europe on their own in support of their Indy releases. Richmond would later say she became fond of using a certain slang term to describe female genitalia while on tour in Great Britain.Goldman, Andrew The New York Observer No C-Word, Please, We're American! Brits Export Last Linguistic Taboo April 4, 1999 Their single, "Mind Full of Worry" is included on the soundtrack of Hal Hartley's 1994 film, Amateur, and in 1996 a remix of their song "Beach Party" was included on the soundtrack for the feature film Kissed, which was distributed by MGM in the United States.
Discography Albums Date of releaseTitleLabelTypeMarch 20, 1990Love with the Proper StrangerIRSLP1992The AquanettasPlastic RecordsEPJuly 5, 1993RoadhausGiant/RockvilleEP
Singles 1990"Beach Party"IRSSingle1991"Whoa!"Mayor Label Records3-song maxi-single1992"Super Absorbent"Prize Pagoda3-song maxi-single
Soundtracks YearSongMovie / albumRecord labelRelease type1994"Mind Full of Worry"AmateurMatador RecordsSoundtrack1996"Beach Party" (remix)KissedNettwerk ProductionsSoundtrack
Compilations 1990Nettwerk Sound Sampler, Vol. IIINettwerk ProductionsCompilation
After the band Troise played bass with instrumental band The Vice Royals featuring Pete "The Other White Meat" Linzell, Jay Sherman Godfrey's The Lazy Jaycees, and with Nancy Sexton and the Sugar Monkeys.
Richmond played with Mean Reds, with Vinny DeNunzio on drums, Kris Yiengst on bass, and Elizabeth Presley on vocals. The Mike Hunt Band (a Rolling Stones tribute band) was next, and is still active. Richmond is Keith Richards and Tammy Faye Starlight is Mick Jager. Starlight and Richmond are currently forming an original band called Little T & J.
Schwartz was signed to Womanly Hips, Joan Osborne's Label and recorded "Wrongs of Passage", her 1998 major-label release. Currently, she sings and plays bass with P.G. Six band and sang on their 2006 Drag City release "Slightly Sorry". Schwartz has been a singer with Loser's Lounge since 1993. She is currently recording an album in NYC.
Seymour joined Adam Roth's Psychic Penguin, a pop powerhouse band that featured strong melodies and four-part harmonies. The members of Penguin liked to trade off instruments on stage, and Seymour sang, played drums on a few songs, and played percussion in the band. After Penguin, she formed her own band and became lead singer and songwriter for Birdy. The band released two CDs ("Supernominal Paraphernalia" and "Quarantine") on the independent, collective, cooperative label Cropduster Records. She currently sings in The New Ugly, formed with her husband and former Winter Hours guitar player Bob Perry, and she occasionally sings in Loser's Lounge in NYC.
References
External links Allmusic.com entry