Melissa Auf der Maur, renowned for lending her talents to the iconic bands Hole and the Smashing Pumpkins, is back with her first new music in sixteen years. The Montreal-born musician and visual artist announced BASS WOMB ROOM: My ’90s 4-Track Demos x Field Recordings, slated for release on September 4 through Envision Records.
The project collects seven previously unreleased 4-track demos she penned in the 1990s, together with eight new “interludes” created for her upcoming Melissa Auf der Maur: My ’90s Rock Photographs, which opens on September 2 at the Art Gallery of Ontario. She’s also releasing a 240-page photobook bearing the same name, due September 8 via DelMonico Books/D.A.P. and the AGO.
Both the musical and visual ventures offer a candid glimpse into Auf der Maur’s creative psyche. BASS WOMB ROOM unfolds as a collection of improvised recordings laid down on a Tascam 4‑track, accompanied by an acoustic guitar and lyrics born from stream of consciousness or diary-like musings.
“I wrote these songs under mounting pressure from the major label‑driven music industry to craft glossy hits that would dominate radio airwaves,” Auf der Maur stated in the press release. “These tracks represent the sound of my internal experimentation and a way to keep the Montreal art girl alive inside. They reveal the quiet, private side of the girl who joined the big American major label rock band.” She has also offered a preview of the closing track, “Skip A Beat.”
That isn’t the sole nostalgic comeback on the horizon. It appears Hole may be teasing news for this Friday. Fans are clamoring for a tour reunion or a reissue of their 1997 compilation My Body, The Hand Grenade. We’ll have to wait and see. (UPDATE: It turns out to be an audiophile vinyl reissue of Live Through This.)
Below, you can view the BASS WOMB ROOM tracklist and catch a preview of “Skip A Beat.”
TRACKLIST:
01 “Active Heart”
02 “… And The Next Day”
03 “Courtney Chimes In”
04 “Desire is Critical”
05 “In The Reflection”
06 “Water Wars”
07 “Flesh Flush”
08 “Is She His”
09 “Billy Seoul Crowd”
10 “Love Is The Drug”
11 “Sparkle Bass”
12 “Fancy Piece (Featuring The Hunger World)”
13 “River’s Dream”
14 “Sea Of Tranquility”
15 “Skip A Beat”
BASS WOMB ROOM: My ’90s 4-Track Demos x Field Recordings is out September 4 via Envision Records. Pre-order here.
