Band of Susans

Band of Susans
Company type	Musical group
Industry	Music
Founded	1986 in New York City, United States
Defunct	1996
Headquarters	New York City, United States
Products	Music albums, EPs, music videos

Band of Susans was an American alternative rock ensemble rooted in the No Wave movement, originating in New York City in 1986 and remaining active until 1996. The initial formation featured Robert Poss on guitar and vocals, Susan Stenger handling bass and vocals, Ron Spitzer on drums, alongside guitarists Susan Lyall and Susan Tallman, and vocalist Alva Rogers. Throughout its existence, the group underwent multiple personnel changes but consistently maintained a lineup with three guitarists. Poss, Stenger, and Spitzer constituted the stable core members. Emerging from New York's No Wave noise rock milieu, their intricate guitar layers established them as American counterparts to the British shoegazing movement. Similar to Sonic Youth, their sound was influenced by avant-garde electric guitar pioneers such as Rhys Chatham and Glenn Branca.

History

During the early to mid-1980s, Robert Poss studied under avant-garde guitarist and composer Rhys Chatham, while also performing with Tot Rocket and Western Eyes. The band was initiated by avant-garde flautist Susan Stenger together with guitarist Poss, deriving its name from the trio of Susans within the lineup. The three founding members—Poss, Stenger, and Spitzer—had childhood ties in Buffalo, New York.

Their first release was the 12" EP Blessing And Curse, issued on Poss's Trace Elements label. The band's debut live performance coincided with this release party at The Love Club in New York City on January 31, 1987, where they opened for Das Furlines. Shortly thereafter, they secured a contract with Blast First, an avant-garde imprint under the UK-based Mute Records.

After issuing their debut album Hope Against Hope, members Rogers, Lyall, and Tallman left the group. They were succeeded by guitarists Karen Haglof and Page Hamilton. This lineup produced the album Love Agenda along with a Peel Sessions EP that included a rendition of Gang Of Four's "I Found That Essence Rare". Subsequently, Haglof and Hamilton departed; Hamilton went on to establish the metal-oriented band Helmet. Guitarists Anne Husick and Mark Lonergan then joined Band of Susans, forming what is regarded as the "classic lineup," which recorded three additional albums including The Word and the Flesh, as well as an EP released through Restless Records.

Although Band of Susans garnered favorable critical reception throughout their decade-long tenure, The Great Indie Discography observes that significant commercial success largely eluded them.

Musical style

Band of Susans distinguished themselves as a "rock group free from traditional rock stereotypes," with each instrument delivering unique contributions that merged into rich, droning soundscapes. Characterized by having up to eight guitarists in total and consistently featuring no fewer than three at once, their music was deeply rooted in guitar-driven arrangements. They are typically linked to the abrasive post-no wave movement emerging from New York City, alongside acts such as Sonic Youth, Glenn Branca, Live Skull, and Swans. Their instrumentation prominently included G&L guitars—highlighted on multiple album covers—alongside Fender Jazzmasters and Park amplifiers. Leo Fender, founder of G&L, admired the band and later developed a friendship with Robert Poss.

The trio of guitarists crafted an intense wall of feedback and sonic noise layered atop traditional song frameworks. Although frequently associated with the shoegaze genre due to their immersive textures, their sound was notably harsher, aligning more closely with their New York peers rather than British shoegaze bands. Similar to My Bloody Valentine, Band of Susans performed live at very high volumes to capture the power and density of their studio recordings. Guitarist Robert Poss recognized parallels with shoegaze artists, recalling joint tours with My Bloody Valentine across Europe and the United States in 1989. Despite their avant-garde approach, Poss counted The Rolling Stones among his influences, which inspired their renditions of "Child of the Moon" and "Paint It, Black."

Live performances

Band of Susans conducted intermittent tours across the United States and Europe, sharing bills with groups such as Live Skull, My Bloody Valentine, Butthole Surfers, Wire, Rollins Band, Smegma, Das Furlines, and Lovely. In their final touring phase, Jay Braun (who later joined the Negatones) took over for Lonergan, while Kelly Burns stepped in for Ron Spitzer on drums. Early in their career during the 1980s, they appeared at The Kitchen on 19th Street as part of a performance art event featuring Rhys Chatham as the opening act. Subsequent shows at CBGB involved members Susan Stenger, Robert Poss, and possibly Karen Hagloff; however, these did not include the complete original lineup. Drummer Joseph Kochan—also known as "Joey Kaye"—performed during the 1991 European and American tours supporting the album Word and the Flesh.

Post-breakup

Following the band's breakup in late 1996, Robert Poss and Susan Stenger teamed up with Bruce Gilbert from Wire under the name gilbertpossstenger, producing a single album together. Their collaborations also extended extensively to composer Phill Niblock. Poss pursued production work alongside solo projects, whereas Stenger performed live with Siouxsie Sioux's second ensemble the Creatures in 1998 and collaborated with notable artists including Nick Cave, John Cale, and Alan Vega of Suicide. She currently leads Big Bottom, an electric bass collective, and has partnered with choreographer Michael Clark, writer Iain Sinclair, and visual artist Cerith Wyn Evans. In 2006, her 96-day installation Soundtrack for an Exhibition premiered at Lyon’s Le Musée d'Art Contemporain, featuring contributions from Robert Poss, Alan Vega, Alexander Hacke, Kim Gordon, among others.

Poss released two solo albums in 2002—Distortion Is Truth and Crossing Casco Bay—and composed works for choreographers Alexandra Beller, Sally Gross, and Gerald Casel. He also engineered recordings by Seth Josel and Phill Niblock and collaborated with musicians such as Ben Neill and David Dramm. In April 2009, he appeared as part of Rhys Chatham’s ensemble at the Metropolitan Museum of Art during the exhibition "Downtown Comes Uptown: The Pictures Generation, 1974–1984."

Music videos

The band created music videos for the following tracks:

"The Pursuit of Happiness" (1989)
"Now Is Now" (1991)
"Blind" (1993)
"The Last Temptation of Susan" (1993), an experimental video collage crafted by Leah Singer

Discography

Studio albums

Hope Against Hope (1988)
Love Agenda (1989)
The Word and the Flesh (1991)
Veil (1993)
Here Comes Success (1995)

Extended plays

Blessing and Curse (1987)
The Peel Sessions (1992)
Now (1992)

Compilation albums

Wired for Sound (1995)

External links