The Honeymoon Killers (American band)
| Company type | Band |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 1983 |
| Founder | Jerry Teel, Lisa Wells |
| Defunct | 1994 |
| Headquarters | New York City , United States |
| Products | Music albums, EPs, singles |
The Honeymoon Killers were a noise rock group originating from New York City, established in 1983. Their name was inspired by the 1970 crime movie The Honeymoon Killers. The band's musical style was heavily influenced by the blues genre, often drawing parallels to The Cramps, who notably impacted Jerry Teel. The principal members consisted of Jerry Teel and Lisa Wells, with Sally Edroso serving as their longest-tenured drummer from 1985 to 1990. Throughout their existence, the lineup frequently changed, incorporating artists from bands such as Pussy Galore, Boss Hog, Ritual Tension, and the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. Their initial three albums were released independently via their own label, Fur Records. The group ceased activity in 1994, after which Jerry Teel went on to create The Chrome Cranks alongside drummer Bob Bert and guitarist William Gilmore Weber.
History
The Honeymoon Killers were formed in 1983 by guitarist Jerry Teel and bassist Lisa Wells. Early members included guitarist Michael O'Neill and drummer Claire Lawrence-Slater, formerly of Ritual Tension. This lineup produced their debut album The Honeymoon Killers from Mars in 1984 under Fur Records. Drummer Sally Edroso joined in time for the 1985 release Love American Style, becoming the band's most stable drummer. Operating as a trio, they issued Let It Breed in 1986, an album co-produced by Steve McAllister and composer/producer Mark Kramer. By 1987, Cristina Martinez from Pussy Galore and Boss Hog had joined as a second guitarist for their fourth studio album Turn Me On. Subsequent releases included the EPs Take It Off! (1988) and 'Til Death Do Us Part (1990). Their 1991 album Hung Far Low marked their first studio effort in four years and featured drummer Russell Simins and guitarist Jon Spencer.
The band disbanded in 1994, after which Jerry Teel initiated the formation of The Chrome Cranks. In 1997, a comprehensive double-disc anthology titled Sing Sing (1984-1994) was issued by Sympathy for the Record Industry.
Band members
Final lineup
- Jerry Teel – vocals and electric guitar (1983–1994)
- Lisa Wells – bass guitar and vocals (1983–1994)
Previous members
- Sally Edroso – drums and vocals (1985–1990)
- Cristina Martinez – electric guitar and vocals (1987)
- Michael O'Neill – electric guitar (1984)
- Claire Lawrence-Slater – drums (1984)
- Russell Simins – drums (1991)
- Jon Spencer – electric guitar (1991)
- Timeline
<timeline> ImageSize = width:800 height:auto barincrement:30 PlotArea = left:100 bottom:60 top:0 right:50 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy Period = from:01/01/1983 till:01/01/1994 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy
Colors =
id:Vocal value:red legend:Vocals id:Guitar value:green legend:Guitar id:Bass value:blue legend:Bass id:Drums value:orange legend:Drums id:Lines value:black legend:Studio albums
Legend = orientation:horizontal position:bottom
ScaleMajor = increment:3 start:1983 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:1 start:1983
LineData =
at:06/01/1984 color:black layer:back at:06/01/1985 color:black layer:back at:06/01/1986 color:black layer:back at:06/01/1987 color:black layer:back at:06/01/1991 color:black layer:back
BarData =
bar:Jerry text:"Jerry Teel" bar:Michael text:"Michael O'Neill" bar:Cristina text:"Cristina Martinez" bar:Jon text:"Jon Spencer" bar:Lisa text:"Lisa Wells" bar:Claire text:"Claire Lawrence-Slater" bar:Sally text:"Sally Edroso" bar:Russell text:"Russell Simins"
PlotData=
width:10 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4) bar:Jerry from:01/01/1983 till:01/01/1994 color:Guitar bar:Jerry from:01/01/1983 till:01/01/1994 color:Vocal width:3 bar:Lisa from:01/01/1983 till:01/01/1994 color:Bass bar:Lisa from:01/01/1983 till:01/01/1994 color:Vocal width:3 bar:Claire from:01/01/1984 till:01/01/1985 color:Drums bar:Sally from:01/01/1985 till:01/01/1991 color:Drums bar:Sally from:01/01/1985 till:01/01/1991 color:Vocal width:3 bar:Russell from:01/01/1991 till:01/01/1992 color:Drums bar:Michael from:01/01/1984 till:01/01/1985 color:Guitar bar:Cristina from:01/01/1987 till:06/01/1988 color:Guitar bar:Cristina from:01/01/1987 till:06/01/1988 color:Vocal width:3 bar:Jon from:01/01/1991 till:01/01/1992 color:Guitar
</timeline>
Discography
Studio Albums
- The Honeymoon Killers from Mars (1984, Fur)
- Love American Style (1985, Fur)
- Let It Breed (1986, Fur)
- Turn Me On (1987, Buy Our)
- Hung Far Low (1991, Fistpuppet)
Compilation Albums
- Sing Sing (1984-1994) (1997, Sympathy for the Record Industry)
EPs
- Take It Off! (1988, Buy Our Records)
- 'Til Death Do Us Part (1990, King Size)
Singles
- Get It Hot/Gettin' Hot (1989, Sub Pop)
- Smells Like Bi-Fi (1991)
- Kansas City Milkman/Nothin' (1991, Insipid Vinyl)
- Live (1991)
- Vanna White (Goddess of Love)/You Can't Do That (1991, Sympathy for the Record Industry)