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The Scissor Girls

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Adapted from the English Wikipedia article The Scissor Girls, available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 29 November 2025
The Scissor Girls
Company typeBand
IndustryMusic
Founded1991
FounderAzita Youssefi, Sue Anne Zollinger, Heather Melowic
Defunct1996
Headquarters
Chicago
,
United States
ProductsMusic albums, singles, EPs

The Scissor Girls were an American band originating from Chicago, established in 1991 by Azita Youssefi, Sue Anne Zollinger, and Heather Melowic. The idea for the group began in the late 1980s while Youssefi and Melowic resided in Washington, D.C. After Youssefi and Zollinger moved to Chicago to attend the Art Institute of Chicago, Melowic joined them in 1989, forming the initial lineup with Youssefi handling bass and vocals, Zollinger on guitar, and Melowic playing drums.

Before Zollinger's departure, the band released a demo tape, a 7-inch single, and two full-length albums. In 1994, Kelly Kuvo replaced Zollinger as guitarist. With Kuvo on board, the band released the 7" singles "New Tactical Outline Sec. 1" and "New Tactical Outline Sec. 2" in February 1995, followed by the 10" EP S-T-A-T-I-C-L-A-N-D in March 1996. The group disbanded while working on a third album that remained unfinished. After their breakup, Atavistic Records issued a compilation of singles in 1997.

Formation and early period

Azita Youssefi relocated from Washington, D.C. to Chicago in 1989 to pursue painting studies at the Art Institute of Chicago but soon shifted her creative focus toward music influenced by her connection with Elliot Dicks. She brought Heather Melowic from D.C. into the project, and together they persuaded guitarist Sue Anne Zollinger—also from D.C. and attending SAIC—to join them. The Scissor Girls officially formed during the summer of 1991 with Youssefi on bass, Zollinger on guitar, and Melowic on drums.

While at SAIC, Youssefi and Zollinger became acquainted with Kelly Kuvo from Denver, Colorado. Kuvo supported the band by creating their promotional artwork in exchange for a demo tape. Their debut live show took place on Halloween night in 1992. That same year, they recorded their first 7-inch single Phy, Diablo! released through Chicago indie label Monkeytech; each copy included an actual dried cricket affixed to its cover. Additionally, they participated in Mira Records' split 7-inch "Time Expired," alongside Slant 6, Drinking Woman, and Rasto.

Initial recordings

In 1994, the Scissor Girls started recording their debut 10” LP titled From: The Scissor Girls To: The Imaginary Layer On Skeletons for Quinnah Records. The release encountered several setbacks due to Quinnah’s limited financial resources and a pressing plant fire; however, the master tapes were preserved intact. Eventually issued late that year as an expanded 12” LP edition, it featured a limited run of 500 copies pressed on marbled gray vinyl, each accompanied by a hand-drawn fold-out map created by Youssefi. The CD version was distributed by The Making of Americans, a label run by New York City-based queercore duo God is My Co-Pilot. Bikini Kill’s Kathleen Hanna described this album as "blood red math rock."

Changes in lineup

Following the completion of From: The Scissor Girls To: The Imaginary Layer On Skeletons, the band worked on their next LP We People Space with Phantoms. This record marked the final contribution of founding guitarist Sue Anne Zollinger, who left to pursue graduate studies. James Yoo briefly joined as guitarist for a tour but was replaced mid-tour by Kelly Kuvo—a longtime admirer of the band and former roommate of Zollinger. Despite her obligations with other musical projects such as Blackgrass and Dot Dot Dot and her intensive work in video art and public-access television, Kuvo took time off to finish the tour and subsequently became a permanent member. She contributed vocals, songwriting, and guitar to the self-released 7" singles "New Tactical Outline Sec. 1" and "New Tactical Outline Sec. 2" (1995), the Load Records-issued 10" EP S-T-A-T-I-C-L-A-N-D, as well as SG Research Music Videos until the band's dissolution in 1996.

Television appearances

After embarking on their first tour with the revamped lineup, the Scissor Girls aimed to broaden their fan base. Kelly Kuvo produced a music video program titled SG Research 96 for Chicago Cable Access TV, and the band featured on various local Chicago shows such as "Ben Loves Chicago" and the all-ages dance program Chic-a-Go-Go. Since Chic-a-Go-Go required performers to lip-sync, drummer Heather Melowic opted out of participating. Nevertheless, the group performed with a young girl dressed as a cavewoman filling in on drums. Following this appearance, they received an invitation to perform on The Jenny Jones Show, though this opportunity was eventually canceled.

Further releases

In March 1996, with Kuvo handling guitar duties, the Scissor Girls unveiled their debut EP, the Load Records 10" entitled "So That You Can Start to See What S-T-A-T-I-C-L-A-N-D," co-produced by Tom Smith and Jim O'Rourke. Concurrently, they secured the release of their second album, We People Space with Phantoms, which had been recorded in October 1994 featuring original guitarist Sue Anne Zollinger but remained unreleased until then. Atavistic Records released this LP on April 16, 1996. Subsequently, Atavistic extended a contract offer for two more albums; however, Kuvo's name was omitted from this agreement. Both Youssefi and Melowic signed the contract, while Kuvo continued to perform and record independently despite not being formally signed.

Breakup

In 1996, with commitments to Atavistic in place, Youssefi, Melowic, and Kuvo began work on their third LP but never completed it. After laying down drum tracks, Melowic departed to pursue further education, ultimately earning a PhD. Kuvo left following her guitar recordings, leaving Azita to finalize bass parts solo. This unfinished album remains unreleased. The Scissor Girls dissolved in October 1996 without fulfilling their two-album contract; instead, Atavistic issued a singles compilation titled "Here Is the 'Is-Not'," released in April 1997 as the band's final offering.

After the Scissor Girls

Following the group's dissolution, Azita Youssefi briefly formed Bride of No No before embarking on a solo career under the name "Azita," focusing on more melodic piano-driven works that contrasted with the experimental noise style of the Scissor Girls.

During her final year with The Scissor Girls, Melowic joined Chicago’s no-wave supergroup Lake of Dracula, providing drums alongside prominent musicians including Flying Luttenbachers’ Weasel Walter and vocalists Marlon Magas and Al Johnson. The ensemble disbanded in 1997 when Melowic left to study virology at the University of Illinois, eventually earning a Ph.D. in biochemistry. She now teaches high school Chemistry in New Jersey.

Kelly Kuvo obtained an MA in Studio Art and Art Therapy from New York University and relocated to Brooklyn, where she co-founded Sweet Thunder of Niagara Falls with artists such as Jodie McCann and Gavilan Rayna Russom. Kuvo has contributed freelance articles to publications including Index, Roctober, and Vice, and produced a DVD retrospective of The Scissor Girls released by Savage Land Records in 2011. She continues to collaborate on projects spanning art, video, literature, and music and has twice hosted The Bubblegum Music Achievement Awards Ceremony in Los Angeles. Presently, Kuvo resides in Venice Beach, California, where she sells her creations at an Artists & Fleas booth after retiring from teaching art and technology.

Original guitarist SueAnne Zollinger earned a Ph.D. in biology and neuroscience, specializing in sound production and vocal learning.

Personnel

  • Azita Youssefi — Bass, vocals
  • Heather Melowic — Drums
  • Sue Anne Zollinger — Guitar (1991–1994)
  • Kelly Kuvo — Guitar (1994–1996)

Singles

  • "Hey Diablo!" 7" (MonkeyTech, 1993)
  • "New Tactical Outline Sec. 1" 7" (SG Research, 1995)
  • "New Tactical Outline Sec. 2" 7" (SG Research, 1995)

EPs

  • So That You Can Start To See What S-T-A-T-I-C-L-A-N-D 10” (Load, 1996)

Albums

Video

  • SG DVD 2004 DVD-R (Limited edition of 30 copies; two-hour video compilation released by Kelly Kuvo, 2004)
  • THE SGs ARE DEAD, LONG LIVE THE SGs DVD (Two-hour video compilation issued by Savage Land Records, 2011)

External links

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