Picasso Trigger...

Formed in 1989 was the Raleigh, North Carolina set of noise makers Picasso Trigger. It’s kind of surprising to see how little they are brought up whenever there is a mention of Chapel Hill. I guess it could somewhat be in part of them being a love ‘em or hate ‘em type of deal, as they certainly weren’t a band that was for making catchy easy on the ear indie-rock and/or endearing themselves to anyone with their roughly played anger fueled noise.

The band for the most part was vocalist Kathy Poindexter, guitarist Lisa Cooper, and bassist/vocalist Samuel Mintu. They went through more drummers than I care to name. After forming in the late eighties the band had a good six or so year run where they released a handful of singles, an EP titled T’ain’t (1994, Alias), and two full-length albums in ¡Fire in the Hole! (1994, Alias) and Bipolar Cowboy (1995, Alias) before calling it quits sometime around 1995.

Their EP T’ain’t does a fairly good job at capturing the band in a bit more of a rawer light than what their initial full-length ¡Fire in the Hole! did. The guitars are definitely a bit nastier and amped up on it, although it seems Poindexter’s vocals were sacrificed a bit in the mix in the process, but hearing Mintu’s raspy shrieks alongside her more than balance it out. It seems to be considered their best release, however I still think their final full-length Bipolar Cowboy was tops. The album is pretty much a wonderful red hot scorching mess from start to finish. It’s definitely worth anyone’s time that cares to drop the couple dollars or so for the dollar bin price on Amazon Marketplace.

¡Fire in the Hole!:
Picasso Trigger – Bean Pole [MP3]
Picasso Trigger – Queenie [MP3]

T’ain’t:
Picasso Trigger – Red Headed Retard [MP3]

Bipolar Cowboy:
Picasso Trigger – Serve This [MP3]
Picasso Trigger – City Slut Slander [MP3]

For anyone looking to pick up albums by Picasso Trigger, they are all still available on Amazon both used and new. I definitely suggest picking up an album or two if you like what you hear above. In the meantime, enjoy and have a great weekend!