Geek

Really, I should be titling this post "Jenny Toomey" as it's more about her and her label, Simple Minds, than it is one of her many bands.

Geek was an early project, formed in the late 80s and disbanded in '90. Herasure, their cassette-only debut album, is bolt of indie rock that seems to have gotten stuck during a transfiguration from X's folkier moments in punk into D.C. riot grrrl.

The second and final album, Hammer, is brighter and more charismatic, more of a ride than the first. Poppier, too.



After Geek, there was Slack, a group which, with the help of Dan Littleton, previously of the Hated and shortly thereafter of Ida, on guitars and backing vocals, pushed things deeper folk-imbued alternative sound.



A little before this, Toomey started Tsunami, a group that eventually evolved into something with a certain singer-songwriter flavor, but that began as perhaps her most indie act yet. A refreshing counterpoint to the otherwise rather macho world of D.C. punk.



There's plenty more to cover with Toomey, but I'll end by pointing out Liquorice, effectively Slack with a different name and a 4AD deal. Gentler and plainer than much of her other work, their one and only full-length, Listening Cap, is a sweet rock record with a little bit of a twang, a little bit of an acoustic sensitivity, a little bit of an emo tension.