The Breeders life and biography

The Breeders is a band formed in 1988 by Kim Deal of the Pixies and Tanya Donelly of Throwing Muses. The band has experienced a number of line-up changes; the current line-up consists of Kim Deal (lead vocals and guitar), her twin sister Kelley Deal (guitar and backing vocals), Jose Medeles (drums and percussion), Mando Lopez (bass guitar) Todd the Fox (guitar) and Cheryl Lyndsey (guitar); Kim Deal has been the band's sole continual member.

Their first album, Pod (1990), received critical acclaim but was not commercially successful. The Breeders' most successful album, 1993's Last Splash, produced the hit single "Cannonball". The band's fourth album, Mountain Battles, was released in 2008.

Following Pod, The Breeders returned to their various projects. The Pixies released Bossanova in 1990 and Trompe le Monde in 1991, but by the end of 1991 were becoming less active. Deal, denied the opportunity to contribute material to a Pixies album, wrote new material for a Breeders release and recruited Kelley Deal on guitar. The band recorded the Safari EP in late 1991. After the recording of Safari, Donelly left The Breeders to form Belly. The Pixies became inactive in mid-1992, so Deal continued to write new material for The Breeders. By this time, Walford had become more reluctant to be identified as part of The Breeders[citation needed], and was replaced by drummer Jim MacPherson. The band had become a full-time outfit,and opened for Nirvana on their 1992 European tour.

With the break-up of the Pixies in January 1993, The Breeders returned to Refraze Recording Studio in Dayton Ohio to record their second album. Last Splash appeared in August 1993 to widespread acclaim and commercial success. Three singles were released from the album, including "Cannonball", which made it to #2 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. In 1993, the band contributed the track "Iris" to the AIDS-Benefit Album No Alternative produced by the Red Hot Organization. As a result, The Breeders' visibility increased: 1994 saw Last Splash receive a platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America and the band secured a prime spot on the Lollapalooza tour.

In 1996 Kim Deal reclaimed the Breeders name and played several California dates; the lineup was essentially The Amps augmented by violinist Carrie Bradley. The band made another unsuccessful attempt at recording a third studio album in 1997. Kelley Deal rejoined the band the following year and wrote and recorded songs with her sister, although the only material released during this period was a cover of The Three Degrees' take on James Gang's "Collage," recorded for The Mod Squad soundtrack in 1999.

The Breeders were also recruited, in early 2002, to perform in an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. They were approached by the production staff, after they had been performing the show's theme, written by Nerf Herder, as a regular part of their concert set. The episode is entitled "Him", and aired November 5, 2002.

The Breeders contributed the track "Wicked Little Town: Hedwig Version" to the 2003 Hedwig and the Angry Inch tribute album, "Wig in a Box".

Mountain Battles was released in April 2008 on 4AD. It features Kim and Kelley Deal, Jose Medeles and Mando Lopez. They had returned to Refraze Recording Studio in Dayton, Ohio to record and mix the majority of the tracks as a sort of a "Full Circle" where the Last Splash was recorded. That October they played a benefit concert in Cincinnati, Ohio, for then-presidential candidate Barack Obama.

The Breeders' third EP, Fate to Fatal was released on April 21, 2009. It contains a Bob Marley cover ("Chances Are") and a song with vocals by Mark Lanegan. The title track was recorded at The Fortress Studios, London, by The Go! Team producer Gareth Parton. The music video featured the Arch Rival Roller Girls, a St. Louis roller derby league.

The Breeders were curators of an edition of the All Tomorrow's Parties festival taking place in May 2009 in Minehead, England. They played the ATP New York 2010 music festival in Monticello, New York, in September 2010.

Discography:
-Pod (1990)
-Safari EP (1992)
-Last Splash (1993)
- Head to Toe EP (1994)
-Title TK (2002)
-Mountain Battles (2008)
-Fate to Fatal EP (2009)

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