The title seems overly specific but, as people say, “it’s weird that it happened twice” (that I know of). I literally mean what I said, though: there are two rock bands that are among my favorites overall, and they had female singers, but released only one album and then disbanded. And to this day I can’t get over it.
The first one was Dejafuse. They are Dutch and the singer, Nienke de Jong, was also the singer of the gothic rock band Autumn (which still exists, but with another formation). That’s the only reason I know her name. I have no idea who the other members were because they came and went and there’s almost no record of them ever existing, except for their last.fm page linking to a dead website and an incomplete MySpace page.
But holy shit, they were good.
If you want to listen, though, you have to search for videos uploaded to YouTube 10+ years ago, as they aren’t in any streaming service and neither on Bandcamp. The only way to find their album is to sail the high seas, or be lucky enough to find their CD somewhere in the used market.
In any case, their whole album is one of those that’s completely cohesive, where every song is perfect. I have literally no words to describe how it was to listen to this for the first time, and then again, and again, and again, and see no fault. My favorite track is this one, which is such a perfect mix of rock instrumentation and vocal performance, with that added spice of raw expression. The sections, the build-ups, the riffs, the quick and simple solo on the break… oof. That’s all *chef’s kiss*.
It’s so good that even a low-quality recording of one of their performances shows how much energy and fun they used to have on stage.
You can see the band really was on the same page, performance and musically-wise. It’s awesome. Too bad they apparently completely disappeared. From time to time I try searching for something and the only things I find are more and more old links going dead.
The second band was Slipping Tongue from New Zealand. Unlike Dejafuse, they had a mix of rock/metal influences in their songs, but what’s so tasty about their album is that every instrument has its own role inside the song, always doing something different that just fits with whatever is going on. They have such talent and musicality to mix and match styles, it’s just incredible.
Also just like Dejafuse, their whole album is a masterpiece. My favorite song is this one.
Luckily they also have another official music video for another song.
Even luckier that, after they disbanded, the singer released all of their songs for free on Facebook and, now, it’s possible to grab the album on Bandcamp also for free.
I know that the members went on to play in other bands and that the singer, Jenny Skulander, helped found Devilskin, but it’s not the same thing. It’s a great band, and she’s a great singer, but the composition style is different. The Slipping Tongue sound doesn’t exist anymore.
Alas, these are two of the greatest female-led bands that never were. The internet is perennial, and it’s rare nowadays to find people who have heard of them, which is absolutely soul-crushing. They were doing something right musically, in my opinion, and even though there was no guarantee they would keep same level of quality or stay in the same genre/style — or even find commercial success — it’s a bit painful to think they are mostly forgotten now, alive only in a few places and in my mind.