The Slits

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The Slits were an early punk and then post-punk band based in London, formed there in 1976 by members of the groups the Flowers of Romance and the Castrators. The group's early line-up consisted of Ari Up (Ariane Forster) and Palmolive (a.k.a. Paloma Romero, who played briefly with Spizzenergi and later left to join the Raincoats), with Viv Albertine and Tessa Pollitt replacing founding members Kate Korus and Suzy Gutsy.[1] Their 1979 debut album, Cut, has been called one of the defining releases of the post-punk era.[2]

Career

1976–1982

The Slits formed in October 1976 when Ari Up went to a Patti Smith gig at the Hammersmith Odeon in London. After having an argument with her mother, Ari was approached by Palmolive and Kate Korus with the offer to form a band.[3] The next day they had their first rehearsal.

The group supported the Clash[4] on their 1977 White Riot tour along with Buzzcocks, the Jam, the Prefects and Subway Sect.[5] Club performances of the Slits during this period are included in The Punk Rock Movie (1978). In November 1978, the Slits toured with the Clash again on the "Sort it Out Tour" and were joined by the Innocents who opened the shows.[6] Joe Strummer said the group would be "great" with intense gigging.[7]

Palmolive left the band in 1978 and debuted with the Raincoats on 4 January 1979.[8] She was replaced by the drummer Budgie (Peter Clarke), formerly of the Spitfire Boys and later of Siouxsie and the Banshees.[1] With the change of drummer came a change of musical style. The Slits' originally raw, raucous and drum-dominated live sound, as captured on two Peel Sessions in 1977 and 1978, was cleaned up and polished to a more bass-orientated sound with the Budgie line-up, and their new style drew heavily from reggae, dub and world music.

File:The Slits-24.jpg
Ari Up playing with the Slits at the Beat the Blues Festival, Alexandra Palace, 15 June 1980

Their Dennis Bovell-produced debut album Cut was released in September 1979 on Island Records, with Neneh Cherry joining as additional backing vocalist.[1] The album's sleeve art depicted the band naked, except for mud and loincloths.[1] It is often claimed that Palmolive left partly because she did not like the album artwork,[9] including by Palmolive herself,[10] but Viv Albertine has stated that Palmolive had been asked to leave the band several months previously,[11] and she does not appear on the record.

The Slits' sound and attitude became increasingly experimental and avant-garde during the early 1980s, when they formed an alliance with Bristol post-punk band the Pop Group, sharing drummer Bruce Smith and releasing a joint single, "In the Beginning There Was Rhythm / Where There's a Will..." (Y Records). This was followed by an untitled compilation album of mostly homemade demos and live performances from before the release of Cut. The band toured widely and released their second studio album, Return of the Giant Slits, before breaking up in early 1982.[1][9] Ari Up went on to be part of the New Age Steppers.[1]

2005–2010

Ari Up and Tessa Pollitt reformed the band with new members in 2005, as Viv Albertine was unwilling to rejoin, and in 2006 released the EP Revenge of the Killer Slits.[4] The EP featured former Sex Pistols member Paul Cook and former Adam and the Ants members Chris Constantinou and Marco Pirroni as both musicians and co-producers.[12] Cook's daughter Hollie played with the band, singing and playing keyboards. Other members of the reformed band were No (of the Home Office) on guitar, German drummer Anna Schulte, and Adele Wilson on guitar.[13]

The band toured the United States for the first time in twenty-five years during 2006's 'States of Mind' tour, and followed this with tours of Australia and Japan, as well as opening for Sonic Youth at New York's McCarren Park Pool.[14] Adele Wilson and No left the band, to be replaced by American guitarist Michelle Hill. A biography – Typical Girls? The Story of the Slits by Zoë Street Howe was published in the UK by Omnibus Press in July 2009,[15] and the band's third full-length album entitled Trapped Animal was released three months later.[16]

Founding member Ari Up died in Los Angeles in October 2010 at the age of 48.[17] The band's final work, the video for the song "Lazy Slam" from Trapped Animal, was released posthumously according to Ari Up's wishes.[18] A final song, the unreleased 1981 recording "Coulda Woulda Shoulda", was due to be released in early 2011.[19]

Personnel

Members

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Lineups

1976 1976–1978 1978–1980 1980–1982
  • Ari Up – vocals
  • Kate Korus – guitar
  • Suzy Gutsy – bass guitar
  • Palmolive – drums
  • Ari Up – vocals
  • Viv Albertine – guitar
  • Tessa Pollitt – bass guitar
  • Palmolive – drums
  • Ari Up – vocals
  • Viv Albertine – guitar
  • Tessa Pollitt – bass guitar
  • Budgie – drums
  • Ari Up – vocals
  • Viv Albertine – guitar
  • Tessa Pollitt – bass guitar
  • Bruce Smith – drums
1982–2005 2005–2010

Disbanded

  • Ari Up – vocals
  • Hollie Cook – backing vocals
  • No – guitar, backing vocals
  • Adele Wilson – guitar
  • Michelle Hill – guitar
  • Tessa Pollitt – bass guitar
  • Anna Schulte – drums
  • Anna Ozawa – melodica, keyboard

Timeline

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id:backing  value:pink   legend:Backing_vocals
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id:bass     value:blue   legend:Bass
id:drums    value:orange legend:Drums
id:studio   value:black  legend:Studio_album
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at:10/06/2009

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bar:Ari        text:"Ari Up"
bar:Hollie     text:"Hollie Cook"
bar:Kate       text:"Kate Korus"
bar:Viv        text:"Viv Albertine"
bar:NO         text:"NO"
bar:Adele      text:"Adele Wilson"
bar:Michelle   text:"Michelle Hill"
bar:AnnaO      text:"Anna Ozawa"
bar:Suzy       text:"Suzy Gutsy"
bar:Tessa      text:"Tessa Pollitt"
bar:Palmolive  text:"Palmolive"
bar:Budgie     text:"Budgie"
bar:Bruce      text:"Bruce Smith"
bar:AnnaS      text:"Anna Schulte"

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bar:Ari       from:01/01/1976 till:03/31/1982 color:vocals 
bar:Ari       from:03/02/2005 till:end        color:vocals
bar:Kate      from:01/01/1976 till:07/01/1976 color:guitar
bar:Viv       from:07/01/1976 till:03/31/1982 color:guitar
bar:NO        from:03/02/2005 till:end        color:guitar
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bar:Adele     from:03/02/2005 till:end        color:guitar
bar:Michelle  from:03/02/2005 till:end        color:guitar
bar:Suzy      from:01/01/1976 till:07/01/1976 color:bass
bar:Tessa     from:07/01/1976 till:03/31/1982 color:bass
bar:Tessa     from:03/02/2005 till:end        color:bass 
bar:Palmolive from:01/01/1976 till:10/01/1978 color:drums
bar:Budgie    from:10/01/1978 till:09/01/1980 color:drums
bar:Bruce     from:09/01/1980 till:03/31/1982 color:drums
bar:AnnaS     from:03/02/2005 till:end        color:drums
bar:Hollie    from:03/02/2005 till:end        color:backing
bar:AnnaO     from:03/02/2005 till:end        color:keys

</timeline>

Discography

Studio albums

Compilation albums

Singles and EPs

  • "Typical Girls" / "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" (Island (UK) / Antilles (US), September 1979, also issued as a 12-inch EP with additional alternate versions) UK No. 60[22]
  • "In the Beginning There Was Rhythm" (Y, March 1980, split single with the Pop Group)
  • "Man Next Door" / "Man Next Door (version)" (Y, June 1980)
  • "Animal Space" / "Animal Spacier" (Human (UK), 1981, also issued as a 12-inch EP on Human (USA) with different tracks)
  • "Earthbeat" / "Earthdub" / "Begin Again, Rhythm" (CBS, August 1981 (UK), December 1981 (US), 7 inch single with the first 2 tracks, and 12 inch EP with 3 tracks)[1]
  • "American Radio Interview (Winter 1980)" / "Face Dub" (CBS, October 1981, bonus record included with Return of the Giant Slits album, side one plays at 33 rpm)
  • The Peel Sessions (Strange Fruit, February 1987)
  • Revenge of the Killer Slits (2006)[1] 7"/CD Maxi single (Only Lovers Left Alive/EXO)

Documentary

In 2018, a documentary film about the band, Here To Be Heard: The Story of the Slits, was released.[24]

In popular culture

The band’s name appears in the lyrics of the Le Tigre song "Hot Topic".[25]

References

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External links

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Template:The Slits

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  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  2. ↑ Dougan, John. "The Slits: Cut" at AllMusic. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  3. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  4. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  5. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  6. ↑ [1] Template:Dead link
  7. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  8. ↑ Penman, Ian. "The Raincoats Dresden Banks Vincent Units Acklam Hall", New Musical Express, 27 January 1979, p. 43
  9. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  10. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  11. ↑ Clothes, Clothes, Clothes, Music, Music, Music, Boys, Boys, Boys; Viv Albertine; Faber & Faber 2014, p. 205
  12. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  13. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  14. ↑ Slits Set for U.S. Summer Tour Template:Webarchive Pitchfork Media, 6 July 2007.
  15. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  16. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  17. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  18. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  19. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  20. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  21. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  22. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  23. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  24. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  25. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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