The Nymphs
The Nymphs

THE REVIEW

The Nymphs were one of those bands that were formed and burned out at the speed of light, formed in 1985 and disbanded after just one excellent self-titled album in 1991. Born in psychedelic Los Angeles, where contemporaries like Jane's Addiction of the golden era also played, the group was led by Inger Lorre, a magnetic frontwoman. Their sound could be described as a sort of female Alice In Chains (if you can define it that way), with gritty and acidic sounds, desperate ballads, and a very unique voice.

After their debut in '91, the EP "A Practical Guide to Astral Projection" and an appearance in the movie "Bad Influence," they disbanded in 1992, and Lorre resurfaced only a few years later with her good solo album "Transcendental Medication." A pity because their only album was just the right amount of explosive and heralded equally great things for the future of the band. This self-titled work encapsulated everything fermenting with the grunge "phenomenon," starting with Nirvana, who released "Nevermind" the same year, from Mother Love Bone to Pearl Jam, Alice In Chains to Hole of the frenemy Courtney Love. The singer later stated that it was only a convenience friendship on Cobain's widow's part; in fact, in her solo album, she wrote a piece dedicated to Love titled "She's not your friend."

"Nymphs" holds many sounds and atmospheres familiar to those who loved (and still love) that scene. The album even includes a cameo by Iggy Pop on the track "Supersonic." The quintessential ballads are "Imitating angel" and "Sad and damned," while among the heavier tracks, "Two cats," "Just one happy day," "Wasting my days," and "Revolt" boast splendid noise walls. The album was released by Geffen Records, but despite being under contract with this major label, it remains another of those albums never reprinted, not to mention a work that deserves the podium as a symbolic album of that decade alongside many more famous ones. The reasons for their breakup were due to the group's wild behavior and the fact that Inger Lorre was kicked out by her bandmates after she refused to go on stage during a live show in Miami as the opening act for Peter Murphy. The frontwoman also accused Geffen of poorly promoting the album. Recently, Inger has reformed the band for some live performances but with a completely different lineup. Unfortunately, there have been less pleasant news too, as at the beginning of 2011, the original drummer Alex Krist tragically passed away in a car accident.

Recommended listening: bring this forgotten gem back to life among your records!