The duo formed in
Portland, Oregon, in 1991, After releasing two singles on the local label IMP Records in 1992, they were signed by Sub Pop, who issued the single "Spitfire" in mid-1993, followed that October by their first full-length album,
Manos. Gates provided
backup vocals on
Elliott Smith's "St. Ides Heaven" (from
his self-titled album), as well as on multiple tracks on
Ben Lee's first album,
Grandpaw Would. Plouf did a brief stint in
Team Dresch, and appeared on their first single, "Hand Grenade"; he also played on the
Beck album
One Foot in the Grave. The Spinanes regrouped in 1996 for the release of their second album,
Strand, which was bookended by the singles "Madding" and "Lines and Lines". Elliott Smith, in turn, provides backup vocals, as does
John Moen (of
Dharma Bums and
The Decemberists). Around the same time, Plouf began playing with Built to Spill, but due to that band's signing with
Warner Bros. Records, he was unable to continue with both bands full-time, and in 1997, he made the decision to leave The Spinanes. Gates then relocated to
Chicago, Illinois, reconfigured The Spinanes as a three-piece with bassist
Joanna Bolme and drummer
Jerry Busher, and began work on another album at
Easley McCain Recording in
Memphis, Tennessee. Additional tracks were recorded with John McEntire (of
Tortoise and
The Sea and Cake) at his
Soma Electronic Music Studios, one of which features vocalist
Sam Prekop (also of The Sea and Cake). The resulting album,
Arches and Aisles, was released in June 1998. An album consisting of early Spinanes singles,
Imp Years, came out in 2000. Gates shed the Spinanes moniker in 2001 and released
Ruby Series. ==Discography==