1983–1986: Formation, first EP and The Doghouse Cassette, debut album Throwing Muses were formed in 1983 by
Kristin Hersh and her half-sister
Tanya Donelly, who were both attending
Rogers High School. in which they were accompanied by bass player Elaine Adamedes and drummer Becca Blumen, who later were replaced by Leslie Langston and David Narcizo, respectively. Kristin recalls, "I signed with them because [owner]
Ivo [Watts-Russell] was funny and goofy, and that was about it." In 1986, they released their
self-titled debut album produced by
Gil Norton. Hersh has written the memoir
Rat Girl about the year the band moved to Boston, was signed, and recorded their first album.
1987–1991: further EPs, House Tornado, Hunkpapa and The Real Ramona In 1987, Throwing Muses released two
EPs,
Chains Changed and
The Fat Skier, released July 6. These were followed in 1988 by their second
studio album,
House Tornado, produced by
Gary Smith and engineered by
Paul Kolderie; it was recorded at
Fort Apache Studios in
Cambridge, Massachusetts. The album was released internationally on the 4AD label, except in the United States, where it was released by
Sire Records. Sire used a different album cover for its release, as the label was putting a strong promotional push behind the band, and label executives favored a picture of the band over the collage featured on the 4AD release. Both
House Tornado and
the Fat Skier were combined on a single
CD in a later release. The band embarked on a tour of the UK, supported by the
Pixies, to support
House Tornado. The song "Counting Backwards" from the album was released as a single. Shortly after the album's release in 1991, Tanya Donelly left the Muses to form
Belly, taking Abong with her.
University gave the band their first national U.S. hit, "
Bright Yellow Gun". The album was favorably reviewed. Throwing Muses released their seventh album,
Limbo, which was followed by a tour. However, the band disbanded in 1997 as
Kristin Hersh went on to continue her solo career.
2002–present: Reformation – Throwing Muses, Purgatory, etc. In March 2003, Throwing Muses came back with their eighth album,
Throwing Muses, which also saw the return of Tanya Donelly who provided backing vocals on the album. A greatest hits compilation titled
Anthology was released in 2011. The band's ninth album,
Purgatory / Paradise was released on October 29, 2013 in the UK and November 11 in the US. In early 2014, the band toured a few U.S. cities, with Donelly opening for the East Coast dates. The first single from their new album
Sun Racket, titled "Dark Blue", was released in February 2020. The album was released on Fire Records on September 4, 2020. The new album titled
Moonlight Concessions released in March 2025 again on Fire Records was preceded by three singles. The album was well received by critics. == Personnel ==