Violent Femmes is an American folk-punk band best known for their Platinum-selling self-titled 1983 debut.
∙ In 1981, Violent Femmes played their first big gig, when The Pretenders invited them to open their Milwaukee show after spotting them busking on the sidewalk outside the theater.
∙ Though widely acclaimed by critics upon its 1983 release, the band’s self-titled debut album didn’t go Gold until 1987, and it took until 1991 to pass the million-selling mark.
∙ They had two Top 10 hits on Billboard’s Modern Rock charts: 1989’s “Nightmares” and 1991’s “American Music.”
∙ “Blister in the Sun” was featured prominently in the 1997 film Grosse Pointe Blank.
∙ Gnarls Barkley covered “Gone Daddy Gone” on the smash 2006 album St. Elsewhere.
∙ We Can Do Anything, the band’s 2016 reunion album, reached No. 9 on Billboard’s Independent Albums chart.