# Alt/Punk/Indie Supergroups **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 31, 2005, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854 "2005-12-31T15:39:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2005, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/1 "2005-12-31T15:39:29Z")
I was thinking of starting this thread for awhile, since I could think of only one or two alternative/punk/indie supergroups. While mulling starting this, I thought of many: – Queens of the Stone Age – Me First and the Gimme Gimmes – Temple of the Dog – Dashboard Confessional I don’t actually know the provenance of the first three bands, so you all can debate whether they truly are supergroups. As for the last, Chris Carrabba formed a duo, after initial success, with a former member of Sunny Day Real Estate, and then took in Scott Schoenbeck, formerly of The Promise Ring as a recording and touring bassist (if not a full-fledged band member.) So, should this count as a supergroup, even though the other members were inducted after it attained popularity? Are there other supergroups in alternative music? (Velvet Revolver doesn’t count, as while GnR were influenced by punk, they were definitely rock/metal.) ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2005, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/2 "2005-12-31T15:48:21Z")
**Electronic** fit the bill for a genuine supergroup. The group included Bernard Sumner (New Order), Neil Tennant (Pet Shop Boys), Johnny Marr (The Smiths) and Karl Bartos (Kraftwerk). The singles _Get The Message_ and _Getting Away With It_ were excellent. I’m not sure what you define as “alt/punk/indie”, though. **Audioslave** may also get a few nominations in this thread (Cornell and Morello), also depending on your definition. ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2005, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/3 "2005-12-31T16:31:00Z")
Zwan included members of the Smashing Pumpkins, A Perfect Circle, Slint and Chavez (the last two, while obscure, are fairly well-regarded among critics). ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2005, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/4 "2005-12-31T16:36:30Z")
And more: **Me Me Me**. Short lived supergroup including Alex James (Blur), Stephen Duffy (various bands) and Justin Welch (Elastica). Only managed one single. **Gorillaz**. Another genuine candidate: Damon Albarn (Blur), Dan Nakamura (The Automator), Miho Hatori (Cibo Matto), Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz (Tom Tom Club and Talking Heads), Jamie Hewlett (artist), Kid Koala (turntablist) and Del tha Funkee Homosapien. ---
**Author:** ![EvilHamsterOnCrack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3ab097/32.png) [@EvilHamsterOnCrack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilHamsterOnCrack)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2005, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/5 "2005-12-31T17:45:39Z")
If you want to go with not so famous groups, for ska you can go with Streetlight Manifesto. At first, formed by Tomas Kalnoky of Catch22 made up of former members of Catch 22 and members of the former group One Cool Guy, both New Jersey Ska legends. After a while, people left and joined, but they picked up members of other prominent ska groups such as Edna’s Goldfish and others. ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2005, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/6 "2005-12-31T20:51:35Z")
> [@EvilHamsterOnCrack](#): > > If you want to go with not so famous groups, for ska you can go with Streetlight Manifesto. At first, formed by Tomas Kalnoky of Catch22 made up of former members of Catch 22 and members of the former group One Cool Guy, both New Jersey Ska legends. After a while, people left and joined, but they picked up members of other prominent ska groups such as Edna’s Goldfish and others. The New York Ska-Jazz Ensemble is another ska supergroup, with members of the Toasters, the Scofflaws, the Slackers, Hepcat, and possibly others. I’m not sure if they’re still around, though. It’s nice to see another ska fan on the SDMB, even though I’m not familiar with Streetlight Manifesto. What do they sound like? ---
**Author:** ![tremorviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2005, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/7 "2005-12-31T21:01:54Z")
How about **the New Pornographers**? Former members of obscure alt bands like Zumpano, Superconducter, Limblifter, plus Neko Case. BTW, their latest album, Twin Cinema, is on a lot of critics “best of” lists and totally rocks. It’s all I’ve been listening too all week and last night I ran out and got their two previous albums. Totally worth checking out if you like indie pop… ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2005, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/8 "2005-12-31T21:40:19Z")
**Garbage** was formed by three established producers, the best known of which was Butch Vig (Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins), plus Shirley Manson (ex-Angelfish and -Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie). The mysterious band **The Network** is rumored to contain members of Green Day and Devo. **The Foo Fighters** originally had Nivana’s Dave Grohl and Pat Smear, plus the rhythm section from Sunny Day Real Estate. **A Perfect Circle** has members from Tool, the Vandals, and Failure. **The Atomic Bitchwax** is a side project of Monster Magnet’s Ed Mundell. The bassist is from Godspeed. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2005, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/9 "2005-12-31T22:19:14Z")
**Danny and Dusty** was made up of members of Green on Red, the Dream Syndicate, and the Long Ryders. They only made [one](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000003IWA/ref=m_art_li_1/102-4049704-4854521?s=music&v=glance&n=5174) album, but damn, it was a great one. ---
**Author:** ![threeorange](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@threeorange](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/threeorange)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2005, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/10 "2005-12-31T22:43:31Z")
**The Breeders** were formed by Kim Deal of the **Pixies** , Tanya Donnelly of **Throwing Muses** , and Josephine Wiggs of **Perfect Disaster**. ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2005, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/11 "2005-12-31T22:49:22Z")
> [@threeorange](#): > > **The Breeders** were formed by Kim Deal of the **Pixies** , Tanya Donnelly of **Throwing Muses** , and Josephine Wiggs of **Perfect Disaster**. With ex-Slint drummer Britt Walford drumming under a pseudonym. ---
**Author:** ![Tarrsk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/97f17d/32.png) [@Tarrsk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tarrsk)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2006, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/12 "2006-01-01T02:11:44Z")
> [@Big Bad Voodoo Lou](#): > > The New York Ska-Jazz Ensemble is another ska supergroup, with members of the Toasters, the Scofflaws, the Slackers, Hepcat, and possibly others. I’m not sure if they’re still around, though. > > It’s nice to see another ska fan on the SDMB, even though I’m not familiar with Streetlight Manifesto. What do they sound like? Streetlight Manifesto are basically the original Catch-22 reincarnated. Very fast ska-punk, with some of the best horn lines around and Tomas Kalnoky’s trademark vocals. If you dug the first Catch-22 record, then you’ll like Streetlight. ---
**Author:** ![Interrobang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/interrobang/32/17463_2.png) [@Interrobang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Interrobang)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2006, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/13 "2006-01-01T07:44:44Z")
> [@tremorviolet](#): > > How about **the New Pornographers**? Former members of obscure alt bands like Zumpano, Superconducter, Limblifter, plus Neko Case. For what it’s worth, chief Pornographer Carl Newman disavows the supergroup label. As do Broken Social Scene, another Canadian indie rock supergroup, containing members of KC Accidental, Feist, Apostle of Hustle, the Dears, Metric, the Weakerthans, and more. No, I hadn’t heard of most of these bands before looking it up. And yes, Broken Social Scene also claims not to be a supergroup. Must be a Canadian modesty thing. ---
**Author:** ![easy\_e](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/eb8c5e/32.png) [@easy\_e](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/easy_e)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/14 "2006-01-02T22:30:47Z")
Postal Service has Ben Gibbard from Death Cab for Cutie, Jenny Lewis from Rilo Kiley, Jimmy Tamborello from Dntel and Figurine, and Jen Wood who was in Tattle Tale (though I lose my indie cred when I reveal I’ve only heard Gibbard and Lewis’s work). ---
**Author:** ![Indygrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@Indygrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indygrrl)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/15 "2006-01-02T23:12:29Z")
QOTSA is metal. Sorry, I just couldn’t let it be called Alt/Punk, or Indie. _shudders_ ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/16 "2006-01-02T23:28:28Z")
I think “alternative” is such an all-encompassing label now that you shouldn’t be worried or offended. Pretty much anything aside from straight-ahead “classic rock” or the most obvious metal (such as Metallica or Iron Maiden) can safely be gathered under the “alternative” umbrella. And you can’t tell me QOTSA are anything like old-school metal bands like those. ---
**Author:** ![threeorange](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@threeorange](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/threeorange)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/17 "2006-01-03T01:23:57Z")
**The Rentals** , formed by Matt Sharp of **Weezer** , Anna Waronker and Petra Haden of **That Dog** , and some other guy from some other band. ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/18 "2006-01-03T01:36:20Z")
> [@threeorange](#): > > **The Rentals** , formed by Matt Sharp of **Weezer** , Anna Waronker and Petra Haden of **That Dog** , and some other guy from some other band. Isn’t Maya Rudolph from Saturday Night Live in the Rentals as well? ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/19 "2006-01-03T02:07:44Z")
[URL=http://www.campfreddy.net/main/bio.html]Camp Freddy[/ URL] is kind of an ever rotating Supergroup, with a cast of West Coast Music Legends. > [@Billy Morrisson](#): > > “CAMP FREDDY is not a band, but it is also way more than a jam session…CAMP FREDDY is an ‘Occasional Happening’, a freak of (Hollywood) nature. What happens when we get together and play is anyone’s guess. Surprise guests, lounge singers turned heavy rock superstars, some of the world’s greatest guitarists playing three chord punk tunes. I mean, who knows what will happen at the next show? It’s not about money, or managers, or agents, but about motivation and fun…What we all got into the business for originally. We play some of the greatest rock and roll songs ever written, have a real laugh doing it, and invite artists that we respect to play them with us. It’s the real spirit of Rock and Roll.” --Billy Morrison, Guitarist / Camp Freddy ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854/20 "2006-01-03T02:08:52Z")
[Camp Freddy](http://www.campfreddy.net/main/bio.html) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alt-punk-indie-supergroups/337854.md?page=2)