Roll, for their successful absorption of extension to the Nirvana/Pearl Jam side of things, and Rag - well, we'll get to that.
Named after a character in kid's book Charlie & The Chocolate Factory, Veruca Salt is fronted by two tiny women singer/guitarists, Nina Gordon and Louise Post. According to their first person bios, the women, before even meeting, were both kinda into bands like the Beach Boys and AC/DC, and at a certain point kinda got depressed and started writing songs even though they kinda didn't know how to play guitar. Which songs they would've never played to anybody except for when they met, played them to each other and then decided to recruit bassist Steve Lack and drummer Jim Shapiro, (even though they were kinda guys)... Made record, American Thighs, sold half a million, stopped in Toronto.
On stage, with the rhythm section faded behind personal curtains of bouncing hair, the women led a show that was the musical equivalent of spending an evening with the slackette next door.
During album samples such as Forsythia and Celebrate You, both leaned their slight frames back and forth, apparently counterbalancing the weight of the crotch-slung Gibsons they thrashed. Periodically, a greasy head or two would meet a mike and, together or in turn, they'd puncture the thump and grind with child-size voices.
This contrast, pit-a-pat vocals meeting instrument's outboard growl, was surprising every time it happened.
Between the songs, these voices, particularly Post's, would mutter things like, "If there are any girls out there who are getting crushed, and really need some room, they can come right up here on stage. We really need their support up here." A shout from the crowd would then prompt bassist Lack to emerge from behind his hair and inquire "Did someone say 'What about guys?'"
"Deal with it, man."
Then, with maybe an intro from Post like "This is a love song" or maybe not, the band would launch into another number with more lyrics which were completely indecipherable but delivered on top of enough instrumental fury to convey that irony was intended. And delivered by those voices again...
Hail, hail Rag'n'Roll.
Bottom picture caption: LOUISE POST... From the band Veruca Salt, at their Phoenix concert Wednesday night.