The Breeders

The Breeders are an American alternative rock band formed in 1990 by Kim Deal of the Pixies and Tanya Donelly of Throwing Muses. The band has experienced a number of lineup changes; Kim Deal has been the band's sole continual member. Their first album, Pod (1990), though not commercially successful, received wide critical acclaim. The Breeders' most successful album, Last Splash (1993), is best known for the hit single "Cannonball".

History

Formation

The Breeders' history began when Kim Deal, then bassist of the Pixies, began writing new material while the Pixies were touring Surfer Rosa in Europe with Throwing Muses. As neither band had plans in the immediate future, Deal discussed possible side projects with Throwing Muses guitarist Tanya Donelly. They recruited Carrie Bradley, violinist and vocalist in Boston band Ed's Redeeming Qualities, and recorded a short demo tape. Tracks on the demo tape included early versions of "Lime House", "Doe" and "Only in 3's".

With the help of three different drummers; David Narcizo, Mickey Bones, Carl Haarer and bassist Ray Halliday, Kim and Tanya completed their demo tape and subsequently played one show at The Rathskeller in Boston. They were not called the Breeders at this point, but were billed as "Boston Girl Super-Group". The band sent the tape to the English independent record label 4AD because both the Pixies and Throwing Muses were signed to the label. Upon hearing the tape, 4AD head Ivo Watts-Russell remarked "This is absolutely magical, beautiful stuff."

The Breeders (disambiguation)

The Breeders might refer to the following:

1989 California medfly attack

In 1989, a sudden invasion of medflies (Mediterranean fruit flies) descended on California and began devastating crops. Scientists were puzzled and said that the sudden appearance of the insects "defies logic", and some speculated "biological terrorists" were responsible. Analysis suggested there is no doubt that an outside hand played a role in the dense infestation.

A person or group calling itself "The Breeders" took responsibility for the attack, as financial retaliation for the environmental damage caused by the state's Malathion aerial spraying; the group's members were never identified. Subsequently, three months after "The Breeders" announced the medfly release, the state ended its decade-long Malathion program and sought alternate ways to handle destructive insects.

Background

California is the world's fifth largest supplier of food and agriculture commodities. According to the California Department of Food and Agriculture, "California agriculture is nearly a $36.6 billion dollar industry that generates $100 billion in related economic activity." The state’s agricultural sales first exceeded $30 billion in 2004, Since 1975, California had seen small annual infestations of the medfly, typically ascribing their appearance to the casual shipping of fruit, and visits, between relatives and friends in California and Hawaii.