L7

Often lumped in with the Seattle scene of the early '90s, raucous punk rock band L7 emerged from the streets of Los Angeles in 1985. Owing as much to the hard-charging metal of Motörhead as the no-frills punk of Ramones and Frightwig, the band's sound was a collision of throat-shredding vocals, crunchy riffs, chugging rhythms, and a ferocious attitude that would influence a range of bands from Nirvana to the Distillers. After their first two releases, they made a break into the mainstream with 1992's Butch Vig-produced Bricks Are Heavy, which garnered L7 critical acclaim and a Top 10 single ("Pretend We're Dead"). At the end of the decade, following the release of their sixth effort, Slap-Happy, they entered an extended hiatus, returning two decades later with 2019's Scatter the Rats.