Kelley Deal
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Kelley Deal | |
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 Deal playing with the Kelley Deal 6000 in 2004.
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Kelley Deal |
| Born | June 10, 1961 |
| Origin | Dayton, Ohio, U.S. |
| Genre(s) | Alternative rock |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals Bass Lead Guitar Violin |
| Years active | 1992 — present |
| Label(s) | 4AD Nice Records |
| Associated acts | The Breeders The Kelley Deal 6000 The Last Hard Men |
| Website | kelleydeal.net |
Kelley Deal (born June 10, 1961, in Dayton, Ohio, United States) is the lead guitarist of The Breeders and the identical twin sister of musician Kim Deal.
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[edit] Early days
Kelley Deal was born eleven minutes before her sister (she has quipped that therefore "everything Kim knows, she learned from me"[citation needed]). The Deal twins grew up in Huber Heights, a suburb of Dayton, Ohio. Kelley began recreational drug use at the age of thirteen. The sisters formed the first embryonic incarnation of The Breeders while in their late teens with Kim on acoustic guitar, Kelley on bass, and both girls singing. They both had an opportunity to join the Pixies in the mid-'80s, with Kim on bass and Kelley on drums; Kim followed through while Kelley opted to move to California instead. While Kim made her mark as an indie musician, Kelley lived a more subdued life of computer programming.
[edit] The Breeders
In 1989, Kim and Tanya Donelly (lead guitarist of Throwing Muses) formed the next incarnation of The Breeders. Kim played rhythm guitar and sang, Tanya played lead guitar, Josephine Wiggs played bass, and from Kentucky, Britt Walford (credited as Shannon Doughton) from the band Slint took care of the drums. Kelley was asked to play on the band's debut, Pod, but she didn't manage to get time off from work.
In 1992, Kelley joined the band as third guitarist, even though she didn't really know how to play. The Safari EP was the first recording Kelley appeared on. Tanya left The Breeders to form Belly a little after the release of Safari, as did Brit. Kim suggested Kelley should be the band's new drummer. After Kelley insisted on lead guitar, Kim gave her a crash course on all the songs in the band's set. Kelley picked up quickly and learned all the lead parts on Pod and the new parts on the album they were about to record, Last Splash. A new drummer from Dayton, Jim MacPherson, joined them. Last Splash was released in 1993, the band toured opening for Nirvana and also got a slot on the Lollapalooza tour in 1994.
[edit] Rehab and rebirth
Kelley had been addicted to heroin since her teens, and was also heavily alcoholic during her time as a technical analyst. In 1995, she was involved in a drug bust when she accepted a package of heroin delivered (by mail) to her house and was arrested for possession. Her family admitted her to rehabilitation, and the judge accepted the rehab in lieu of a prison sentence.[1]
Following drug rehab, Kelley started the Kelley Deal 6000. The band was originally to be called Solid State; however, another band had rights to that name. In rehab, Kelley became inspired and wrote her own songs, which appear in her band's set. Kelley was living in St. Paul, Minnesota, while Kim was back home in Dayton playing in her new band The Amps.
Kelley also joined the Last Hard Men with Skid Row singer Sebastian Bach, Smashing Pumpkins drummer Jimmy Chamberlin, and Jimmy Flemion of The Frogs. Kelley played bass for them and they recorded an album in 1997 but it was not released until 2001 because they could not find a label that would release it.
Despite that, The Kelley Deal 6000 did release two albums on Kelley's Nice Records label, Go To The Sugar Altar in 1996 and Boom! Boom! Boom! in 1997.
Kelley teamed back up with Kim in the late '90s and began recording new demos for the Breeders. With a new line up, they released Title TK in 2002. Title TK features three songs recorded in 1999, where the Deal sisters played all the instruments.
[edit] Other collaborations and projects
Kelley turned to knitting as part of an effort to stay sober. She specializes in knitted handbags, which she sells on her official website. She appeared on the DIY Network knitting show, Knitty Gritty (episode DKNG-401, Rock Star Bag). On the show, Kelley showed step by step instructions on how to make a 'felted handbag with Swiss darning design.' These instructions can be found on DIY Network's website.
Kelley co-wrote and played guitar on Magnetophone's "Kel's Vintage Thought".
She has also done duets with Kris Kristofferson and Supersuckers.
[edit] Present day
Kelley will release a book of her knitting handbag patterns in 2008, called Bags That Rock: Knitting on the Road (alternate title: Bags That Rock: Knitting on the Road with Kelley Deal). The Breeders are also releasing their fourth album, Mountain Battles in April 2008.
[edit] References
- ^ Costa, Maddy: The addict family, The Age, 24 May 2002.
[edit] External links
- KelleyDeal.net (official website)
- Rock Star Bag, Knitty Gritty (DIY Network)
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