Pretty on the Inside (CD - 1991)

Recorded at Musicbox Studios, Los Angeles, California.

Although Hole would eventually score major hits with more pop-accessible material (1994's LIVE THROUGH THIS and 1998's CELEBRITY SKIN), the band's early work, such as its 1991 debut, PRETTY ON THE INSIDE, was more raw and punk- and hardcore-based. Along with L7, Babes in Toyland, and Bikini Kill, Hole was part of the early-'90s "riot grrrl" movement, which merged abrasive music with feminist lyrics and served as a much-needed antidote to the party-hearty late-'80s glam metal scene. Co-produced by Sonic Youth bassist Kim Gordon and alternative knob twirler Don Fleming, PRETTY ON THE INSIDE was a venomous and cacophonous debut.

Although Courtney Love would eventually pen some of alternative rock's best-known songs of the '90s ("Doll Parts," "Celebrity Skin," etc.), she was still honing her craft on PRETTY ON THE INSIDE. Songs such as "Teenage Whore" were snarling confrontational rants, while such other frenzy-filled compositions as "Garbage Man," "Good Sister/Bad Sister," and the title track easily kept the rage at a boiling point. PRETTY ON THE INSIDE would be the one and only album to feature Hole's original lineup, which consisted of Love on vocals/guitar, Eric Erlandson on guitar, Jill Emery on bass, and Caroline Rue on drums. minimize