Biography
Best known for unleashing the 1995 grunge staple “Possum Kingdom,” the Toadies from Fort Worth carved out their place amid the alternative rock surge of the nineties through guitar-driven songs that blended crunch with memorable hooks and offered a distinctive twist on hard rock. Drawing from Pixies-inspired melodies while keeping their guitars both forceful and tuneful, the band broke through via the major-label debut Rubberneck, issued in 1995. Label disputes, however, delayed the markedly heavier follow-up Hell Below/Stars Above until 2001, at which point the group disbanded. They resurfaced in 2008 and began releasing material at a steady clip on their independent Kirtland Records imprint; although later efforts adopted a somewhat sleeker approach, the core sound that first earned them fans remained largely intact, aside from the intimate, partly unplugged tone of 2015’s Heretics and the ramped-up volume and guitar intensity that defined 2017’s The Lower Side of Uptown.
The Toadies came together in 1989 and spent their earliest days performing around Fort Worth, Texas. Personnel shifted frequently from the outset, leaving frontman Todd Lewis—a musician shaped by the Pixies—as the central figure who handled songwriting and production for the band’s initial recordings. After circulating homemade tapes and adding drummer Mark Reznicek, they put out the official EP Pleather in 1993. The release quickly drew interest from Interscope Records, which signed the group shortly thereafter.
With major-label backing, the Toadies tracked Rubberneck alongside producers Tom Rothrock and Rob Schnapf, veterans of Beck’s platinum-certified Mellow Gold. Issued in August 1994, the album achieved gold status the next year and platinum certification by the close of 1996. Much of its traction stemmed from “Possum Kingdom,” a stark track built on a 7/8 time signature that nonetheless cracked the Top 40. With new guitarist Clark Vogeler in place, the band enjoyed a stretch of high-visibility gigs alongside Bush, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and the Butthole Surfers.
Crafting a suitable successor to Rubberneck proved difficult. Returning to the studio in 1997, they completed a set of songs slated for a 1998 release under the title Feeler, yet Interscope rejected the material and shelved the project, leading the frustrated band to step away for the remainder of the decade. Activity resumed in 2001 as they salvaged select tracks from the Feeler sessions and added fresh songs. The long-delayed second album, Hell Below/Stars Above, finally appeared with continued production from Rothrock and Schnapf plus a guest piano performance by Elliott Smith on the title track. During the ensuing national tour, longtime bassist Lisa Umbarger chose to depart, prompting the rest of the members to follow suit. Best of Toadies: Live from Paradise surfaced soon after the split.
Although occasional reunion shows occurred in subsequent years, the Toadies officially reconvened in 2008 when Lewis, Reznicek, and Vogeler regrouped to record No Deliverance. Bassist Doni Blair, whose earlier band Hagfish had emerged from the same Dallas/Fort Worth underground circuit, joined for the tour; one performance was captured for the 2008 live album Rock Show. That same year marked the launch of their annual Dia de los Toadies festival, where the band headlined alongside fellow Southwest acts. In 2010 they revived the long-shelved Feeler project, re-recording the songs after Interscope declined to license the original versions and releasing the results that summer. New material followed with 2012’s Play. Rock. Music., the semi-acoustic Heretics in 2015, and the harder-edged The Lower Side of Uptown in 2017. A second concert document, Live at Billy Bob’s Texas, arrived in September 2018.
The Toadies came together in 1989 and spent their earliest days performing around Fort Worth, Texas. Personnel shifted frequently from the outset, leaving frontman Todd Lewis—a musician shaped by the Pixies—as the central figure who handled songwriting and production for the band’s initial recordings. After circulating homemade tapes and adding drummer Mark Reznicek, they put out the official EP Pleather in 1993. The release quickly drew interest from Interscope Records, which signed the group shortly thereafter.
With major-label backing, the Toadies tracked Rubberneck alongside producers Tom Rothrock and Rob Schnapf, veterans of Beck’s platinum-certified Mellow Gold. Issued in August 1994, the album achieved gold status the next year and platinum certification by the close of 1996. Much of its traction stemmed from “Possum Kingdom,” a stark track built on a 7/8 time signature that nonetheless cracked the Top 40. With new guitarist Clark Vogeler in place, the band enjoyed a stretch of high-visibility gigs alongside Bush, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and the Butthole Surfers.
Crafting a suitable successor to Rubberneck proved difficult. Returning to the studio in 1997, they completed a set of songs slated for a 1998 release under the title Feeler, yet Interscope rejected the material and shelved the project, leading the frustrated band to step away for the remainder of the decade. Activity resumed in 2001 as they salvaged select tracks from the Feeler sessions and added fresh songs. The long-delayed second album, Hell Below/Stars Above, finally appeared with continued production from Rothrock and Schnapf plus a guest piano performance by Elliott Smith on the title track. During the ensuing national tour, longtime bassist Lisa Umbarger chose to depart, prompting the rest of the members to follow suit. Best of Toadies: Live from Paradise surfaced soon after the split.
Although occasional reunion shows occurred in subsequent years, the Toadies officially reconvened in 2008 when Lewis, Reznicek, and Vogeler regrouped to record No Deliverance. Bassist Doni Blair, whose earlier band Hagfish had emerged from the same Dallas/Fort Worth underground circuit, joined for the tour; one performance was captured for the 2008 live album Rock Show. That same year marked the launch of their annual Dia de los Toadies festival, where the band headlined alongside fellow Southwest acts. In 2010 they revived the long-shelved Feeler project, re-recording the songs after Interscope declined to license the original versions and releasing the results that summer. New material followed with 2012’s Play. Rock. Music., the semi-acoustic Heretics in 2015, and the harder-edged The Lower Side of Uptown in 2017. A second concert document, Live at Billy Bob’s Texas, arrived in September 2018.
Albums
