Restless with her subordinate role in Boston, USA guitar band Pixies, bass player Kim Deal (b. Kimberly Ann Deal, 10 June 1961, Dayton, Ohio, USA; guitar, vocals, synthesizers) forged this spin-off project with Throwing Muses guitarist Tanya Donelly (b. 14 July 1966, Newport, Rhode Island, USA). The name Breeders, a derogatory term used by homosexuals to describe heterosexuals, had been the name of a band Deal fronted prior to the Pixies, with her twin sister Kelley. Kim and Donelly initially undertook sessions in 1988 with Throwing Muses drummer David Narcizo, but these sessions were abandoned. Now joined by bass player Josephine Wiggs (b. 26 February 1965, Letchworth, Hertfordshire, England) from British act the Perfect Disaster, the Breeders recorded Pod in Edinburgh during a Pixies tour of Britain. Britt Walford from Kentucky hardcore band Slint, drummed on the record under the pseudonym Shannon Doughton. Distinctively "engineered" by Steve Albini, the tenor of this 1990 release leant towards Deal's work with her parent band with plangent guitars, menacing melodies and uncompromised lyrics. The harrowing "Hellbound" took the view of an aborted foetus, "Iris" graphically detailed menstruation, while their reading of the Beatles' "Happiness Is A Warm Gun" expressed the tension only implicit in the original.
A four-track EP, Safari, which featured a thrilling version of the Who's "So Sad About Us', followed. Here the band was augmented by Deal's twin sister Kelley Deal (b. 10 June 1961, Dayton, Ohio, USA; guitar/vocals), but despite critical and commercial acclaim, the Breeders remained a sideline. Following the Pixies' bitter split in the wake of Trompe Le Monde, Kim Deal rekindled the band in 1993. Tanya Donelly had already left the Throwing Muses to form Belly and was thus unavailable. However, Wiggs, who left Perfect Disaster during the Breeders" first inception, abandoned Honey Tongue, a band she formed with Jon Mattock from Spiritualized, to rejoin the Deal twins. Jim MacPherson (b. James Carl MacPherson, 23 June 1966, Dayton, Ohio, USA; drums), formerly of the Raging Mantras, completed the line-up featured on Last Splash. Less abrasive than its predecessor, this engaging set revealed Kim Deal's growing maturation as a songwriter, encompassing grunge-styled instrumentals ("Roi"), ballads ("Do You Love Me Now?") and guitar pop (the single "Cannonball").
The future of the band was in doubt during 1995 while Kelley Deal underwent a drug rehabilitation programme. She departed and worked with the Last Hard Men in late 1996, before forming the Kelley Deal 6000. Wiggs also left to concentrate on the Josephine Wiggs Experience. Kim Deal, meanwhile, formed the Amps, who released Pacer in October 1995. A short Breeders tour in December 1996 featured the Amps line-up (Deal, Nate Farley, Luis Lerma) and violinist Carrie Bradley. The new Breeders line-up, with MacPherson replaced by Brainiac drummer, Tyler Trent, entered the studio to work on an abortive new album. Rumours of Kim Deal reuniting with the original band continued to circulate in the 90s, although the only material to surface was a cover version, "Collage", recorded for The Mod Squad soundtrack.
The Deal sisters recruited new personnel to play several live shows in 2001, and returned to the studio with Steve Albini, guitarist Richard Presley, bass player Mando Lopez and drummer Jose Medeles to record the third Breeders studio album, Title TK. This lo-fi 2002 release was aimed squarely at the band's pre-Last Splash audience, and while not altogether successful was certainly far from the embarrassment it could have been. The band continued to make occasional compilation and soundtrack appearances in the next few years.
