Hole 乐队主唱兼吉他手 Courtney Love 声名狼藉的口碑一度成为了 Hole 乐队的免费宣传工具,加上乐队本身不错的音乐素质, Hole 一跃成为了近年来女性为核心的摇滚团体的领军人物之一。 Hole 在 90 年代初期是一支非常极端的另类摇滚乐队,他们嘈杂凶猛的摇滚乐一直持续到第 2 张专辑《 Live Through This 》才得以改观。这张专辑中,乐队开始有所收敛,在旋律和可听性下了一番功夫,而且还较完整地保留了乐队一贯的好勇斗狠的作风,以至于在专辑中较为平缓的部分也同样肆虐着这种尖锐的态度。
Erlandson 和 Love 最终又吸收了贝司手 Jill Emery 和鼓手 Caroline Rue ,他们和制作人 Kim Gordon ( Sonic Youth 贝司手)一起完成了他们的第一张专辑 Pretty on the Inside。当时这张专辑获得了不错的回应。特别是在英国受到了广泛的欢迎。
在 1992 年, Courtney Love 和当时名噪一时的Nirvana 乐队的主唱 Kurt Cobain 结了婚。在之后的几个月中,这对夫妇几乎成为了当时摇滚乐圈子中的天王和天后,但这钟良好的状况并没有维持多久。不久, Cobain 开始吸毒,夫妻双方开始就孩子的抚养权问题展开了一场夫妻大战,Cobain 指责 Love 在怀孕期间吸食毒品,但当时 Love 极力否认她曾经用过任何的毒品,直到后来她才承认她曾经在怀孕期间吸食了少量的毒品。到1993年,这对夫妻之间的大战才以他们、以及乐队一起录制新专辑而告终。 1993 年年中,Love 和 Erlandson 重新组合了Hole乐队,这次加入了新的贝司手 Kristen M. Pfaff 和鼓手 Patty Schemel 。 Hole 当时也计划发行他们的第一张主流唱片公司发行的唱片 Live Through This ,这张唱片在风格上更加流行化。但是媒介对这张专辑的期待值非常高,有的人甚至称这张唱片为当年最优秀的一张专辑。但不幸的事情也随着这张专辑的发行而发生。在这张专辑发行后不到四天,警察在这对夫妇西亚图的加中发现了 Kurt Cobain 的尸体。当发现的时候他已经去世了三天,死亡原因是吞枪自尽。 Cobain 死后不到两个月, Kristen M. Pfaff 的尸体也在她的家中被发现,死亡原因是吸毒过量。经过了两个月调整, Hole 重新开始了他们的巡回,替补的贝司手是 Melissa Auf Der Maur 。
Courtney Love 在组建 Hole 之前曾经参加过许多乐队,比如 Babes In Toyland 和 Faith No More 。 1989 年,她和吉他手 Erlandson 组建了 Hole ,并在音速青年乐队贝司手 Kim Gordon 帮助下,在 1991 年推出了首张专辑《 Pretty on the Inside 》。随后, Love 和涅磐乐队主唱 Cobain 结婚,从此陷入了各种猜测、诋毁、攻击中而无暇顾及她的乐队。 1993 年, Love 和乐队创作完成更加流行的专辑《 Live Through This 》。这张专辑发行前 4 天,在他们西雅图的寓所中, Cobain 的尸体被意外发现。到年底的时候,《 Live Through This 》得到了一致的好评,并被滚石和“ the Village Voice ” ( 乡村之声 ) 等著名业内媒体评选为当年最佳的专辑之一。 1995 年,该专辑顺利成为金唱片。 1998 年,乐队完成了最新专辑《 Celebrity Skin 》。
Throughout Holes career, vocalist/guitarist Courtney Loves notorious public image has overshadowed her bands music. In their original incarnation, Hole was one of the noisiest, most abrasive alternative bands performing in the early 90s. By the time of their second album, 1994s Live Through This, the band had smoothed out many of their rougher edges, also adding more melodies and hooks to their songwriting. Through both versions of Hole, Loves combative, assaultive persona permeated the groups music and lyrics, giving the band a tense, unpredictable edge even at their quietest moments. Love formed Hole in Los Angeles in 1989, recruiting guitarist Eric Erlandson through a newspaper ad. Love had played with numerous bands before Hole, including early versions of both Babes in Toyland and Faith No More. Erlandson and Love eventually drafted bassist Jill Emery and drummer Caroline Rue into the band, recording their first album with producer Kim Gordon, the bassist for Sonic Youth. The violent and uncompromising Pretty on the Inside, Holes debut record, was released on Caroline Records in 1991 to numerous positive reviews, especially in the British weekly music press.
In early 1992, Courtney Love married Kurt Cobain, the lead singer/songwriter of Nirvana. For a couple of months, the couple was the king and queen of the new rock world; soon, that world came crashing in. Cobain became addicted to heroin and the couple fought to keep custody of their baby after a piece in Vanity Fair accused Love of shooting heroin while pregnant, charges which she vehemently denied at the time; she would later admit that she had taken small quantities of the drug. By 1993, their private world had settled down somewhat, with Cobain and Love recording new albums with their respective bands.
Halfway through 1993, Love reassembled Hole with Erlandson, adding bassist Kristen M. Pfaff and drummer Patty Schemel. Hole was set to release their first major-label album, the more pop-oriented Live Through This, on DGC Records in April of 1994. Advance word on the album was overwhelmingly positive, with many critics calling it one of the best records of the year. Four days before the album was released, Kurt Cobains body was discovered in the couples Seattle home; he had died of a self-inflicted shotgun wound three days before.
Two months after Cobains death, Kristen M. Pfaff was found dead of a heroin overdose in a Seattle apartment, with rumors swirling that Love (understandably distraught over the recent tragedies) was abusing the drug as well. Two months later, Hole began touring again, with bassist Melissa Auf Der Maur taking Pfaffs place. Doll Parts was released as a single late in 1994, climbing into the Top 60 by the beginning of 1995. Live Through This topped many critics polls at the end of the year, including Rolling Stone and the Village Voice. Shortly thereafter, Hole toured with the fifth Lollapalooza tour, staying on the road for the remainder of the year.
Despite all the hardships, the album became the groups commercial breakthrough, spawning several MTV/radio hits and being certified platinum early the following year. The band went on an extended hiatus afterwards, during which time many assumed the band had broken up when it appeared that Love was focusing more on her burgeoning acting career (Feeling Minnesota, The People vs. Larry Flynt) than music. To satisfy their fans demand for new music, two rarities collections were issued — the 1995 EP Ask for It and the 1997 import My Body, the Hand Grenade.
After numerous delays, the band finally regrouped to work on a follow-up to Live Through This, with longtime friend Billy Corgan signed on to be a musical consultant. The album was finally issued in September of 1998 to favorable reviews, but Schemel left the band (for reasons unknown) around the same time. Former drummer for New York City alt-rockers Shift, Samantha Maloney, filled the vacant slot as the group embarked on their first substantial tour in two years. By the tours completion, Auf Der Maur had left to join the Smashing Pumpkins, while Maloney eventually served as a stand-in drummer for Mötley Crüe. Even though Skin was certified platinum shortly after its release, Love was unhappy with the way the album was handled by her record company and felt stifled by her contract, eventually bringing a lawsuit against the Universal Music Group trying to terminate her contract (she still owes five more albums under her current agreement), so she can release music via the Internet.
The future of Hole became even more uncertain in early 2001, when Love announced plans to launch a new outfit, called Bastard. Signing with Epitaph, the band consisted of Love, former Veruca Salt guitarist Louise Post, former Rockit Girl bassist Gina Crosley, and to the delight of longtime Hole fans, Schemel is back on drums. In typical Love style, this lineup eventually dissolved into only her and Schemel and the group essentially broke up before it even began. Despite the lack of any substancial project, Love finally announced the end of Hole in May of 2002. Unlike her often bitter press situations, she claimed that the situation was friendly and she would still remain friends with the previous members of the band.