Very sad news arrived in the underground Rock-n-Roll world last evening. Kim Shattuck has passed away at the age of 56 after a two year battle with ALS.
Kim started her career in the 1980s as the bassist in the California garage rock band the Pandoras. After the Pandoras split she formed the Muffs in the early 1990s. The Muffs recorded singles for legendary labels Sub Pop and Sympathy for the Record Industry before signing to Warner Brothers and releasing their self-titled album in 1993.
Along with six albums with the Muffs (and a seventh which was already scheduled to be released later this month), Kim also worked with bands like NOFX, the Dollyrots and Bowling With Soup and had a recent project with former Muffs member Melanie Vammen called the Coolies.
In 2013, Kim was chosen to be the bassist in the Pixies replacing Kim Deal. She was asked to leave the band later that same year after stage diving into the audience at a gig. In an interview following her dismissal she commented: “When I got offstage, the manager told me not to do that again. I said, ‘Really, for my own safety?’ And he said, ‘No, because the Pixies don’t do that.’”
Kim was both a sweetheart and a badass rocker. Her raspy voice which was responsible for some of the greatest screams in rock-n-roll, blaring and joyful way of playing guitar and a knack for writing some super catchy hooks will be dearly missed by many.
