Ooooooooooooh, Ooooooooh...: Petra Haden
Posted by: zac | From: July 16, 2004
Nineties rock block week continues with a brief exploration of the career of Los Angeles' pocket violinist, Miss Petra Haden. One of the three triplet daughters of Ornette Coleman bassist Charlie Haden, Petra began her career in earnest in the early Nineties when she and her sister Rachel began working with high school friend Anna Warnoker. the trio added a drummer and an incredibly shitty band name--that dog. (note: lower case, with punctuation)--and soon became a "staple" on the L.A. "club circuit" as hangers-on to the burgeoning alternative rock movement.
Amidst the early nineties Alt-rock buying frenzy, that dog. somehow got themselves a contract with powerhouse DGC in time to release their self-titled debut in 1994. An average, formulaic alternative rock band, that dog. hold a special place in my personal affections, and though I can't in good conscience really offer an affirmation of their recorded works, I think it's fair to say that the elements of the band most worth noting can nearly all be attributed to the doubly-powerful Haden sisters. Between their mutual vocal harmony explorations and Petra's signature violin playing, that dog. was elevated just above mediocrity--a C+ average best evidenced on the band's final album, the throughly alright Retreat From the Sun.
With that dog. still kicking, Petra began to become quite a commodity all over Los Angeles--as most string players in rock bands seem to--moonlighting for the likes of Mike Watt, Beck, Spain (her brother's band), and Green Day. It was at about this time that Petra also began working with Weezer bassist Matt Sharp on his Numan-ian side-project the Rentals--a partnership that would evolve into that band's celebrated Return of the Rentals, and that would continue loosely through the band's demise.
About a year before that dog.'s break-up, Petra compiled a tape of her wordless, largely a cappella four track experiments--tapes she had been making since she was a girl--into an album called Imaginaryland. A marvel of interlaced vocal harmony, the record is comprised almost entirely of wordless singing--in places emulating specific instruments, otherwise just hollow consonants. it's a joyful, willfully naive experiment, and the result, though extremely narrow, are haunting enough for me to pine for the record for a number of years.
With the demise of that dog. in 1997, Haden's future was in a sort of upheaval--a listlessness that lead to her briefly relocating to Portland. Along with Accordionist Miss Murgatroid, Haden began work on Bella Neurox, expanding the ideas she began on three years earlier on Imaginaryland. With considerably fuller instrumentation, Neurox was largely a collaborative effort, and though not quite as pure as her solo debut, it was a welcomed maturation.
In 2000, Petra was struck by a car while crossing the street in Venicean accident that sent her briefly into a coma that woke to phenomenal medical bills for the uninsured musician. An outpouring of support from all of her rich ass friends (including Beck, Tenacious D, Stephen Perkins, The GoGos, Vincent Gallo, Sean Lennon, and Weezer) soothed a bit of the costs, and soon she was back on her feet.
In the time since, she's recorded an as-yet-unreleased, fully a cappella version of the Who's landmark The Who Sell Out (which, despite feeling a little like Rockapella or whatever, is actually pretty awesome), a collaborative record with Bill Frisell (with a bunch of cheesy shit like a cover of Coldplay's "Yellow"), and a follow-up to Bella Neurox called Hearts & Daggers--also unreleased.
Her studio credits are impossibly long and rarely reliable, but you can usually bet that her contribution to anything she touches will likely be the most memorable moments therein. like a fine seasoning salt (and bad metaphors), Petra just makes everything better--like you'd expect from the Greatest Band Of All Time.
At one point that dog. was in band therapy, which is the most ludicrous and awesome thing I can imagine.
Petra also managed to look pretty good in a Hot Dog on a Stick uniform (from that video whose song I can't recall), a feat I would have never thought possible.
Posted by: Marisa at July 16, 2004 10:58 AM
to be fair, i think that anna's greatest contribution to that dog. was looking pretty good in that Hot Dog outfit.
Posted by: zac at July 16, 2004 11:33 AM
i'm also really intrigued about the ramifications of being late for band therapy. "sorry dudes, late for band therapy."
Posted by: zac at July 16, 2004 11:39 AM
That video was for Old Timer of the self-titled john, or jam.
I think that my first that dog. experience was that video on Beavis and Butthead.. yeah.. totally.
Posted by: Jona at July 19, 2004 6:35 PM
that anna is quite fine looking. i saw her in passing at an elliott smith show a few years ago, and although she's tiny, she's really stunning.
ps, that dog. FOREVAR.
Posted by: mike at August 10, 2004 1:32 AM
The set she and her sisters did at South By Southwest in March as the Haden Triplets was stunningly beautiful. It's criminal that they don't have a CD available.
Posted by: Greg at August 27, 2004 12:26 AM
I loved that dog. One of my good friends and I, while at Pfeiffer University, in Meisenheimer, NC, really clicked because of our common interest in them.
I appreciate, more than words can say, your insight and wisdom as far as band history goes. I am going to do my best to purchase "Imaginaryland." I listened to some cuts from Amazon and it sounds blissful.
Thanks, Elias Hickman
Winston-Salem, NC
Posted by: Elias Hickman at June 20, 2005 2:15 PM
I saw that dog open for weezer back when the blue album was just out. I have had a crush on anna waronker ever since. Minniapolis is thier best song.
Posted by: eightatoms at July 11, 2005 7:12 AM
Back when I was a member of DEADBOLT (Scariest Band In The World) we played with "that dog" along with Beck, diggit and other assorted performers at the Whiskey for a radio benefit. Sadly, I didn't have enough money on me to buy a print of the show (the entire thing, like all whiskey performances, was videotaped with multiple cameras). If anyone has a copy of that, I would love to talk. My personal attraction was for Petra but I thought Anna's one piece 60's minidress was very y. Too bad the wrong was wearing it!
Posted by: Bryce at August 16, 2005 10:21 AM
Since my last entry was done on a library computer, it appears certain words were censored (who knows why since they weren't dirty!) Anyways, too bad the wrong was wearing the "cute" sixties minidress. Petra, you're a beautiful Too bad the press has never seen that! Let's record sometime!
Posted by: Bryce at August 16, 2005 10:26 AM
I FOUND FABULOUSNESS IN THE PLAYING OF YOUR SONGS AND I BELIEVE KISSING FRISELL ON THE CHEEK SOMETIMES EASES THE YEARNING FELT BY YOUR PLEASANT PRESENTS AND YOUR SINCE OF KINDNESS
LETTING THE COMMUNITY HIDE YOUR SISTERS FOR AN ETERNITY LIKE THE HIDDEN MADUSA OF GREEK TALES YOUR NAME ROCK IS PETRA
I AM SURE YOU SISTER AS PRIZE WOULD MATCH AN IMAGINATION AS YOUR
AS ALWAYS FOREVER YOURS
Posted by: TANYA at April 11, 2007 6:01 PM
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I will one day surely do a gboat about that dog. So in. Love that band. I'm putting totally crushed out about retreat from the sun these days. love you pennington, because you sure know how to put something down while pumping it up.
Posted by: Steve Schroeder at July 16, 2004 10:47 AM