People seemed deeply insulted': how cult 90s band Rachel's took chamber music out of the classical world

"If you were an American indie rock act in the mid-90s, life could be strange. After the breakthroughs of Nirvana and Green Day the music industry spent several frenzied years trying to refine the formula for rock success. Labels indiscriminately hoovered up guitar bands in the post-grunge glut. But the newfound interest in alternative music also buoyed some unexpected acts. There were a lot of people looking to independent labels for the next Nirvana, says Christian Frederickson, violist with the Louisville chamber music act Rachel's."

"Centred on guitarist/bassist Jason Noble, pianist Rachel Grimes and Frederickson, Rachel's also sometimes incorporated clarinet, cello, vibraphone, samples and dancers as they crafted graceful, shapeshifting music that could, loosely, be described as post-rock or a precursor to the neo-classical phenomenon led by Nils Frahm and the label Erased Tapes. Despite their vast remove from the feedback-drenched clangour of grunge or punk, their 1995 debut, Handwriting, became an unexpected success."

"Nevertheless, classical purists back then were not always so enthusiastic. There were a lot of people who seemed deeply insulted that we'd put bass and drums with piano and strings and tried to pull it off with a serious face, Grimes says with a smile. In reality, Rachel's were far from rabble-rousers but they were a product of a fertile punk scene."

Major labels chased post-grunge hits after Nirvana and Green Day, hoovering up guitar bands while renewed interest in alternative music created opportunities for unconventional acts. Rachel's, centred on guitarist/bassist Jason Noble, pianist Rachel Grimes and violist Christian Frederickson, blended piano, strings, clarinet, cello, vibraphone, samples, drums and dancers to craft graceful, shapeshifting music often labeled post-rock or a precursor to neo-classical acts like Nils Frahm. The 1995 debut Handwriting achieved unexpected indie success and enduring demand, prompting a 30th-anniversary repressing. Classical purists sometimes objected to the fusion, while Louisville's punk-rooted cultural scene shaped the band's identity.

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