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We Actually Have Björk to Thank for This Genre-Defining Alt-Rock Band From the 1990s

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29.05.2026

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We Actually Have Björk to Thank for This Genre-Defining Alt-Rock Band From the 1990s

How drunken dancing at a Sugarcubes show in 1988 led to The Breeders’ first album.

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This is a story about The Breeders, which can be traced back to the Pixies and Throwing Muses, which can then be traced back to the late-80s Icelandic alt-rock band The Sugarcubes, one of Björk’s early groups. Going by this logic, it’s possible to claim that Björk is tangentially responsible for The Breeders.

But there’s more to it than that. And actually, the story is simpler than one might expect. The Breeders emerged in 1990 with their debut album Pod, after Kim Deal of The Pixies and Tanya Donelly of Throwing Muses formed the group the year before.

It began when The Pixies and Throwing Muses went on a joint tour in 1988. When the bands returned to the States after touring Europe, Deal and Donelly went to see The Sugarcubes play in Boston. Here’s where Björk comes in, you might be........

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