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All-star N.Y.C. blues-punk combo
Boss Hog was helmed by the husband-and-wife team of singer
Cristina Martinez and singer/guitarist
Jon Spencer, who'd previously teamed up in the legendary cult band
Pussy Galore. The duo formed
Boss Hog to fill a last-minute cancellation at the famed CBGB, earning instant notoriety when
Martinez performed their debut show au naturel; guitarists
Jerry Teel and Kurt Wolf, bassist
Pete Shore, and drummer Charlie Ondras completed the lineup for 1989's EP Drinkin', Lechin' & Lyin'. In the wake of 1990's Cold Hands,
Spencer formed
the Blues Explosion, forcing
Boss Hog onto the back burner; by the time the group returned in 1993 with Girl +, only
Martinez and
Spencer remained from the original lineup, with ex-
Swan Jens Jürgensen assuming bass duties and Hollis Queens joining on drums. The record's success in indie circles resulted in a deal with major-label Geffen that yielded a self-titled 1995 LP; little was heard from
Boss Hog throughout the remainder of the decade (although
Spencer and
Martinez had a baby), but in early 2000 the group finally resurfaced with
Whiteout, featuring ex-Goats keyboardist
Mark Boyce.
Following the release of Girl Positive Plus in 2001,
Boss Hog was quiet on the recording front (despite playing occasional live shows), but
Martinez appeared as a guest artist on several albums by
the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, and
Martinez and
Spencer collaborated on a 2010 album with
Solex,
Amsterdam Throwdown King Street Showdown! While
Boss Hog played a handful of shows in 2008, the band spent the better part of 16 years on hiatus as
Martinez looked after her son and worked in the magazine publishing industry. That changed in 2016, when
Martinez and
Spencer announced that the group had two new recordings ready for release.
Boss Hog -- whose lineup now featured
Martinez,
Spencer, Queens, Jürgensen, and Mickey Finn -- released an EP, Brood Star, in July 2016 via In the Red Records, with a short West Coast tour booked in support. A full-length album,
Brood X, appeared in March 2017, and
Boss Hog set out on a nationwide tour. ~ Jason Ankeny