Veruca Salt was formed alongside the friendship of Louise Post and Nina Gordon. Introduced by Gordon's good friend, actress Lili Taylor, Gordon and Post quickly bonded and formed what is now known as Veruca Salt. Originally, the band was an Indigo Girls-inspired acoustic act, but the women quickly realized this wasn't their sound. They quickly enlisted bass player Steve Lack and eventually Gordon's brother Jim Shapiro joined as a drummer, even though he originally was just drumming as a favor to his sister.
Veruca Salt released a self-funded demo tape and shopped it to labels, and began to play a handful of small club shows. The buzz around the band grew furiously, and after only a few live gigs, the band was signed to Minty Fresh Records and began recording with producer Brad Wood. At the time Brad was popular due to having recently produced Liz Phair's critically acclaimed Exile in Guyville.
The band released an orange 7" single for the song "Seether" to radio. "Seether" was a bratty, distorted alt-rocker about an angry and misunderstood woman. Compared to the rest of Veruca Salt's material, "Seether" was very pop, so much so that Gordon said that when she wrote it, she didn't think the rest of the band would like it. They sent "Seether" to radio, as it was the most radio-friendly song they had written and the reaction was unexpectedly positive. Unfortunately, the album wasn't complete and they found themselves rushing to complete the album, before "Seether" lost its radio momentum. It ended up peaking at #8 on the Modern Rock charts.
Geffen Records signed the band after an intense label bidding war and American Thighs was released October 25, 1994. It peaked on the Billboard Top 100 at 69 and was certified Gold. The follow-up single "All Hail Me" failed to chart Top 40 on Modern Rock, and the last single from the album, "Number One Blind", written by Gordon, did better than the previous single at 20 on Modern Rock chart, but nowhere near as well as "Seether". Gordon and Post were unhappy with the song's video, and it was pulled after airing fewer than five times on MTV.
To support this album, Veruca Salt opened for such acts as Hole, Live and PJ Harvey, as well as their own headlining club tour.
The band released an EP in 1996 titled Blow It Out Your Ass It's Veruca Salt to tide fans over until their next album.
After touring for American Thighs, Gordon and Post entered the studio with Bob Rock to record their second album. They were inspired to work with Bob after hearing Metallica's "Enter Sandman" on the loud-system before a Veruca Salt concert at an outdoor music festival.
Eight Arms to Hold You, which was released February 11, 1997 on Geffen Records, proved to be a difficult and dividing album. Some fans of American Thighs were disappointed by the polished, hard-rock and distinctively Bob Rock production, in comparison to the laidback indie buzz-bin vibe of American Thighs. The new album garnered mixed reviews from music critics as well. Band members have since admitted that this album was difficult for the band, and the recording process was extremely tense. However, Eight Arms to Hold You sold well due to the success of the first single "Volcano Girls", written by Gordon. It was a catchy, power-pop tantrum that matched "Seether"'s success, peaking at #8 on the Modern Rock charts. This album, however, didn't have longevity, and despite peaking higher (Billboard Top 100 at 55) than American Thighs, sales dropped off drastically when the second single "Shutterbug" failed to chart despite a high budget video and Saturday Night Live performance, as well as other promotion. Three more singles were sent to radio ("The Morning Sad", "Straight" and "Benjamin") but none of them did well enough to warrant a video. However, the Gordon-penned "Benjamin" was released internationally as the third and last commercial single from the album despite having no video and no promotion. "Benjamin" also failed to chart. Shapiro left the band soon after the release of Eight Arms and was replaced by Stacy Jones (of Letters to Cleo and now American Hi-Fi). Jones toured with the band on the Eight Arms tour, but never recorded with them.
Veruca Salt toured extensively for Eight Arms to Hold You, opening for Bush as well as a lengthy international headlining club tour.
Nina Gordon left Veruca Salt in early 1998 amid rumors of stolen boyfriends and physical altercations with bandmate Louise Post. Post, now the only original band member, recruited a new band, consisting of Stephen Fitzpatrick (guitar), Suzanne Sokol (bass) and Jimmy Madla (drums), and continued to record and perform under the Veruca Salt moniker. The new band signed with Beyond Records. The first album with the new lineup was 2000's Resolver.
December 2002 saw the release of both Resolver and lead single "Born Entertainer", in Australia through Embryo Records / MGM. Following the release of "Born Entertainer" Embryo Records / MGM released the single "Officially Dead" which contained newly recorded tracks as well as a remix of 'the Same Person. The band toured Australia, including the "Splendour in the Grass" festival alongside bands such as Placebo and Coldplay. 'Yeah Man' was released as a radio only single.
After planning to take some time to step away from the music industry the band once again toured and performed at some festival shows in Australia. The tour took in the capital cities as well as performances at both the "Falls Festival" and the newly created Southbound festival in Perth. The band completed the 2 week tour and upon arrival back in the United States performed a show at the iconic "Viper Room". The band debuted the tracks 'Blissful Queen' and 'Circular Trend' live, both would end up on the album "IV"
2005 saw another couple of line-up changes with Sokol and Madla leaving, being replaced by Solomon Snyder on bass and Michael Miley on drums for the recording of the EP Lords of Sounds and Lesser Things (LOSALT). The band then went on tour as Post, Fitzpatrick, drummer Kellii Scott and bassist Nicole Fiorentino. LOSALT was released and sold independently at the bands shows and via the website and included six new songs. The title of the EP is an extract from Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God. This preluded the full length album, "IV", released September 2006 and accompanied by a US tour. The lead single "So Weird" was released to radio at the end of October 2006.
They recorded a cover of Neil Young's song "Burned" for a 2007 Breast Cancer Benefit album due for release in October 2007. The band became inactive sometime after that, announcing in 2012 that they had entered an indefinite hiatus.
In 2013, the original lineup of the band reunited. In 2014, the band released the single "The Museum of Broken Relationships." and went on a tour of the United States and Australia. The band's first album in nine years, "Ghost Notes", was released in July 2015.
All Dressed Up
Veruca Salt Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm the one for you, you're the one for me
Don't you see
The love I've got is the love you need
Don't you see
I'm all dressed up
To be what you want
To be what you want me to be
I'm all dressed up
All dressed up, all dressed up
Don't you see, don't you see
The infinite possibilities
Don't you need, don't you need
The kind of love that I need
Don't you see me, don't you see me
I'm all dressed up
To be what you want me to be
I'm all dressed up
To be what you taught me to be
I'm all dressed up
All messed up, all messed up
You don't even notice me
Moving you like a ton of glaciers
You don't even notice me
Soothing you like a long lost sister
You don't even care
No you don't even care
All dressed up
With no place to go
But home, but home
I'm all dressed up
To be what you want me to be
I'm all dressed up
To be what you want me to be
I'm all dressed up
All dressed up, all dressed up
You don't even comfort me
And carry on with the will of samson
You don't even comfort me
You keep your faith and you keep your phantoms
And you don't even care
No you don't even care
All dressed up still there's something wrong
I'm all dressed up and you're just a song
I'm all dressed up you're forever gone everlong
You don't even care
No you don't even care
You don't even care
No you don't even care
You don't even care
No you don't even care
You don't even care
No you don't even care
You don't even care
No you don't even care
You don't even care
In this song, the singer is expressing her love for someone and her willingness to be whatever they want her to be. She believes that she is the perfect match for this person and that her love is what they need. She pleads with them to see her and the possibilities that their love could bring. The repetition of "Don't you see" emphasizes her longing for their recognition and acknowledgement.
The singer describes herself as being "all dressed up" to be what the person wants her to be. This could be interpreted as her putting on a façade to fit their expectations and desires. She even recognizes that she is "all messed up" from trying to conform to their expectations. Despite her efforts, the person doesn't seem to notice her or care for her the way she does for them.
The final lines of the song reveal that the singer feels like she's stuck in this unrequited love. She's "all dressed up with no place to go," indicating that she doesn't know where to go from here. The person she loves is "forever gone everlong," leaving her feeling lost and alone.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't you see
Do you not perceive?
I'm the one for you, you're the one for me
We are meant to be together
The love I've got is the love you need
I have the love that will fulfill your needs
I'm all dressed up
I have put on a facade
To be what you want Me to be I'm all dressed up
I have molded myself to fit your desires
To be what you want me to be
To be the person you've always wanted
All dressed up, all dressed up
Wearing the mask of perfection
The infinite possibilities
There are endless options for us
The kind of love that I need
The love that will sustain me
Don't you see me, don't you see me
Do you not acknowledge my existence?
To be what you taught me to be
I have become what you have instructed me to be
All messed up, all messed up
I have lost myself in your expectations
Moving you like a ton of glaciers
I am making an impact on you as large and slow as a glacier
Soothing you like a long lost sister
I am comforting you as a family member would
You don't even care
You don't show any concern
All dressed up with no place to go
I have put on a facade but no purpose for it
But home, but home
The only place where I can truly be myself
You keep your faith and you keep your phantoms
You hold onto your beliefs and imaginary creations
All dressed up still there's something wrong
I am not content despite my facade
I'm all dressed up and you're just a song
I have put on a facade and you are just part of the performance
You don't even care
You don't show any concern
Lyrics © WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
ITCHYisVegeta
I just started listening to this album reciently, after not giving it a chance. I found it to be much better than I thought it could ever be. Even though I think Nina is a better singer, Louise is a much better music writer.
Chappie
Why is there all the pictures from Carrie? Was it in the soundtrack? I don't remember
Jasonss778
the song is from the year 2000 so it wasn't in the movie.
Ink Pen
This sounds terrible...