The Breeders Meet the Roller Derby: Behind the Deals' "Fate to Fatal" Video

The Breeders' limited-edition EP Fate to Fatal comes out April 21st, and as Rock Daily reported in our preview, the Deal sisters shot the video for the title track at an usually athletic location: a St. Louis roller derby. Now we're happy to bring you Skate to Fatal, the making-of video that takes you behind the scenes of the harrowing shoot. Click above to hear a glimpse of one of the four tracks that'll appear on the disc (the others include Bob Marley cover "Chances Are," the Mark Lanegan-featuring "The Last Time" and "Pinnacle Hollow") and watch the ladies in action.

So how did the Breeders wind up with skaters in the first place? Here's the story, straight from Kelley Deal:

"When we did Lollaplaooza in 1994, my mom and dad were there in Chicago and they adopted this girl that day" — "Not literally!" shouts Kim Deal — "they found wandering around. Her name is Amy Whited. We saw her again in St. Louis this summer. She's been involved in roller derby, the Arch Rivals. Then in October the Breeders did an Obama benefit in Cincinnati, Vote Early Rock Late, and the Cincinnati roller girls were there. That next month, I went to Minnesota to judge a craft competition, and one of the teams was the Minnesota roller girls. I was like, I can take a hint, we're going to do this. There's some video of the band in London when we recorded the song we're using as B-roll."

In the Skate to Fatal video, Kelley adds, "This song really lent itself to using roller derby as the visual," citing lyrics like "I don't want to break a thing." The clip was co-directed by James Ford and the band's own Mando Lopez. Stick with Rock Daily for the video's premiere in the coming weeks!

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

More Song Stories entries »

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