Peaches (Merrill Nisker) burst into transcontinental favor with her very particular brand of cocksure rapping and groovebox beats. Though she came from an underground cauldron of acoustic folk (Mermaid Café), avant-garde jazz (Fancypants Hoolum), and deconstructed noise swarms (the Shit), it wasn't until 2000 that her fearless, political gender play truly raised heads. European trawls unearthed new admirers, and collaborations with the equally lewd Chilly Gonzales certainly fueled the fire for her first solo effort. By the time she signed with Berlin's Kitty-Yo label and unleashed The Teaches of Peaches, her niche had already been carved out: Peaches sounded like a Penthouse Forum together with Grandmaster Flash, Shirley Manson, and Charles Manson. She soon moved to XL, which reissued The Teaches of Peaches in 2002 and released Fatherfucker in 2003 and Impeach My Bush in 2006. For 2009's I Feel Cream, Peaches worked with Simian Mobile Disco and took her sound in a more electronic, eclectic direction. Nisker then took an extended break from recording, instead appearing in a one-woman version of Jesus Christ Superstar entitled, naturally, Peaches Christ Superstar. Other projects included the meta rock opera Peaches Does Herself, which chronicled her rise to fame, and the book What Else Is in the Teaches of Peaches, which documented her between-album work. She returned to the studio with longtime producer Vice Cooler as well as guests such as Kim Gordon, Feist, and Simonne Jones for 2015's Rub, a set reflecting the directions dance and hip-hop had taken in the six years since her last album. ~ Dean Carlson