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Riffology: Iconic Rock Albums

Uncover the details behind the most iconic albums ever recorded.

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FabFilter: Redefining Audio Tools with Precision and Elegance Fabfilter Logo
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Soul Destruction: The Almighty’s 1991 Rock Revolution 4201_album_art
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Paranoid: Black Sabbath’s Defining Heavy Metal Album 4696_album_art
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Let It Bleed: The Rolling Stones’ Iconic 1969 Album 8569_album_art
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Moving Pictures: Rush’s Rock Revolution 5516_album_art
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Riffology: Iconic Rock Albums Podcast
Riffology: Iconic Rock Albums Podcast

Welcome to Riffology, where a GenX and a Millennial talk about the albums from their youth. Itโ€™s more fun than it soundsโ€ฆ

RIFF068 – Hole – Live Through This
byRiffology

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Hole โ€” Live Through This (1994)

Noise made human: sharp guitars, cracked-glass vocals, and songs that refuse to sand down the splinters. In this episode we unpack how Live Through This became both a blistering rock record and a time capsule of messy, real-life urgency.

The big picture

  • Why this album still feels dangerous: melody with teeth, beauty with bite.
  • Olympia-to-LA-to-Marietta roots and attitudes โ€” riot grrrl tension meets major-label machinery.
  • Courtney Loveโ€™s performance as intent, not accident: keep the cracks in.

What we cover

  • Recording sprint: tracked in 23 days at Triclops Sound Studios (Marietta, GA), with a live-to-tape energy.
  • Vocals with scars: a dozen-plus passes per song, but the imperfections stay โ€” including the famous voice break in โ€œDoll Parts.โ€
  • Cobainโ€™s cameo: backing vocals on โ€œAsking for Itโ€ and โ€œSofter, Softest,โ€ and why that detail got louder after his death.
  • Cover art, on purpose: Ellen von Unwerthโ€™s prom-queen shot (model Leilani Bishop) โ€” conceived and driven by Love.
  • DGC vs Geffen: what the indie-adjacent major imprint meant in the 90s (think Nirvana, Sonic Youth, Weezer, Beck, Counting Crows).
  • โ€œRock Starโ€ vs โ€œOlympiaโ€: the notorious DAT swap that left the track list and the audio mismatched โ€” and how the band treated the actual โ€œRock Starโ€ live.
  • Kristen Pfaff: her locked-in bass feel on the record, the tragedy that followed its release, and the pause before the band returned.

Why it still matters

  • Precision without polish: performances that breathe and bruise.
  • Hooks under pressure: pop instincts framed by claustrophobic mix choices that reward volume.
  • Cultural afterlife: songs that kept turning up in film and TV, proof the edges cut through.

Timestamps

  • 00:00 โ€” Cold open & why this album still stings
  • 02:54 โ€” โ€œRock Starโ€ vs โ€œOlympiaโ€ โ€” the title/track mix-up
  • 05:20 โ€” DGC vs Geffen โ€” who was on the roster and why it mattered
  • 48:58 โ€” 23 days at Triclops Sound โ€” capturing the fast, live feel
  • 49:33 โ€” Dozen-take vocals & keeping the cracks
  • 49:53 โ€” Geffen wanted the โ€œDoll Partsโ€ voice break smoothed โ€” it stayed
  • 50:05 โ€” Cobain drops by: โ€œAsking for Itโ€ & โ€œSofter, Softestโ€
  • 50:36 โ€” Ellen von Unwerthโ€™s prom-queen cover (Leilani Bishop)
  • 53:41 โ€” โ€œRock Starโ€ listed, โ€œOlympiaโ€ on disc โ€” the DAT snafu
  • 54:33 โ€” Kristen Pfaff โ€” playing, loss, and the bandโ€™s pause

Turn it up โ€” this one rewards volume.

You can find us here:

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RIFF068 – Hole – Live Through This
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RIFF068 – Hole – Live Through This
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RIFF067 – Tool – Undertow
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RIFF066 – A Perfect Circle – Mer De Noms
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RIFF065 – Deftones – White Pony
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RIFF064 – Anthrax – Sound of White Noise
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RIFF063 – Anthrax – Persistence of Time
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RIFF062 – Soulfly – Soulfly
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RIFF061 – Sepultura – Beneath the Remains
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RIFF060 – Foo Fighters – Foo Fighters
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RIFF059 – Stereophonics – Performance and Cocktails
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