Sarge

Led by the fluttering vocals and intricate songcrafting of Elinore Elmore, Sarge earned a place in the 1990s indie annals with its jagged guitar riffs and complex pop melodies, earning critical raves despite lagging sales. Elmore's lyrics effortlessly ambled over polysyllabic words, aiming accurate, if amiably neurotic, arrows at evasive lovers, elusive friends, and a life on the rock-&-roll road that exacerbates both. While their two studio albums (particularly 1998's unforgettable GLASS INTACT) and fiery live show built a fanatical underground and college fanbase and many a critical rave, sales eluded the band and by 2000, Elmore disbanded Sarge in favor of law school. She would go on to form the similarly minded and also short-lived the Reputation.