50 Foot Wave

With 50 Foot Wave, Kristin Hersh unleashes a deluge of formidable rock only hinted at in her solo career and work with Throwing Muses. In the late '90s and early 2000s, her music with those projects was largely introspective and acoustic-based, so 50 Foot Wave's amped-up sound and direct lyrics -- introduced on 2004's self-titled EP -- were a distinct change of pace. Though 2005's debut album Golden Ocean proved the power trio had more than enough ideas to fill a full-length set of songs, they preferred short-form releases, and with 2006's pay-what-you-want release Free Music EP, their innovation extended beyond the studio and stage. Though the trio wasn't as prolific as Hersh's other projects, outbursts like 2016's Bath White remained a vital part of her work, and 2022's second album Black Pearl was another mighty effort.