Wellwater Conspiracy

Wellwater Conspiracy was a trio from Los Angeles, with Trevor Dunn on vocals and drums, Chris Manfrin on bass, and Jeffrey Reed on guitar. They put out five albums between 1998 and 2009, starting with 'Declaration of Conformity' and ending with '¡Venganza!'. Their songs like 'C Myself Eye' and 'Born With a Tail' had a raw, experimental edge that didn't fit neatly into the late '90s indie rock mold.

Their lyrics could be cryptic and darkly humorous, which some critics found pretentious. They worked day jobs to get by in the early years. In 2002, they collaborated with Marilyn Manson on a track called 'The Nobodies', whose references to school shootings caused enough outrage to get the band pulled from major radio playlists.

Wellwater Conspiracy kept making records anyway, shifting their sound from album to album without much concern for what the industry expected. They developed a small, dedicated following who appreciated that stubbornness, even if it meant they never broke through to a wider audience.