After the Puck and Zen experience, Jenkins moved in the direction of starting a rock band. Jenkins recounted that over the span of a few years, he recruited members, and they dropped out because of drug addiction or join other bands. Jenkins wrote and workshopped early material with musician Jason…
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The band released its first nationally distributed album, Deluxe , in 1993 on its own indie label , Swell Records, which caught the attention of major record labels and radio. Better Than Ezra signed with Elektra Records in 1994, and the label re-released Deluxe the following year. Its single ”…
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The group’s second album, 1993’s Gold Against the Soul , had a more grunge -influenced sound. It was released to mixed reviews but performed well, reaching number 8 in the UK.
In the spring of 1993, Love and Erlandson recruited Janitor Joe bassist Kristen Pfaff
Chicken Scratch was recorded by Mark Strazza at Hound Sound in Baltimore in 1993 for $600, after the band was together for 6 months. It was only released on cassette. Spit Burger Lottery was recorded by Mike Forjione at The Mansion in Annapolis in 1994 for $400. It was only…
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In the spring of 1993, the band released their single ” Beautiful Son “, which was recorded in Seattle with producer Jack Endino as a fill-in bass player; Love also played bass on the single’s b-side “20 Years In the Dakota”, as well as on their contribution to the 1993…
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and the band toured the United Kingdom in the summer of that year (including the Phoenix Festival on July 16), mainly performing material from their upcoming major label debut, Live Through This
In 1993 the band had finished work with their third album titled Cockroach . However, the band fired singer Poley. Subsequent lawsuits from Poley prevented the album from being released. In the meantime, Paul Laine was hired by Ravel and West as the new singer and he re-recorded the vocals…
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and later recruited him to join the band in early 1993.
1993 brought continued success on the road, with the band headlining a two-and-a-half-month American tour.