Melissa Auf der Maur – No Treble

In this edition of Wonder Women: Stories From The Women Who Play Bass, we explore some of the backstory of Melissa Auf der Maur. She is best known for her roles as bassist and vocalist for Hole and The Smashing Pumpkins. She has established a successful solo career with the release of Auf der Maur and Out of Our Minds. She is also a photographer, and her work has been featured in National Geographic and displayed at Sotheby’s. She has been an actress as well, having appeared in several films.

Melissa was born on March 17, 1972, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. She was an only child for quite some time, raised by her mother Linda Gaboriau. Linda was a journalist who ended up in the Quebec theater scene via her radio shows and journalism. Ms. Gaboriau became a dramaturg and award-winning literary translator, winning the Governor General’s Award for Translation three times. Her passion is to bring the French Canadian literary voice to the rest of the world, and has translated 125 plays and novels by Quebec writers. Her father Nick Auf der Maur came from a Swiss immigrant family, and he was the youngest of four siblings. He built a remarkable life for himself as a well-known journalist, television personality, author, and politician. His funeral service in 1998 gave testimony to his status as Montreal’s boulevardier (man about town); it was standing room only, with 3000+ people in attendance. Nick did not meet his daughter Melissa until she was three. He married Gaboriau when Melissa was five, but they were divorced in less than a year.

Melissa’s profound love for music was shaped in part by her mother’s active role in Montreal’s local music scene; Linda was the city’s first female rock DJ. Melissa’s musical journey included playing trumpet in school band and eventually earning first chair. Her musical path took a turn when she received a Fender Squier Precision bass as a gift from her father.

During high school, she continued to pursue her passion for photography. She enrolled at Concordia University, majoring in photography while simultaneously working as a ticket seller at a punk rock club. She eventually transitioned into a DJ role at another venue. These jobs provided opportunities to connect with musicians such as Steve Durand, a fellow Concordia student who later became the guitarist in her first band, Tinker.

During this time, Melissa met Billy Corgan. The Smashing Pumpkins played a local show where a confrontation ensued after her roommate threw a bottle at Corgan mid-performance. Melissa apologized to Corgan afterward, which marked the beginning of their friendship. This connection led to pivotal moments, including Melissa’s band Tinker landing their largest gig opening for The Smashing Pumpkins… after she wrote a letter to their fan PO Box. Additionally, Melissa caught Billy Corgan’s attention as a bassist for a future project. Auf der Maur recalled that Corgan said “’You’re going to be in my band one day.’ It felt like a dream come true – exactly the kind of confidence boost I needed.”

Melissa was still at Concordia playing in Tinker when Kristan Pfaff tragically passed, and Hole was searching for a new bassist. Melissa related “… I came home from college one day… and Billy Corgan called… (he) said I got good news and great news… we’re gonna be in Montreal next month… you should come to the show, I have a day off we can have lunch… the great news is you’re gonna join my friend Courtney Love’s band… ”. At the time, Melissa politely declined… as stated in an earlier quote, she did not want to be a rockstar.

The story continues: “A week or so later my roommate said ‘Courtney Love called for you’. I didn’t call her back… then the next day was a message… and then by the next day, I don’t think I called her back. I think she called me again and it was late night… and she’s like ‘Hi, why don’t you wanna join my band?’ I said I have a lot going on actually… I am in school and I have a band. And she said ‘Can you just get on the plane to Seattle this weekend and tell that tell me to my face? Just come meet us.’”

Melissa continues, “… (I) got off the planet Seattle and I came down on the escalator… at the bottom of the escalator was Courtney, Frances, Patty, and very lovely babysitter holding Frances… I came down as they looked at these women. They’re all smiling… I saw these women and I couldn’t say no and I realized I just had to do it… .I am very grateful for the once in a lifetime opportunity, but it was hard decision for me and I really did do it for those individuals but also for what those individuals were doing.. a lesbian, a widow, a feminist, a deceased woman, Kristan… I have to do it for the women of the future. I just have to do this with them.”

The timeline is striking. Tinker was started in 1993 with their biggest show opening for The Smashing Pumpkins on November 30, 1993. Tinker performed for 2,500 people at that show. Roughly six months later, Pfaff died on June 16th, 1994. Melissa made her debut performance with Hole on August 8th 1994 at the Reading Festival in England playing for 65,000 people. Reflecting on this whirlwind, Melissa shared, “… .other than that one Smashing Pumpkin show, I did not play to more than 45 to 90 people (at a gig)… . and then my first show with Hole… was the Reading Festival in front of 65,000 people. That was my eighth concert of my life. It was easier than playing a small club… it was just like singing to… a huge ocean.”

Melissa not only helped fill the void left by Pfaff by playing bass… .she added backing vocals to Hole’s next release, doubling Courtney’s vocals and layering multiple harmonies. Melissa credited her choir background; “…because of my choir days and my wonderful Welsch choir teacher, I had an ear for harmonies and on Celebrity Skin… there is me doubling her once to three times and then there is two to four or five harmonies of me… so I have more of my voice on that record than I do even my solo record.”

It is worth noting that Auf der Maur participated in an interview with the Women In Rock Oral History project, reflecting on her life and music career. There seems to be a sense of freedom in the stories, especially given the passage of time. It is a long interview, but it’s an interesting watch.

Melissa Auf der Maur on the Web