Jarboe

It's hard to pin down what "The Living Jarboe," as she refers to herself, is all about. Known first for her work alongside long-time collaborator Michael Gira in NYC post-punk outfit Swans, as well as Swans side project Skin (also known as World of Skin), Jarboe is a strong personality in extreme and experimental music, making her an eclectic entity as a solo artist. Her distinct voice ranges from smooth to fierce and soft to deep as often as her preferred musical style changes from post-punk to goth to metal to vocal and even tribal. 1992 saw the release of her first solo album, Thirteen Masks, which was followed up by a collaborative effort with Swans associate Larry Seven entitled Beautiful People Ltd. After Swans called it quits in 1998, Jarboe continued to release solo albums and lent her voice to many artists, including A Perfect Circle, Jesu and Puscifer. She also released a few more collaborative albums, like 2003's Neurosis & Jarboe and 2008's J2 with Justin Broadrick of Godflesh/Jesu. In October 2008, Jarboe released her 14th solo album MahaKali -- a dark musical journey based on the Indian goddess of destruction.