In Memoriam: The Influential Bassist "Jennifer Finch" Dies Aged 59

Jennifer Finch, the longtime bassist for influential grunge rock group L7, has died. Finch, who had been diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2011, revealed she was diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer last week. She was 59.

Finch's bandmates shared the news of her death on Saturday on Instagram, calling her a "beloved bandmate, friend, and fellow troublemaker".

"She had a long courageous fight with brain cancer and was loved by many wonderful friends, musical peers and fans worldwide," wrote L7's Donita Sparks, Suzi Gardner and Demetra "Dee" Plakas.

Finch was due to join L7 on the feminist rock band's The Last Hurrah farewell tour this year, however, she pulled out last week after revealing her brain cancer diagnosis, giving the band her blessing to forge ahead.

A GoFundMe campaign to help pay for her treatment, launched by friends and family, swiftly surpassed its goal and raised nearly $US400,000. Despite initial radiation treatment, "unforeseen complications" led to Finch enduring "multiple surgeries and a string of difficult setbacks".

Born on August 5, 1966, and raised by her adoptive parents in Los Angeles, Finch had a passion for photography, often documenting the city's burgeoning punk and alt-rock scenes, snapping influential groups like The Cramps and Bad Religion.

In the early 80s, Finch played bass in Sugar Babydoll, led by future Hole frontwoman Courtney Love, and The Pandoras.

Finch joined L7 in 1986, a year after Donita Sparks and Suzi Gardner formed the band. They released their self-titled debut in 1988 via influential independent record label Epitaph.

After adding Dee Plakas on drums, the group's 1990 album Smell The Magic made them one of the few non-Seattle bands signed to Sub Pop and earliest all-female groups in the grunge explosion. Finch even dated Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl for a time.

Their 1992 album Bricks Are Heavy is considered one of the era's most significant, featuring L7's biggest crossover hit Pretend We're Dead, a searing political commentary on the marginalisation of women in society inserted into a hooky anthem.

Fiercely rejecting traditional beauty standards and fearlessly advocating for women's rights, L7 co-founded Rock for Choice in 1991, a concert series raising funds and awareness for reproductive rights.

Four women playing loud, aggressive tunes confronting sexism and political disillusion was considered a feminist statement in and of itself. But L7 did not actively try to be a feminist band.

"We don't write in any contrived way," Sparks told Double J in 2019. "We write from very personal experiences and they just morph into something else. "We're not writing feminist lyrics. We're writing L7 lyrics and I think they speak to everybody."

In 1996, two years after their fourth album Hungry for Stink, Finch left the band and played in other groups, namely OtherStarPeople and The Shocker, and launched her own label, Little Pusher Records.

Following an acrimonious split in 2001, L7 reunited in 2014 and Finch rejoined, playing on their 2019 reunion album Scatter The Rats.

The band then toured regularly, playing headline shows and festivals throughout the US, UK and Australia where, in 2023, they performed Bricks Are Heavy in full on tour.