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L7
Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Artist · chart history

L7

Band Los Angeles United States Formed 1985 US punk rock

L7 formed in 1985 in Los Angeles, United States. L7 has 42 chart appearances on 38 radio countdowns from 15 stations on RockLists, spanning 1992–2025. The most successful song on radio countdowns is “Pretend We're Dead”, which appears on 33 lists with a best position of #15. The station that charted L7 most often is WOXY 97X (Cincinnati, OH), with 9 appearances. The artist’s biggest year on year-end countdowns was 1992.

42appearances
38countdowns
5songs charted
15stations
0#1 finishes
1992–2025years

L7 plugged in in Los Angeles in 1985 and proceeded to make the loudest, snottiest, funniest punk rock noise on the West Coast. Donita Sparks and Suzi Gardner traded guitars and vocals, Jennifer Finch came in on bass in 1986, and after a couple of drummers Dee Plakas settled in behind the kit in 1989. The sound was pure sludge and swagger, big fuzzy riffs with a punk kick, and along the way they passed through Epitaph, Sub Pop and Slash.

Smell the Magic in 1990 carried "Shove", and Bricks Are Heavy in 1992 blew the doors open. "Pretend We're Dead", a chugging, sardonic sing-along with a hook as sticky as tar, was all over American alternative radio, and "Wargasm" showed they hadn't gone soft. Hungry for Stink in 1994 brought "Andres" and "Stuck Here Again".

Because of the look and the noise they got lumped in with grunge, and because they were an all-female band they got tied to riot grrrl, but they came before both and never quite fit either box. They put their politics where their mouths were, too, founding Rock for Choice in 1991. The band called it quits in 2001, but came back in 2014, and a documentary, L7: Pretend We're Dead, premiered in 2016. Seven studio albums in, they still sound like trouble.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

Songs by L7 on radio countdowns

#SongStrengthListsBest#1sPeak year
1 Pretend We're Dead
1,399		 33 #15 – 1992
2 Andres
117		 6 #64 – 1994
3 Shove
30		 1 #624 – –
4 Wargasm
16		 1 #618 – –
5 Stuck Here Again
9		 1 #928 – –

Albums with charting songs

Where each song was first released, from MusicBrainz.

Year-end chart timeline

Combined year-end countdown points per year. Taller bars mean more songs placing higher across more stations.

92 94

Every countdown appearance

Year#SongCountdown
2025 359 Pretend We're Dead WFPK Top 500 Songs of the '90s
2024 618 Wargasm The Best Opening Tracks of All Time
2023 344 Pretend We're Dead 105.9 The X July 420 (2023)
2023 735 Pretend We're Dead 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of All Time
2023 900 Andres 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of All Time
2023 369 Pretend We're Dead The Current's 893 Essential Songs of the '90s
2023 624 Shove The Current's 893 Essential Songs of the '90s
2022 319 Pretend We're Dead 105.9 The X July 420 (2022)
2021 345 Pretend We're Dead 105.9 The X July 420 (2021)
2021 319 Pretend We're Dead 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '90s
2021 706 Andres 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '90s
2020 401 Pretend We're Dead 105.9 The X July 420 (2020)
2007 374 Pretend We're Dead KROQ Top 500 Most Requested Songs of the '90s (Labor Day 2007)
2006 315 Pretend We're Dead WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2006)
2005 247 Pretend We're Dead WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2005)
2005 791 Pretend We're Dead 99X Freedom of Choice 1000 (2005)
2004 194 Pretend We're Dead Q101 Top 300 Party Songs of All-Time (July 2004)
2004 438 Pretend We're Dead The End Original Alternative 500 (May 2004)
2003 232 Pretend We're Dead WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2003)
2002 172 Pretend We're Dead WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2002)
2002 591 Pretend We're Dead Fred XM Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (July 2002)
2001 219 Pretend We're Dead WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2001)
2000 216 Pretend We're Dead WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2000)
1999 506 Pretend We're Dead Q101 Top 1,011 Songs of All-Time (December 1999)
1999 928 Stuck Here Again Q101 Top 1,011 Songs of All-Time (December 1999)
1999 1038 Pretend We're Dead The End Top 1077 Songs of All-Time (December 1999)
1999 243 Pretend We're Dead WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1999)
1999 275 Pretend We're Dead WHFS Top 500 Songs of the '90s (December 1999)
1996 315 Pretend We're Dead Q101 Top 500 Songs of All-Time (1996)
1996 437 Pretend We're Dead WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1996)
1994 64 Andres 91X Top 91 Songs of 1994
1994 91 Andres Live 105 Top 105.3 Songs of 1994
1994 87 Andres WHFS Top 99.1 Songs of 1994
1994 67 Andres Triple J Hottest 100 of 1994
1994 257 Pretend We're Dead KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1994)
1994 361 Pretend We're Dead Live 105 Revolutionary 500 (July 1994)
1994 413 Pretend We're Dead WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1994)
1992 15 Pretend We're Dead KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1992
1992 16 Pretend We're Dead 91X Top 91 Songs of 1992
1992 45 Pretend We're Dead Live 105 Top 105.3 Songs of 1992
1992 15 Pretend We're Dead Q101 Top 101 Songs of 1992
1992 35 Pretend We're Dead WHFS Top 99.1 Songs of 1992

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