"Celebrity Skin" is the third studio album by American alternative rock band Hole, released on September 8, 1998. This album marked a departure from their previous noise and grunge influences, featuring a more polished sound. It was produced by Michael Beinhorn and recorded over nine months in Los Angeles, New York City, and London. The album is notable for being the band's only studio release to feature bassist Melissa Auf der Maur. Drummer Patty Schemel, who played on the demos, was replaced by session drummer Deen Castronovo, leading to a rift that contributed to Schemel's departure from the band.
The album was conceived as a "California album," with a thematic focus on Los Angeles and the state of California. It features contributions from several musicians outside the band, including Billy Corgan, who co-wrote the musical arrangements for five songs. Frontwoman Courtney Love wrote all the lyrics and named the album and its title track after a poem influenced by T. S. Eliot's "The Waste Land," with themes of water and drowning.
Celebrity Skin became Hole's most commercially successful album, reaching number nine on the US Billboard 200, number four on the Australian Albums Chart, and number 11 on the UK Albums Chart. It has sold over 1.4 million copies in the US and has been certified double-platinum in Australia, platinum in Canada, and the US. The album received critical acclaim, with the title track hitting number one on the Modern Rock Tracks chart. It was featured on several year-end lists in 1998 and was included in NME's list of the greatest albums of all time and the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.
