The band was formed in the late 1980s in New York City by vocalist Deborah Schwartz and guitarist Richmond along with bassist Claudine Troise and drummer Stephanie Seymour.

Lead vocalist Deborah Schwartz had moved from Voorheesville to Manhattan in January 1986[2] after spending three months in Los Angeles, California where she met guitarist Jill Richmond.

[3] When Richmond joined her in New York one year later, they formed The Aquanettas along with bassist Claudine Troise and drummer Stephanie Seymour.

Called "a seminal all-female group from the early '90s" by some writers,[5] singer Joan Osborne has covered their songs in concert[6] and is a fan, so much so she would later make Deborah Schwartz her first signing on her Womanly Hips label.

Claudine played bass with instrumental band The Vice Royals featuring Pete "The Other White Meat" Linzell, Jay Sherman Godfrey's "The Lazy Jaycees," and Nancy Sexton and the Sugar Monkeys.

Stephanie joined Adam Roth's Psychic Penguin, a pop powerhouse band that featured strong melodies and wicked four-part harmonies.