LYRICS. SHAMPOO --- GAME BOY.

Got a game I can play, got a game boy
Game Boy

Life can be so sweet
If you weren't hangin' out on the street
Time goes so slow
Till you get a trick in bed
Off you go-go

Level 2, Level 3, Level 4
Try to beat your highest score
Steppin' up into overdrive
If you can stay alive
How can you be so dumb
You get used by everyone

Got a game I can play, got a game boy

Game Boy, ain't you got no brains boy
If you don't get sick of it all
You're still on the game boy

Flesh is reality
There's more to life but what can it be?
Games, on a loan
You're always searching
But you just can't find home

Repeat bridge

Repeat chorus
Game
Boy
You're still on the game boy
Repeat to fade.

LYRICS BY SHAMPOO

LYRICS. EMILIE AUTUMN --- GOTHIC LOLITA

How old are you?
I'm older than you'll ever be
I've been dead for a thousand years
But lived only two or three
I don't mind telling you
My life was ended by your hand
The kind of murder where nobody dies
But I don't suppose you'll understand

Call off the search
We've found her

If I am Lolita
Then you are a criminal
And you should be killed
By an army of little girls
The law won't arrest you
The world won't detest you
You never did anything
Any man wouldn't do
I am Gothic Lolita
And you are a criminal
I'm not even legal
I'm just a dead little girl
And ruffles and lace
And candy sweet faces
Directed your furtive hand
I perfectly understand
So it's my fault
No, Gothic Lolita

Thank you kind sirs
You've made me what I am today
A bundle of broken nerves
A mouthful of words I'm still afraid to say
I don't mind telling you
Now that I'm old enough to love
I couldn't begin to even if
My pretty life depended on it
And funny thing it does

I am your sugar
I am your cream
I am your anti-American dream
I am your sugar
I am your cream
I am your anti-American dream
I am your sugar
I am your cream
I am your anti-American dream
I am your sugar
I am your cream
I am your worst nightmare
Now scream

LYRICS BY EMILIE AUTUMN.
PHOTO OF EMILIE AUTUMN FROM HER MYSPACE.

LYRICS. EMILIE AUTUMN --- OPHELIAC

I'm your Opheliac
I've been so disillusioned
I know you'd take me back
But still I feign confusion
I couldn't be your friend
My world was too unstable
You might have seen the end
But you were never able
To keep me breathing
As the water rises up again
Before I slip away

You know the games I play
And the words I say
When I want my own way
You know the lies I tell
When you've gone through hell
And I say I can't stay
You know how hard it can be
To keep believing in me
When everything and everyone
Becomes my enemy and when
There's nothing more you can do
I'm gonna blame it on you
It's not the way I want to be
I only hope that in the end you will see
It's the Opheliac in me

I'm your Opheliac
My stockings prove my virtue
I'm open to attack
But I don't want to hurt you
Whether I sink or swim
That's no concern of yours now
How could you possibly think
You had the power to know how
To keep me breathing
As the water rose up again
Before I slip away

Intelligent girls are more depressed
Because they know
What the world is really like
Don't think for a beat it makes it better
When you sit her down and tell her
Everything is gonna be alright
She knows in society she is either
A devil or an angel with no inbetween
She speaks in the third person
So she can forget that she's me

Doubt thou the stars are fire
Doubt thou the sun doth move
Doubt truth to be a liar
But never doubt
Doubt thou the stars are fire
Doubt thou the sun doth move
Doubt truth to be a liar
But never doubt
I love

LYRICS BY EMILIE AUTUMN.
PHOTO OF EMILIE AUTUMN FROM HER MYSPACE.

UPDATES/LINKS. NY LOOSE

NY Loose's debut album Year of the Rat is now out of print but you can usually find second hand copies quite easily online.
They played a couple of gigs when the compilation album was released.   Brijitte now has a new band and has released an album with them, Brjitte West and The Desperate Hopefuls

UK NY Loose fansite

Brijitte West and The Desperate Hopefuls on Facebook
Brijitte West on Twitter

UPDATES/LINKS. VULGARAS.

Vulgaras released a third album Heavy Handed Heart (which I highly recommend) and are currently working on a new album called Alpha Fatale.

Their albums are also available from CD Baby
here

Vulgaras on Facebook

INTERVIEW. VELOCITY CHYALDD (VULGARAS)

Velocity Chyaldd is the lead singer of Vulgaras (the other band members are The Anti-Dave, Oz and Bones).   Vulgaras are a New York-based metal band who also use blues/goth influences as well as inspiration from horror, performance art and burlesque to create an emotionally intense experience, both on record and onstage.  So far they have released 2 albums, Aphrodite P.O.W. and Year of the Whore and are due to release their third, Heavy Handed Heart in July 08.


You remind me of artists like Lydia Lunch or Diamanda Galas who were able to take deeply painful personal life experiences and turn them into brutally honest art that wasn't afraid to express emotions like rage but without denying the hurt they felt.  The songs you write deal with things that are hard to live through and the struggle to survive.   Year of the Whore is an intense and powerful album to listen to.  Was it a difficult album to record especially using your own personal experiences for some of the songs?
It's difficult for me to record/write in stone any emotion that I don't personally feel.  It was harder for me to live through those experiences than to sing about them - the writing and singing part were cathartic.

I love your vocal range of YOTW - did you have any formal training and what other singers inspired you?
The singers from the Jazz/Blues pin-up era of the 30s and 40s have always resonated with me.  I'm also inspired by Patti Smith, Janis Joplin, PJ Harvey, Ann Wilson, Patsy Cline, Tori Amos, Siouxsie Sioux, Tina Turner, Johnette Napolitano, Stevie Nicks, Diamanda Galas, Otep Shamaya, etc.

One of my favourite songs on the album is Hooker Barbie (I guess I wasn't the only girl playing naughty sex games with my dolls!).  What is that you like/dislike about Barbie?
I like the fact that she started out as a "Working Girl" comic strip figurine in Germany back in 1955 as Lilli.  I love the hyper-glam and perversity of her.  I dislike how misrepresented she has become due to conservatism and hypocrisy.

On the sleevenotes for YOTW you say, "We thank the following whores" and provide a list of inspirational women (and men), both expected and unexpected.  Could I ask why you included, for example Queen Elizabeth I, Marie Curie, Boy George (or any of the others you'd like to talk about)?
I focused on the "bastards", the "socially unacceptable" who had to confront great opposition for their "radical" methods or beliefs.  Those who were called "Whores" openly throughout history - anyone who was made to wear that badge and in spite of it all proved themselves just as grand or as human as the rest of us.

I've read interviews for YOTW where you talk about how the respect whores get is a measure of respect that all women get in a society.  We seem to live in an increasingly sexualised (some would say pornified) society yet it still seems like there is a double standard and that only one type of sexuality gets mass acceptance.  I've also noticed a resurgence in anti-porn activism among feminists but equally people involved in the fetish/sex work or even just more comfortable with certain sexual activities/ideas being completely dismissive of feminism and I just think there is too much black & white thinking on both sides and I think life is more complicated than just to say all sex work is automatically good or bad.  Why do you think that open female sexuality (especially in terms of sex work) is still so stigmatised?
We are taught very early on to look upon any female who possesses a strong sexual energy as dangerous (a la film noir, the danger dames of the 50s, vampires, succubus, Lillith, Eve and her almighty apple, etc.).  We are supposed to shun it in fear.  Women create life.  I dunno --- I guess that scares the shit out of someone that doesn't.  It's a pretty fucked up bummer.  There'd be less violence in the world if we didn't fear or try to possess women and the power of sex so much.

You said the name Vulgaras was inspired by a quote from Alice in Wonderland which you've also named as one of your favourite books.  What is that appeals to you about the Alice books?
The same thing that turns me on when it comes to Dorothy and The Wizard of OZ, Wicked, Willy Wonka, Donnie Darko, The Big Lebowski, The Wall, Spirited Away, Waking Life or Magnolia.  Transformation.  The personal spirit pushing past the supposed boundaries of the human condition and the journey that takes them there.

I've read that you're also involved in burlesque.  How did you feel about the resurgence of interest in burlesque in recent years and how it became co-opted into the mainstream?
I support it.  It's still an outlet none the less.  There is a place for fringe performance artists regardless.  My work is controversial so I created a platform once a month for performers like myself who don't always want to buckle to conservative/commercial burlesque promoters.  I call it !BadAss! --- http://www.badassburlesque.com/ It's a crazy party celebrating the underside of the female psyche and if I didn't try to promote it there wouldn't be that platform ;) Burlesque is like steam releasing from a volcano of war-time absurdity.

Who are some of your favourite burlesque performers (past or present)?
In no order at all ---
The World Famous *BOB*
Rose Wood
Tigger
Julie Atlas Muz
Bambi the Mermaid
Blaze Starr
Miss Zorita
Dirty Martini
Deity
Miss Astrid
Scotty the Blue Bunny
Jo Boobs
Penny Arcade
I could really go on forever here ...

I read that your performances used to quite an extreme blend of sex/horror.  What kind of stage shows are you planning for the new album and do you have any plans to tour Europe/the UK?
I ceased stage antics 2 years ago.  I only work with horror in my performance art.  When I am onstage in front of my band I have the room full of people in front of me and my relationship with them has become my muse in live play.  I focus on what I am sharing with them, what they want to share with me and find myself engaging with everyone both physically and spiritually.  The energy exchange is as potent and naked as any knife or drug.

You've got a cover version of Bang Bang up on your MySpace that I absolutely adore.  What made you decide to cover this song and will it be on the new album?
The Anti-Dave and I have a strong creative relationship, partners in crime so to speak.  That's our song for each other - our ode to creative destruction.

How is the new album coming along?
 Our release date is June 21st 2008.  It represents a war-torn passion that is living loud in spite of it all.  The cross roads aly across it as the do or die moment we are living in as artists in a grey world.

Will it be very different to YOTW or a continuation of the same themes?
I haven't been working in the sex industry since 2003.  My life has become a constant work in progress ever since.  The struggle to manifest destiny and rediscover personal boundaries have a lot to do with it.  Soulful empowerment on a personal level.
I hope that helped.  I enjoyed your questions.
Blessed bees,
V=d/t

THIS E-MAIL INTERVIEW WAS CONDUCTED IN MARCH 2008.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.

PHOTO OF VELOCITY AND BAND PHOTOS OF VULGARAS BY JOHNNY SWIGZ
YEAR OF THE WHORE ALBUM PHOTO BY JOHN SANTERINEROSS

UPDATES/LINKS. PAM HOGG

Pam Hogg has been concentrating on her fashion designing in the last few years, most recently showing her collection at London Fashion Week.  Her outfits have been worn by stars such as Kylie, Siouxsie and Lady Gaga and Pam herself is often pictured in the pages of style magazines such as Vogue.

Fansite on Facebook

INTERVIEW. PAM HOGG

Although Pam Hogg is perhaps best known as a designer (her body-conscious fetish influenced clothes have been featured everywhere from Skin Two to Elle), she has also been involved in music for many years.  Her previous band, Doll, were featured in the Amy Raphael book, "Never Mind The Bollocks", and supported Debbie Harry.  She had a demo CD EP available through MySpace with her new band, Hoggdoll, which showcases her unique brand of slinky swampland rock.


Your interview in the Amy Raphael book was one of my favourites in that book.  What happened to Doll?  Did you ever release any CDs?  (I would love to hear some of the songs you're describing in that interview).
We played as Doll until we could no longer stand the strain of trying to find a bass player every few months.  It's difficult to maintain that spark unless everyone is committed.  We only have rough recordings.  Dave Stewart gave us studio time but I was unhappy with the polished result so we never released it.  One day we may release our home demos.  I'm interested in checking how they sound now.

Could you tell me a bit about the musicians you're working with now on Hoggdoll?
I met Jason (Buckle) in the small music venue, "On The Rocks", about five and a half years ago.  He walked straight up to me and asked if I'd like to be in a Cramps type band.  I waited and waited for the music he'd promised and eventually after about 3 or 4 weeks a CD arrived with 15 various instrumental rockabilly style tracks he'd written.  I immediately chose three, wrote three songs in three days working out the melody on a four track and then we recorded them in his basement in about an hour and half.  I sang each song about 3 or 4 times, adding a different harmony and that was it.  I just waited.

With "Doll", the guitarist Robe Courtney and I would work out all our tracks together on bass guitar, create a mood and the songs would evolve but Jason and I did all of ours in that manner, although as he got to know my preferences he started writing accordingly.  It was pretty crazy.  We took such a short time to write and record, but it took about 3 years to extract the mixed tracks from him, and one got so lost I never even got to know how it sounded but we intend to record it again along with some new ones in the near future.
He's a fantastically unusual individual and a great musician but he's only ever played live with me twice as he hates being on stage.  When we were asked to perform at a Spanish music festival last summer, although initially really excited, he pulled out and I had to find a whole new band.  Rob thankfully was there like a shot to stand in even though we hadn't seen each other in years.

You have a unique sound - what sort of things influence your music/how would you describe your sound?
The Cramps on Valium is how I describe my sound as 75 % of all tracks have that Cramps type rockabilly vibe but I just write as the mood takes me on the very first hearing and run with it.  It's always spontaneous.

What's your favourite song on the CD and why?
Probably "Honeyland" as it took me by surprise.  I had no intention of writing a heartfelt song but it was exactly what came into my head the first time I played the music.  I was scared to let Jason hear it, but it's surprisingly the one that everyone loves.  Chicks on Speed put it on their "Girl Monster" compilation last year.

If you could choose to cover any song, what would it be and why?
I do a slow version of Jolene and Iggy's Wanna Be Your Dog --- I have a club called "Pam's Slinky Salon" where myself and special guests get up and sing torch songs and classics at the piano.  They fit in well in the set and as Marc Bolan says --- "They're good for my voice."

You're perhaps best known as a fashion designer --- are you still involved in designing clothes?  Do you have a current collection that's available?
The artists Tim and Sue sponsored a studio for two months to help me get started in fashion again so hopefully there'll be a collection available next season if I can get some sponsorship or backing.

You've always had an amazing sense of personal style.  What's your favourite look/outfit at the moment?
My new press collection is black, gold and silver so that's what I'm generally wearing right now.

In a Skin Two interview I have (issue 10) you describe Joan of Arc as the ultimate strong woman and the inspiration for your Warrior Queen collection.   What other women (past or present) do you particularly admire or inspire you?
I have great admiration and respect for the strong willed uncompromising late Frances Farmer.  Her story haunts me.
Boadicea or Boudica as she is now known was another great warrior queen and for fantasy, Emma Peel was my first female visual inspiration.

You seem like someone who has a fantastic zest for life and terrific confidence.  Do you have any advice for how to maintain your energy and motivation year after year?
Do what you believe in and believe in what you do.  I think that's the best advice I can give for maintaining good energy and motivation.

What are your future plans for your music?  Will you be playing live/touring soon or releasing a full album?
I'll always be into making music and will always be making clothes.  There just doesn't seem to be enough time to be able to do both really well simultaneously.  So right now my creative energy is focused on fashion and my desire to get that up and running.  I'm constantly jotting down words and flashes of new songs and Jason is at the ready, so a full album is just a matter of time.

THIS E-MAIL INTERVIEW TOOK PLACE IN APRIL 2008.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
PHOTOS FROM PAM HOGG'S MYSPACE.

UPDATE/LINKS. COLT

Colt are currently working on a new album and there are some new songs available for download on their MySpace, iLike etc.

Colt's official site
Colt's YouTube channel

UPDATES/LINKS. LIVING WITH EATING DISORDERS.

Before Living With Eating Disorders changed their name to Colt they released several demo CDs and an EP White Like Snow (produced by John Fryer, on Something to Listen To).

They were also involved in a multi-media gallery event called Parliament of Monsters where several artists/directors made videos for LWED songs.

UPDATES/LINKS. TIMES SQUARE

Times Square was released as a Region 1 DVD (and I think it was also released as a Spanish-only release as a Region 2 DVD) but it's still really hard to get hold of.  The soundtrack album is now out of print although you can sometimes get hold of second hand vinyl copies.   Clips from the film are usually up on YouTube though.

The Robin Johnson fansite has quite a lot of information/pictures from the film here.
 and Feminist Music Geek has an excellent article on the film here (which includes a more indepth look at the racial/sexual politics of the movie).

EDITED TO ADD: Shelly sent me the link to this brilliant blog which is dedicated to the movie Times Square http://defeatedandgifted.wordpress.com/ - loads to read plus some great photos/clips from the movie.