INTERVIEW. CAZZ BLASE (ON RIOT GRRRL) PART 3

Part One of Interview here

Part Two of Interview here

If you could put together a riot grrrl compilation CD what would be the essential songs you would put on it?
I think essential songs would have to include 'Double Dare Ya' by Bikini Kill, also two obvious choices:  Huggy Bear's 'Her Jazz' and Bikini Kill's 'Rebel Girl', also Bratmobile's 'Make Me Miss America', the Frumpies 'Frumpies Forever', Voodoo Queens 'Supermodel Superficial', Mambo Taxi's 'Push That Pram (Under The Train)', Pussycat Trash's 'Blessing Mix Up' and 'Girlfriend', Helen Love's 'Formula One Racing Girls', Heavenly's 'Atta Girl', God Is My Co-pilot's 'I Surrender Complete Control to Ann', Sister George's 'Janey's Block', Delicate Vomit 'Popstar', Skinned Teen 'Geometry of Twigs' and 'Nancy Drew', Tsunami 'Sometimes A Notion', Sleater-Kinney 'Turn It On', Growing Up Skipper 'Abby'. 
It'd be great to really fuck with people's heads on this, really challenge people's perceptions by including bands that weren't riot grrrl bands, but were singing of similar themes, so that you could have stuff like 'Daisy' by The Nelories or 'Father, Ruler, King, Computer' by Echobelly and perhaps include stuff like '20 Years In the Dakota' and 'Awful' by Hole, because they make valid criticisms and challenge people's complacency.


What did you think of the more mainstream bands that co-opted some of riot grrrl's message and perhaps dumbed it down such as the Spice Girls and Girl Power.   When Julie Burchill did a programme on them, several feminists appeared on there defending the Spice Girls as bringing a more popular but still positive message to young girls.
There's actually a piece on the F-Word site at the moment that is looking at the Spice Girls and their comeback tour, and her description of the crowd at the gigs makes it sound like a hen party on a mass scale, she also defends the Spice Girls by claiming that they were less insipid and more affirmative in message than a band like Girls Aloud.  I kind of get annoyed by this because, leaving aside the point about Girls Aloud, who I personally have more affection for than the Spice Girls (I think the songs are better, certainly more innovative musicially, and also Sarah Harding is a Stockport girl).  I think the case has yet to be made convincingly that the Spice Girls were more radical or liberating than every other girl group ever to come before them, which was, after all, the key point of their manifesto.
I think their management took a lot from Malcolm McLaren in that respect i.e. 'Let's declare it year zero, everything that came before is shit, we are now, and we are great and far more important' there's a supreme arrogance that goes with this approach, which McLaren only just pulled off, and it's certainly not an exercise you can repeat all that often and expect it to work.  In the case of the Spice Girls, it's a bit like being the Conservative Party today and claiming you care about the poor and disadvantaged.  People's memories aren't that short, well, in politics they are... I don't think it neccessarily follows with pop music though.

Besides, they weren't the first girl band to come along and be a bit stroppy, they just made more money out of it than their predecessors did.  If they changed things so much, why were critics so surprised when Girls Aloud achieved immense commercial success and One True Voice, their boy band competition, flopped?  Surely, post-Spice it would have been a no-brainer that there was a market for girl bands.  There has always been a market for girls bands, it's just that record companies decided in the case of the Spice Girls to market them at women specifically, or at little girls.  There were plenty of little girls buying records by girl bands before them, it's just that those girl bands had a smaller marketing budget and weren't marketed on a girl power manifesto.  That doesn't mean that bands like Bananarama, En Vogue, Salt N' Pepa, Shakespear's Sister, Voice of the Beehive and many others in the eighties and nineties weren't speaking to girls as an audience, and in many ways, songs like 'Robert De Niro's Waiting', 'Free Your Mind', 'Tramp', 'Goodbye Cruel World' and 'Monsters and Angels' were more feminist or more challenging, than the sort of songs the Spice Girls were writing.  And it doesn't start in the eighties or nineties, it goes right back to the birth of popular music, before that even, to people like Rose Murphy in the forties and before her, to people like Bessie Smith, Billie Holliday... it's insulting to not acknowledge any kind of heritage, and it's dishonest as well.

What annoys me about the Spice Girls is the sheer arrogance of their approach, the dishonesty of their message, the artifical, aspirational lifestyle they reinforce, the way they seem to enforce the message that sex and plastic surgery sell records, and the way that they claim to be superior in message to every woman in the music industry, past or present.  At least Girls Aloud don't pretend to be anything other than Girls Aloud.

Do you still think of yourself as a riot grrrl today?  What are your favourite memories of the scene --- what do you love/hate most about it?
I am a little cautious about calling myself a riot grrrl today:  it feels a little bit dishonest and slightly irrelevant.  Because I have been massively influenced by riot grrrl, it's still very important to me, but at the same time I'm aware that I'm older now, and that, whilst I don't feel I belong as a feminist, I also don't feel I fit in with the current crop of riot grrrls, or ladyfesters, so I'm kind of between worlds a bit, in my own bit of ground.  That's not a bad place to be, so saying, and I'm not bitter about it, but I do think there comes a point where you have to step aside and let the next wave of girls get on with it.
My favourite memory is of going to the first day of the Piao! Festival in 1994, probably because it was my first ever gig, but also because everyone was so friendly and nice, and the bands were great and a real mixture too.  You had Pussycat Trash, Th' Faith Healers, Prolapse, but you also had Gorky's Zygotic Mynci, a very early Coping Saw, and The Frantic Spiders, alongside Jacob's Mouse, and it didn't feel odd at all.  There were regular indie kid types, some crusties, a couple of rastas, and these beautiful Japanese punk girls ..
I loved the openness, friendliness and accessibility of riot grrrl, the fluidity, the space to recreate yourself... I think that all diminished in varying degrees over the years, but it's inevitable.  It happened with other scenes, so I'm not surprised it's happened with riot grrrl, just a bit disappointed.

THIS E-MAIL INTERVIEW TOOK PLACE IN APRIL 2008.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.

COVERS OF RIOT GRRRL FANZINES FROM MY OWN COLLECTION.

INTERVIEW. CAZZ BLASE (RIOT GRRRL) PART TWO

Part One of Interview here

How did you become involved in the riot grrrl book?  How easy or hard did you find to write your chapter?
I was emailed and invited to submit a brief for one of the chapters (I was allowed to pick one) by the book's editor, Nadine Monem, in late 2006/early 2007.  She had read my essay on riot grrrl on The F-Word website, and got in touch with me on the back of that.  I was rather cynical about it because they weren't a publisher I'd heard of before, and I thought it was highly suspect that they would want to invite me to write for it because I'm not a published author, or a professional journalist, so my first thought was that they were a vanity press or an author mill.  I had a brief look around the Author Beware site online, but couldn't find any reference to them, so thought I'd submit a brief on the off chance. 
I figured that they would invite loads of people to submit briefs, then narrow it down, then invite several people to write first drafts, then pick the best first draft, pay everyone else the first draft fee, and commission the best one to complete a first draft.  That wasn't what happened, and I did end up turning it down at one point because I thought the deadlines were ridiculous, but then I decided to take a chance on it.  I made sure I had a clear plan of how to do it, how to go about it, how much time it was going to take, what it was realistic to research and include, what it wasn't, but I knew it wouldn't be perfect, and that there was no way I could include everyone.  I did it because I figured that the chance of being offered another chance to write about riot grrrl for a book was highly unlikely, and as such it was like dangling a big carrot in front of a rabbit.  I think they knew that when they commissioned the book actually, because we were all a bit like that.

It was very hard to write and research, but mainly because of the time constraints involved, by the time I had a definite commission for a first draft, I only had six weeks to write and research it, so it basically meant I had no life for six weeks.  I got up early, went online, researched, went to work, came back, had my tea, researched, went to bed, then got up and it started all over again ... for six weeks.  After that, it was pretty much a waiting game, so I got on with other things and got my life back again.  By the time they'd published it, I'd pretty much forgotten about it, and was giving up hope of it ever being published.


One of the things I liked about your chapter was the way it broadened riot grrrl's influences beyond the usual reference to punk bands like The Slits.   When you did your e-mail interviews, what were some of the lesser known influences that were cited?
Quite a lot of the email interviews focused on punk actually, which was fine, there were some mentions of the sixties groups like the Shangri-Las and the Girls In The Garage stuff, and one or two people mentioned C86, Beat Happening... Grunge was mentioned quite a few times, but I decided not to go there in the end because it would have meant doing a whole section on Courtney Love and her relationship with riot grrrl at various times, and it would have taken up too much room, plus I think it's old ground, and it's been gone over a lot already, so it would be a bit like re-hashing the Sex Pistols on the Grundy Show in full detail, which I was also keen to avoid.   There are certain aspects of punk's cultural history, and of riot grrrls where you tend to think 'Oh God, please don't make me discuss this again, it's so boring, and everything has already been said so many times already' and Courtney Love was a bit like that.  There are lots of interesting things that can be said about Hole, in their own right, but there's also a lot of unneccessary bullshit, and I didn't want to clog my chapter up with episodes such as her thumping Kathleen Hanna.
I had a section on riot grrrl lyrics, which I scrapped in the end, where I did discuss Hole and the lyrics to songs like 'Awful' and '20 Years In The Dakota', but they were the interesting bits in a very weak section of the chapter so they got scrapped.
Another influence, which was only mentioned by one person, but was very interesting, was Olivia, and the impact of lesbian singer songwriters and the independent spirit established by Olivia as a label on later singer/songwriters of a riot grrrl ilk.  This would have been very useful to refer to had I been doing the singer/songwriter tradition, and I knew what they meant when they brought the connection up, because there perhaps is a connection between those acts, on that label, at the time, and someone like Ani Di Franco, or possibly even the earlier material of Cat Power.  I think of riot grrrl singer/songwriters, people like Lois Maffeo, or The Crabs, come out of more of a punk background or performance art background, but that doesn't mean there isn't a link because someone, somewhere, must have made them pick up an acoustic guitar, but establishing that link would have taken a lot longer than I had, unfortunately, so I went for the easier to prove option.

What kind of response have you had to the book?  What was it about riot grrrl that you think continues to inspire people?  How do you think riot grrrl will evolve in the future?
We haven't had a massive amount of coverage of the book, so what little coverage there's been has been broadly supportive, but some of it has been slightly tinged with a slight patronising edge, so there's been a lot of summaries of riot grrrl that have been breathtakingly simplistic, but that's tended to be in things like listings for the book launch event that the publishers did in conjunction with Ladyfest London.  The feature we had in the Independent was OK, and I got a interviewed by a very nice lady for a show on a Dublin radio station called Access All Areas, which is on Phantom FM on weekday mornings.  There was something strangely surreal but very satisfying about hearing Bikini Kill's 'Rebel Girl' going out on daytime radio at 11am.

I have had some comments about my chapter being badly researched, or covering the same ground as the earlier chapter by Julia Downes, which focused on the history of riot grrrl, but I think a certain amount of overlap was inevitable because the history of riot grrrl is so bound up in music anyway.  As to the bad research, I'd draw people's attention to the fact that I only had six weeks to write and research the chapter, which was well over the 10,000 words asked for.  In the end, I also have job and have to do such neccessary things as eat and sleep, so clearly it was never going to be perfect.  I'd accepted that before I took on the chapter, but it can still grate when people pick you up for making tiny mistakes that you wish you'd time to double check the detail on, but simply couldn't cram into an already overloaded schedule.

I think riot grrrl continues to inspire people because it was matriarchal, but in a gentle, easy, slightly passive way, it was matriarchal but very, very pissed off.  Also, I think it spoke to girls who in earlier generations might have got into feminism through something like 'Spare Rib' or Reclaim the Night or Greenham Common, but who didn't have those opportunities and outlets, and who, in the early nineties, were probably finding feminism something of a closed shop.  It was something you studied at university, it wasn't something you could own or feel a part of it you happened to simply be thirteen and pissed off with being groped in the classrooms and corridors ast school because you had to first engage with all these other issues like equal pay, work and children, things like that ... which, whilst important, tend not to feature very highly on the day to day agenda of the average teenage girl because they are, or seem at the time to be, years away.  Issues like sexual harassment in schools, sexism in advertising, public safety, they were rarely addressed by feminism in the nineties, and still aren't really because I think feminism is still fixed on the whole careers and kids thing, which is fine if you are a woman with a career and kids, but to those who have jobs rather than careers, and who either don't have or don't want children, it's somewhat less pressing as an issue.

How riot grrrl will develop in the future will depend very much on how it continues to be written about, if it does continue to be written about, and on who the next wave of girls will be.  For many people, riot grrrl died out in either 1993 or 1994, but I think, even if you believe that, you can make a very strong case for a post riot grrrl diaspora, which is now essentially in it's Ladyfest age.  Where it will go next, post Ladyfest, I don't know.  I have a feeling it's going to become increasingly academic in tone, increasingly middle class, and increasingly inaccessible, but I would like to be proved wrong on this.

Part Three of Interview here

THIS E-MAIL INTERVIEW TOOK PLACE IN APRIL 2008.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.

COVERS OF RIOT GRRRL FANZINES FROM MY OWN COLLECTION.

INTERVIEW. CAZZ BLASE (ON RIOT GRRRL). PART ONE.

I first got in touch with Cazz Blase over 10 years ago as we were both involved in doing fanzines at the time.  Over the years Cazz has produced various fanzines such as Real Girls, Harlot's Progress and Touch Sensitive.  She often wrote about female bands/singers and wrote an extended essay on the history of riot grrrl which went on to appear on The F Word website.  In 2007 she contributed a chapter on the music of riot grrrl to the book "Riot Grrrl Revolution Girl Style Now" published by Black Dog Publishing.


How did you first discover riot grrrl and what was it that appealed to you so much?
I first discovered riot grrrl in January 1993 whilst listening to the John Peel show on Radio One.  The Voodoo Queens had their debut session aired that night, and on that show, and the following night's show, he played the first Mambo Taxi single ('Prom Queen') and was also playing tracks from the Bikini Kill/Huggy Bear split LP, in between lots of stuff like Diblo Dibala and some cool ambient stuff and other stuff.  I hadn't heard his show before, and had only tuned in to hear Sonic Youth in concert which, believe it or not, had been trailed on the Radio One Breakfast Show that morning - how times change ... Mark Goodier was filling in for Simon Mayo on the Breakfast Show that day I think ... I had read a bit about riot grrrl in NME a few weeks before that I think, but it hadn't made much sense to me as it had been referenced but not really explained in any way.

In terms of what appealed, initially, it was the music and what was being sung about, but also the experimentation ... a lot of the riot grrrl bands Peel was playing at that point were very punk, and I'd got into seventies punk about a year beforehand, so it linked up very well because I already liked bands like Siouxsie and the Banshees, Slits, X-Ray Spex, as well as the Sex Pistols, Damned and Clash.  Later, I discovered Pussycat Trash, again via Peel, that was about six months later, post Huggy Bear on the Word, when the backlash was well and truly kicking in within the music press, and it was via Pussycat Trash that I found out about, firstly, Piao! which was then Squab Distribution, a north London distro selling zines and records etc. including that first Pussycat Trash 7" and a lot of riot grrrl, twee and queercore stuff.  Through them I found out about Slampt and through reading magazines like Zine and Sun Zoom Spark I got into fanzines, and writing fanzines.

Essentially, as well as the music, it was the inclusive friendly aspect I liked.   I found the indie scene rather artificial, very preoccupied with being cool and namedropping and the like, and the riot grrrl scene, or that loose 'underground' scene there was then, beyond indie, seemed much more open, accessible and friendly.  There seemed to be a good variety of people from a variety of differing, small, much maligned 'scenes' who had got together and liked some of the same bands, and so things like what clothes you wore, sexuality, age, and so on didn't seem to matter.  That was very freeing for me because it gave me a space to experiment with what I suppose people would now call 'Identity Politics' or self expression, and I needed somewhere like riot grrrl to do that, because I needed a lot of space to think and sort myself out.

Do you think there are certain things that make a band riot grrrl?  What are the defining qualities of riot grrrl in terms of sound/aesthetics?
I think this is a very contentious issue and has caused a lot of arguments and disputes over the years, which is a bit sad ... I think it really comes down to attitude.  There has to be that outspoken, highly independent attitude, which is about 50% punk and 50% feminism.  When I say punk though I mean attitude, not that the bands must sound punk.  Beyond that, I wouldn't like to say, because I think that there are so many different musical genres where there are acts that could be described as riot grrrl or perhaps post-riot grrrl, as coming out of some kind of diaspora following riot grrrl.


What are your favourite riot grrrl bands --- those from the original scene and those around now --- and why?
At the time, I really loved Bikini Kill, Huggy Bear, Mambo Taxi, The Voodoo Queens, Skinned Teen, The Frumpies, Bratmobile, Pussycat Trash --- I still like a lot of those bands but I think it's Pussycat Trash who I still really, really like.  I don't listen to them as much but I still like them a lot especially 'Blessing Mix Up', from the 'Amore' 7" they did for Kill Rock Stars.  Pussycat Trash were very noisy, bratty and chaotic, so they had a real love/hate factor to them, but there was that sense that you get with a band like Crass, or The Raincoats where you get these moments of sheer brilliance that almost seem to have happened by mistake, and that's part of the charm with them, you get into it, and the then the more you listen to them, the more you start to develop your own interpretation of what they're doing musically and why, because it's messy and there's a certain amount of self interpretation with it.
A band like Mambo Taxi were a lot more structured, and very much in that garagey girl group vein, and their album was very good, very structured, hung together very well as an album, the songwriting was quite sophisticated, and they were a very angry band, despite writing catchy songs, so you had that clash of styles, the tunes versus the lyrics almost.
I think a band like the Voodoo Queens had less antagonism between the music and the lyrics, but that they were quite experimental in other ways, for example on a track like 'Indian Film Star' where you get the sitar at the beginning, and its about Bollywood, but has this very hectic punk feel to it as well.  Not very radical lyrically, perhaps, but I think the Voodoo Queens appealed to a lot of the very young riot grrrls, and boys actually as well.  I remember when 'Kenuwee Head' came out as a single and some young boy wrote into Peel and requested it for him and 'all the other gay boys who love Keanu', so there was this side to them that was quite good as an alternative pop outfit for very young kids, who maybe wanted something more challenging that what else was available at the time ... which may sound like I'm leading to a Spice Girls analogy, but I'm not, because I don't think the Spice Girls could have written anything like 'Supermodel Superficial' and certainly not the later stuff, which was darker and more complex, stuff like 'Caffeine' and 'Eat the Germs'. 
I probably had and still have, a preference for the UK bands, and this is partly to do with availability of records and suchlike at the time, and partly just musicial preference.   I would say that, of the bands around now, I probably like less of the current bands because my tastes have moved on to an extent, so I tend to like people like Laura Veirs, who may or may not have held any truck with riot grrrl, and people like Lianne Hall, who was in Witchknot, but now makes electro-folk music.   I like Laura Veirs because she has this very unassuming quality, very anti-rockstar, but in a really subtle unconscious way, she concentrates on the songs, and she doesn't have an image or concept to put across, she just does it, and in her own, subtle way she is very outspoken.  If you look at songs like 'Cannon Fodder' or 'Jailhouse Fire', and there's this really evocative, melancholic quality to a lot of her stuff that I like as well.
I think I like a band like The Aisler's Set for similar reasons, even though the music is quite different, there's the subtle quality, and Amy Linton is similarly unassuming I think.  I quite like The Pipettes, but I'm not sure that as a concept it can last beyond one album, and I really, really, really love The Gossip, although I was slow to see how good they really were I think, in that I liked the first album but didn't love it, and it's only been with 'Standing In the Way Of Control', hearing the whole album, that I realised how staggeringly good they were.
Because I'm a writer, not a musician, I think I notice lyrics and voices more than I notice musicianship, so things like whether a guitar is in tune, how many chords someone can play, tend to not factor in much, but a good voice, good production, and good lyrics tend to stand out to me, and she does have that kind of voice that makes you go weak at the knees and sends a shiver down your spine, cliches though both those expressions are, so I'm hoping they'll go from strength to strength, and that Beth Ditto will be prove to be curiously indestructible.   I live in hope anyway.
I recently had a copy of the Robots in Disguise album burned for me, which I quite like.  I don't think Robots In Disguise neccessarily have any interest in riot grrrl, though they clearly have learnt to play in public, and are quite punk-y electro-y ish but that may be coincidence.  The link between the Pipettes and riot grrrl is fairly tenuous, but to some extent they also seem to share some common ground in that their lyrics are quite subversive that way, and I think Robots In Disguise are quite subversive in some ways as well, but ina different way.

What if any do you think were the differences between the US and UK scenes and key bands like Bikini Kill and Huggy Bear?
I think the US college radio scene perhaps makes a big difference.  They don't seem to have that whole 'build 'em up, knock 'em down' approach with the music press, and in fact, I believe they don't have a 'music press' in the same way that we do in the UK, so would expect that that would make a big difference.  I think the London riot grrrl scene in the nineties was hampered partly by it being in London and therefore easy for London journalists to access and write about.  Had it started in the UK in the Scottish Hebrides, South Armagh, or Abargavenny, I can't help but think that they might have been given a lot more breathing space to develop, because the press wouldn't have become aware of it so quickly. 
In terms of differences between Huggy Bear and Bikini Kill, I was never personally acquainted with either band, but from what I know of both of them, I would say the musicial influences were very different.   I think Bikini KIll drew a lot from seventies punk and particularly bands like X-Ray Spex, whereas I think Huggy Bear were drawing more from bands like Pussy Galore and Sonic Youth, that whole eighties, US noise scene that pre-dated grunge.

Part Two of Interview here

Part Three of Interview here
THIS E-MAIL INTERVIEW TOOK PLACE IN APRIL 2008.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.

COVERS OF RIOT GRRRL FANZINES FROM MY OWN COLLECTION.

INTERVIEW. SCAREIFINA (WICKED LITTLE DOLLS)

Scareifina is the lead singer for Wicked Little Dolls (the other band members are MarrCello, MiZari and LuCi).  Classic Rock described them as "a loony, possibly Satanic cross between Alice Cooper and Daisy Chainsaw" and dubbed them New York City's darkest, dirtiest secret.  Their self-titled debut album is out now and they're currently working on the follow-up.


You got your start writing songs for black metal band, Ancient.  What's your favourite memory about your time with that band?
My favourite memories are seeing Europe on tour and being in the Lillith's Embrace video.  We shot it in Norway and we were freezing.  I remember for one shot we thought it would be a killer idea to go inside a cave and make a fire.  We all nearly died in the friggen cave.  There we are, a bunch of badass black metal members scrambling to get out of a cave in Norway, that was filling up with black smoke because of your brilliant make-a-fire-in-a-cave idea.  We did get the shot, but yeah, not the best plan, lol.

Do you have any other side projects now or are you just concentrating on Wicked Little Dolls?
WLD is my one and only baby.  It's more than a band to us, it's a way of life, a family, it's an enchanted empire.

What's your favourite song on the album and why?
Rotten Candy.  It feels good to be the predator.  I need that feeling on stage, unrelenting rage.  It takes a certain type of monster to rape a child or beat an innocent creature and it takes an equal amount of anger to slay the slayer.

In your CD notes you thank Eminem and Oprah Winfrey.  What is it about these particular people that inspires you?
Eminem speaks his mind with no filter.  I admire that about him, and he's got a ton of talent and came up from nothing.
Oprah Winfrey uses her life to speak out and put focus on topics that need to be discussed.  My music is often inspired by something she brought to my attention through her show.  I do not believe in accidents, so if I see something I ask myself why did I see this and how can I help.  I first learned about baby rape on her show.  Men with AIDS in Africa were raping babies because they were told that having sex with a virgin will cure them.  I thought that babies were so young and innocent that they would not know what had happened to them until I saw this six month old little girl's eyes.  She had been raped at five months old, her body had to be put back together, and in her eyes I saw a sadness that brings me to tears even as I write this.  If Oprah had not followed her path to the top I never would have seen that little girl.  It's important to use your life.

You use a lot of doll imagery in your songs (as well as the name of the band itself) --- what is that fascinates you about dolls?
Secrets were as normal as the sun rising in my house growing up.  There is something about the way a porcelain dolls' eyes look that make me think they keep secrets.  Many people have a fear of dolls because they always look like they are looking at you.  I have many, many dolls all over my home.  I love them obsessively.   My first doll Emily was on the WLD album.  She has a music box inside her, I wound her up and you can hear her song on the end of our record.

I first came across your band when you donated a CD to Ladyfest Newcastle (which was given to me by the organisers as a thank you present) and you sent this amazing package where you customised a box to look like an antique book and put dried flowers in with the CD.  Do you have any craft-type hobbies?  What's the favourite thing you've ever made?
I do enjoy painting and drawing and making things inside boxes.  My favourite thing I made was "Scareifina's Box".  It was a box with a broken porcelain doll from Italy inside it.  Inside the box I decorated it to reflect my life and I took string and bound another doll to the box.  We all have a box we live in, things that make us feel stuck.  That was my favourite and it was stolen at a show.  I hope whoever stole it loves the dolls the way I do.

The video to Rotten Candy shows you as a vampire and your CD has quite a strong horror vibe to it.  What's your favourite horror movie and why?
I have so many favourite horror movies, "The Blood Splattered Bride" is one and another one I really love is "Alice Sweet Alice".   I love "The Blood Splattered Bride" because it turns me on.  I don't like porn, but this movie is like porn to me.  It's a haunting story, beautifully shot, and so rich with romance, obsession and horror.
"Alice Sweet Alice" I love because it's such a twisted tale with two sisters, two little girls, one is good the other is bad.   I love duality, and little girls that kill is always a good time.

If you could cover any song what would it be and why?
I really don't know, I wish I could cover something crazy like a Devil Doll song.  That is some insane music that I love.

Do you and the rest of the band all come from New York?  What do you like best about living in the city?
LuCi and I grew up in Northern Virginia, MarrCello and MiZari grew up in Argentina.  We all love the city because you can find anything you want at any time.  MarrCello told me yesterday, "It's crazy man, I went downtown to get some coffee and found this place that sells coffee, tea and shoes!  The tables in the place were made out of old drum sets, I fucking love NYC!"  His statement sums up how I feel too, it's a magic box that moves and doors change and open and close and open all the time.

What are your live shows like?
I never really remember much after I hit the stage, I stop thinking and just sing and by the end of the set I have two bloody knees and I feel like I cried for three days.  It's the best feeling in the world.  We do each show differently, sometimes we hand out candy, lollipops are a must at any show.  Other times we bring out hot WLD's with us to sing back up vocals.  Our last show, one of my closest friends, Andrea, did the show with us.  She had a fantastic voice.  I love to give other women the experience of being on stage.

Do you have any plans to play Europe/the UK?
We don't have formal plans but we are going to London at some point in time.  I plan to stay there for a few months.

What are your future plans for WLD?
We have almost finished our new album.  It will have 13 songs.  One song is called "Angel in Darkness" and it is about a NYC girl from our scene that goes by the name of Dark Angel and she killed and castrated her father in July.  He raped her from age 3 till a teen and her sisters too.  We will sell this track online and donate the money to her.  (EDITORS NOTE:   The website address that Scareifina gave me isn't working but if you Google Brigitte Harris + Dark Angel you can read more about this case.)   The money is going to get her a good lawyer.  She slayed a monster and saved another little girl from the horror she went through.  I hope she gets help and goes on to live a good life.  If every little girl who raped killed we wouldn't have a million perverts all over the world.  A word to all the WLD's out there, I'm not saying to go kill who ever wronged you, it's better to not fuck yourself over, find a way to use your life instead, and always use the dirty secret parts --- that makes for very rich soil.
Bloody Kisses,
Scareifina, MarrCello, MiZari and LuCi.
WLD4LIFE.

THIS E-MAIL INTERVIEW WAS DONE IN MARCH 2008.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN MAY 2008.
PHOTOS OF WICKED LITTLE DOLLS FROM THEIR MYSPACE.

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

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.

INTERVIEW. THEE MERRY WIDOWS

Thee Merry Widows are an all girl psychobilly band based in San Francisco.   They are:  Nishone on lead guitar, Mistress Mandy on rhythm guitar, Andrea on drums and Nikki Nightbreed on upright bass with Miss Eva Von Slut on vocals and theremin.   Miss Eva is also an accomplished burlesque performer and pin-up model.


How long have you been together --- do you all come from San Francisco originally?

AMANDA:  2 years.  I'm a Bay Area native originally from Palo Alto.  I've lived 10 years in San Francisco and played 1.5 years with Thee Merry Widows.
ANDREA:   I'm from Oakland across the Bay from SF.
NISHONE:  I'm from San Pedro, CA.   Miss Eva is from Wisconsin and Nikki is from New Jersey.


Why did you choose the name Thee Merry Widows?

Because we thought Fannie was a stupid name.


How would you describe your music?  What do you think defines music as psychobilly style?

NISHONE:  Our music is a combination of punk, psychobilly, goth and garage.   Our style comes from our punk edge and upright bass.


Your songs use a lot of horror music imagery.  What is your favourite horror movie or monster and why?

AMANDA:  My favourite horror movies feature human psychopaths such as Psycho, the Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Martin.   Human monsters scare me more than beings spawned purely from the imagination because they are the ones who are more likely to get you in real life.  My favourite non-human monster is probably the Werewolf.  I also love the evil car Christine.  Is a possessed car considered a monster?
ANDREA:  I like Poltergeist because religious people scare me.
NISHONE:  My favourite horror movies are The Blob and Attack of the Killer Tomatoes.

CD COVER PHOTO BY DALE RIO

FROM L TO R:  MISTRESS MANDY, NISHONE, ANDREA,

MISS EVA VON SLUT AND NIKKI NIGHTBREED

What has been your most memorable gig so far?

AMANDA:  I loved playing the Zombie Party.  We all dressed up like zombies, everyone at the party was dressed like a zombie.   There was a good cat fight on stage between Miss Eva and Nikki, and there were plenty of jello shots to go around.  It was kinda surreal.   The closest thing to being part of Night of the Living Dead that I'll probably ever experience.
ANDREA:   I'd have to say the East Bay Rats party at the Stork Club in Oakland.  Somehow having a half-naked chick make out with Eva on stage and get her butthole rimmed by Smiley has permanently found a place in my memory.  That and our first ever Command Centre party.
NISHONE:   My most memorable gig was playing with the Phenomenauts and The Teenage Harlets in Petaluma at the Phoenix Theatre.


You have lots of tattoos --- what is your favourite tattoo and why?

MISS EVA:  My favourite tattoo at the moment is the Japanese fan that Kalil from Mom's Body Shop has started on my left thigh.
NISHONE:  My favourite is the school teacher that looks like a 1940s pin-up.


Nikki, was the upright bass difficult to learn and what attracted you to it?

NIKKI:  Hell yeah!  I thought because I could build bridges and work on cars it would be easy but it kicks my ass just the same.


Miss Eva, you also work as a burlesque performer.  What is it you liked about burlesque (either performing it or the general aesthetic)?   Do you have any favourite burlesque perfomers (either past or present)?

MISS EVA:  I love burlesque as it is a combination of sexuality and glamour that I find irrestible.   I love being glamorous and wearing beautiful costumes and jewellery.  What woman wouldn't?
Some of my favourite current performers are:  Bella Beretta, Mimi LeMeaux, Kitten DeVille, Anna Bells, Kitten on the Keys, Dirty Martini, the World Famous BOB, Erochia Bamboo to name a few.
Some of the legends of the business that I love are Satan's Angel (my mentor!), Tempest Storm, Lili St. Cyr, Isis Starr, Dixie Evans (who is still running the Exotic World Museum in Helendale, California) and Zorita.


Miss Eva, I noticed on your personal web site that you said you were a big fan of Jayne Mansfield's (I am as well) and I was wondering what you like about her.  If you ever wrote a song about her, what do you think you would call it?

MISS EVA:   I adore Jayne Mansfield, along with Mae West she is probably one of my biggest inspirations.  She was so very sexual and so aware of what her sexuality did to others.  I don't think there is any current actress who has the staggering sex appeal of Jayne Mansfield!
I don't know if I would ever write a song about her but maybe we could cover "The Girl Can't Help It" (the title and song from one of her movies).


Miss Eva, why did you decide to join the reformed Insaints to replace their late lead singer, Marian Anderson?

MISS EVA:  I could hardly turn down the chance as I was a HUGE Insaints fan when I was in my late teens and early 20s.   So when Daniel (guitarist and founding member of the Insaints) asked if I would do so I could hardly say no.   Marian was an amazing woman and any opportunity to introduce people to her music is an honour for me.


What are your future plans for Thee Merry Widows --- will you be releasing an album soon and will you be touring the UK/Europe again soon?

AMANDA:   We will release an album this summer and do a little East Coast tour.   I'm sure we'll make it to Europe sometime after that.

http://www.merrywidowsmusic.com/

THIS INTERVIEW WAS DONE BY E-MAIL IN MAY 2005.  ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.

NOTE:  Since this interview, Jenna Ferocious has joined the band on upright bass.

INTERVIEW. ANDREA KERR (COLT/LIVING WITH EATING DISORDERS)

Andrea Kerr is the lead singer of Colt (formerly known as Living With Eating Disorders).  Along with Jared Christian and Mark Bishop, she creates ambient darkwave music that has garnered rave reviews.   They have released one EP called "White Like Snow" and are currently working on their debut album.
http://www.coltmusic.co.uk/


You originally came from Glasgow.  What did you like most about it and what (if anything) did you dislike?

I liked my childhood and I miss my grandparents very much, I lost my gran in June and there hasn't been one day since when I haven't wanted to talk to her or tell her something that she will never be able to hear.  I liked the weather, in hindsight I loved the weather, I miss it.  The climate suits my melancholic disability, the way misery can completely bind me is debilitating and the dramatic grey skies are sympathetic to my sensitivity.  The roads wide and winding are more welcoming and gentle to drive, they take you places far away from people in no times at all and having a car is access to complete escape.  I like a real fire and the contrast in the temperature that you feel on your skin when you go outside.  Fire, I loved the fire I used have inside me.

I don't miss the Catholic Protestant divide, which I notice more from having moved away.  It caused me so much unnecessary grief as a child.  To be taught that only a people who follow a certain religion can gain access to heaven is wrong.  To think of people. who you love and depend on, not to be granted a place in the afterlife is traumatising and stays with you forever.


What are some of your favourite artists and are there any songs you'd like to cover?

Cover versions are a funny type of animal.  I would only like to cover something that would be different enough from the original to be a valid choice.  Also I think I could only sing something with conviction if I believe what I am singing.  There are songs out there that I can relate to but to sing them might feel like a bit of a lie; however, I have always fancied doing a cover of 'Diamonds Are Forever'.  I think I could get heavy with that one.  "I don't need love, for what good will love do me?"  I could sing with tears in my eyes.

Bowie.  Always Bowie is a favourite.  I find that some other favourites fall in and out of love depending on mood or even time but Bowie is always an inspiration.  In fact if I was pushed to cover a song I might choose "We Are The Dead", if only for line "people will hold us to blame."

Radiohead, I have rediscovered 'OK Computer' while loading CDs into i-Tunes and there wasn't one track I could do without.  There are certain songs that are beyond a reaction and the first time I heard that album I was so choked up I couldn't talk about it.

Kate Bush is less human and more like a dream that lives in the back of my head, I can hardly believe she is real; listening to her voice is like going under anaesthetic.  When I was a kid mum would sit me in front of Kate Bush videos with my dressing up clothes and I would pretend to be her.  When other kids got Disney, but I got Kate Bush and Fleetwood Mac.  Thank heavens.

I love the photos on your website taken in the Victorian hospital and I was wondering what sort of imagery you'd like to use in videos if you made them for your songs?

Cars and night driving, it's so clichéd but there is just a perfect togetherness about driving at night and music --- a protection you get from music that is similar to the protection you feel in a car, they both form a web around you.  Circus horses or carousel horses, controlled horses in any case, not wild horses.  There is something similar in controlling a horse as there is to controlling a guitar, knowing when to hold it tight, every step precise and accurate, building up the energy inside then letting it go, offering the full length of the reins is like the kick after you pull a trigger.  Water is very similar to car in the way that it surrounds you like a protective layer and going under is so strange on the senses, especially hearing.  It would have to be something beautiful and dark, and definitely something that involves movement.  Cars, horses or water.


You supported Psychic TV.  How did that go and did you get to meet Genesis?  I know you've said you're a big fan of his, it must have been a dream come true to play alongside his band.

It was a milestone for me, one of the best days of my life, and there are only a handful of these.  Genesis was the embodiment of a true star.  I thought for a long time about what I might say if I met him but it all went out the window when I bumped into him backstage.  I don't know what I was thinking but I didn't even introduce myself, I just walked up and put my arms round him.  The moment I saw him I knew it would be alright.  After the show I told him he had better tits then me and he told me that his cost more and there was logic to that.


What inspires your songs?  I think my favourite is Horsemilk --- who or what is it about?

Ha ha.  I can tell you what it's about but I can't tell you who!  It's about someone trying to manipulate a situation using emotional blackmail and appease me by pretending to be my friend.  An angel to my face but behind my back trying to destroy something I had.  What made so angry was that at first I was fooled but when I saw through it I felt sick with anger.
My anger, my fears and my loves inspire my songs.  There would be nothing to write about without love and anger, and no reason to write if I wasn't too shy to tell people what I was thinking.

You have a very striking image onstage --- is this an extension of how you look anyway or is it exaggerated for effect?  In the sense of feeling like you're wearing a costume.  This isn't meant as a criticism, I think you look great.  What are some of your favourite outfits?

It's an extension of how I look, my hair is always the same and I just wear more eye shadow and fewer clothes onstage.  I feel I can get away with being more provocative with my appearance when we play as the stage is a great barrier, there is always an audience so I am not going to be alone with anyone who may take advantage of my vulnerable appearance and I can play up to that to certain extent.
Also I think that if people come to see a gig they want something to look at too so I think it's my duty not to turn up wearing something I would wear in the house, but at the same time I have to be myself.
My favourite outfits are all white, apart from a green 70s nightdress that I wear as a dress.  Actually that's it, the pale green nightdress.  It's so soft and fine, and the palest green.  I love green.  More than outfits though I love shoes, the higher the better and the more damage they can potentially do to my feet, ankles and spine, the more money I am willing to pay for them!


You did mention once on your Live Journal that you're gay.   I was wondering if you think there is a fundamental difference in the way men and women write songs even they're writing about the same subject (desiring or loving a woman) or if you think certain emotions and experiences are universal?

Yes I think I mentioned being gay as I was attracted to girls more than boys that month.  It comes and goes, I am undecided, I think I am still coming to terms with the fact that I may be bisexual.  I hate that, I would rather be one or the other to be honest as I think that bisexuals get a bit of a rough deal with a lot of people seeing them as "sitting on the fence" either too scared to come out as gay or just being easy and going with someone of the same sex when they can't find someone of the opposite.  Also I hate saying the word, it sounds so silly, I never say it out loud, ever.  But to answer whether I think it makes a difference then I think not.  Emotions hold the same beauty and turbulence no matter what sex I am feeling them for.  I have written about girls and anyone reading it wouldn't have a clue.


Your band have done benefits for self harm and it's been a theme in your work (for instance, the artwork on some of your demo CDs). I self harmed on and off for many years and to be honest, I found one of the hardest things to deal with was other people's attitudes.  What made you decide to be honest about this aspect of your life --- especially as the media seem to portray male and female musicians with mental health problems very differently.  The men are seen as the tortured geniuses (Richey Edwards and Kurt Cobain) whereas the women are stigmatised and sidelined (see Courtney Love or Katie Jane Garside).

The same as you, other people's attitudes have been the hardest thing I have had to deal with as well --- the looks of disgust, not being trusted in shops, not being taken seriously, being thought of as dangerous to other people.
And I decided that I wanted to help raise awareness to start a change in the way people who SI are perceived and treated.  If more people understand then there is a good chance that more injurers will have the courage to seek help and get it.  I don't mind being sidelined for being a woman, or for any reason, I don't need recognition and I am no genius but even if I only help one person through my honesty then that is reward enough.


I know that you try and be friendly to your fans but I just wonder if you do set limits to maintain some distance.  Are you worried that an unhealthy dynamic will develop between you and your fans?  That people may be drawn to you for the "wrong" reasons and that this could have a detrimental effect on you or them?  (I'm not just thinking about the self-harm but also the anorexia).  That to some people it might seem as if you are glamourising/encouraging these behaviours although personally, I don't think you are.

I'm not worried at all, although recently it has occurred to me that I should perhaps raise a bit of a barrier.  Till now I haven't seen much need to maintain any more distance than I would with friends.  After all, a lot of the early fans have become friends but it is changing.  I do feel as though I have a responsibility now but people are drawn to others for all sorts of reasons, right and wrong, and it's not my place to decide how they choose to see me.  It's just life, a series of loving and being loved, admiring and being admired, rejecting and being rejected.   There will be people out there who know of me though I haven't heard of them and there are people who I admire tremendously who will never hear of me, but that is what makes the world go round, we are all chasing after someone else unaware we are being chased ourselves.

THIS INTERVIEW WAS DONE BY E-MAIL IN JANUARY 2005.


Why did you decide to stop using the name Living With Eating Disorders?  Was it purely a personal decision or were you influenced by what other people said (either directly to you or indirectly)?

The name LWED was never one we felt comfortable with, it created an image that we don't really fit into and touched too closely on problems that I would rather not deal with or talk about.  This was a huge pressure on two different levels.
First of all, I was put on the spot to explain myself, people would constantly ask if I had battled eating disorders - which is something I find incredibly difficult to talk about. And secondly, there was the pressure to live up to the image the name created, which made me so unhappy with my appearance --- the more attention the band seemed to get became indirectly proportional to the amount I would allow myself to eat and it spiralled out of control.

In short, the name summed up a specific time in our work together, it was never intended to be permanent and certainly not chosen to shock or offend and I would like to leave the name behind for many reasons.  It doesn't seem as sincere as it once did and I would have to make myself ill again before it does.


What made you choose the name Colt?  What does it symbolise to you?

I think the word colt sums up how we wanted to be from the start.  I like the unbroken, masculine innocence of the word colt and I think that suits what we are trying to do.  There is something about the way a young horse's unshod hooves beat on the earth that reminds of the tribal drum sound that I love.  A foal is still a little timid, not boisterous enough, and by the time a horse is fully broken and shod, it is too late, the sound is too restrained , too controlled.  The colt is at that in between stage, which has the speed and strength of the adult horse but still the wildness and curiousity of the foal.


What are your future plans for the band now?  Will you use any of the old LWED songs on your forthcoming album or are you going to start afresh?

 Well, we plan to release the album and shoot a video in the next few months, then we can get back to writing.  I have really missed writing recently and can't wait to get back to it.

As the album is already recorded we are going to release it but under the new name.  The change of name was never about getting away from what we were or from the music we make, it was directly to do with an image that was increasingly difficult for me to deal with, so the music will stay the same.

THIS ADDITIONAL E-MAIL INTERVIEW WAS DONE IN JULY 2005.  THANKS TO ANDREA FOR SUPPLYING THE LIVE PHOTOS AS WELL.  PHOTOS BY SARA BOWERY AT DEVONSHIRE ARMS MAY 2005.

http://www.coltmusic.co.uk/

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.

NOTE:   Colt have now released an album and an EP and are currently working on new material.

INTERVIEW. SKY SALT.

Sky Salt are a New York based band who are attracting rave reviews for their brand of melodic alternative rock combined with a striking visual image.  The band comprise Xenia on vocals, piano and guitar, Mark AD on guitar and Lillie Charlotte on bass.  Xenia is also a talented fashion designer and make-up artist.  Their debut album is called I BELIEVE IN FAIRYTALES and you can check out Xenia's make-up tutorials on http://www.limecrime.net/


How would you describe your music?  I think your image (particularly that of Mark AD and Lillie Charlotte) is quite Gothic influenced but the music less so.

MARK:   I usually say "fairytale rock."  I think the music is definitely dark, but not so much "gothic".  I'd call it guitar driven, kiss and tell glam, flirting with metal and indulging in a little alternative introspection and irony.  That's all summed up as "fairytale rock" for me.
XENIA:  We coined the term "fairytale rock" because we felt that we didn't really fit into existing categories.  We could say we play "modern rock" but we tend to be a bit more inventive than Nickelback (not offence to those guys).  We could say we are a Visual K band but the closest we've come to being Japanese is having a half Japanese bassist.  We are pretty dark but wouldn't exactly make Siouxsie proud. So yeah, Fairytale Rock!
LILLIE:  I'm --- not really sure what I call it.   I say "Come to our next show and see for yourselves."


You called your album I BELIEVE IN FAIRYTALES.  What is your favourite fairytale and why?

XENIA:  I write my own!  I enjoy Master and Margarita (Bulgakov), Harry Potter and the Brothers Grimm.
LILLIE:  I like Alice in Wonderland, cheesy as it may be to state so, for many reasons.  It was written by a madman to begin with, and I've always seen myself as an Alice-like character.   Misplaced in my own everyday "wonderland."

Xenia, how do you think your Russian background is an influence on your music (if indeed you think it is)?

XENIA:  It's hard to say.  I lived in Russia for 17 years but mostly listened to English-speaking bands.  My "secret" Russian influence is this quirky band called Agata Kristi.  They sing about everything from murderous clowns to glorified drug use in the 1920s and instilled in me the love for creepy music boxes.


You play the piano and guitar.  What do you think are the particular qualities for each instrument (as in how they differ from one another, would you prefer to use one for a sad song, for instance)?

XENIA:   Piano is my first instrument which I have been playing for as long as I can remember.  I am classically trained on piano and music theory.  In my late teens I rejected piano entirely as an instrument as "too lame for rock 'n' roll".  That was when I picked up my first guitar and discovered songwriting!  Today, 80 % of my songs are written on guitar.  I turn to keyboard for certain effects and textures (like the Fairy Tale intro) but guitar is definitely a more universal songwriting tool for me.


What is your favourite song on the album and why?

MARK:  Beautiful --- it just rocks hard and it hints at our love of Alice in Chains without aping their sound completely, which is very easy to do if you're not careful.   It's the essence of fairytale rock and is the defining track of the record in my estimation.
XENIA:  That changes every day!   One day I'm digging on Beautiful, the next I'm all over 2 of a Kind, and the next find myself playing Low on repeat.


Lillie Charlotte has been the newest member to join.  This is for LC --- how did you come to join Sky Salt and what do you like most about the band?

LILLIE:  You'll hear many variations of how I joined Sky Salt, let's suffice to say --- it just sorta happened.  I like the visual style and musical style, since they are both rather similar to my own project.

If you had to do a cover version, which song would you do and why?

MARK:  We actually do mix covers into our live set.  One old standby is Ozzy's "I Just Want You", love that for the epic Ozzy-ness of it.  It's a lighters in the air kind of tune without being cheesy.   We add some piano stylings that make it our own.   It becomes a F'Tale anthem.
We've also done a stripped down version of the Beach Boys classic, "In My Room" which is very haunting with Xenia's voice and altered lyrics about dolls and other elements of her childhood.


The whole band has a very stunning and distinctive style. What other musicians' style do you admire?

XENIA:  Anyone with a strong presence and a penchant for rock star antics.  Marilyn Manson, Ozzy Osbourne, Alice Cooper.
MARK:  I tend to love guitar intensive metal and hard rock .   Zakk Wylde, Alice in Chains, Lillie recently turned me onto to Dir En Grey and I can dig it.  I love violin music --- especially Pagannini.  But at the end of the day, kick ass guitar music gets me going.  Slash, Dimebag (RIP), Van Halen.
LILLIE:  Sonata Arctica totally owns me but I'm a sucker for over-the-top theatrics like Mana's bands Malice Mizer and Moi Dix Mois.  My biggest influences are probably the bands from the now defunct Key Party record label such as Noir Fleurir, Noi'X, Aliene Ma'riage and Missalina Rei.


As you're such a visual band, I'm really looking forward to seeing any videos you might make for your songs, what sort of imagery would you like to use?

MARK:  Scary little girls in cute dresses a la "The Shining" seems like a good start.
XENIA:  Ditto!  I am an extremely visual person so I think about video representation of our music all the time.  Imagery varies depending on the song but for the most part it's either ethereal little girls (huge fan of Nightmare on Elm Street) or over-the-top rock star shit like white doves flying out of a black Porsche.  "laughs".
LILLIE:   They say the camera adds twenty pounds so I'll wear a dress that won't make me look fat!

Xenia, you also design and make clothes for your own fashion label, Lime Crime.  What other fashion designers do you admire?

XENIA:  Oh man.  Too many to name!  Betsey Johnson, Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen, Issey Miyake, Heatherette and my friend Yana aka Supayana.


What's been your most memorable gig so far and why?

XENIA:   Tribeca Rock Club --- because it sucked!  Everything that could go wrong did, but we ended up having fun nonetheless.  But oh man, it was definitely one of the most embarrassing shows we've ever done!  Mark offered nudie pics of himself as part of the compensation to the audience but figured it would only add insult to injury.  "laughs".
MARK:  The most memorable show?  I'd say MASKARA!  Because we organise it and it's great to see everyone dress up and have a good time!  It's good to take some of the elitism out of the fashion industry and share the stage with other bands we respect and admire.
From the MASKARA website:   MASKARA is just what it is:  a Legendary Festival of Deviants.  Call it the most disturbingly real fashion experience you'll ever have or a debauched Bacchanal for freaks and drag queens, one thing is true:  no matter what you've heard about it, no words good or bad, can convey the impact this party has on the city that never sleeps.

What are your future plans --- will you be touring Europe/the UK soon?

MARK:  In terms of touring we want to explore North America a bit but Europe is not safe from the Fairy Tale infection by any means ;)
XENIA:  My future plans include fully transforming myself into a man and touring Europe with a cucumber in my pants.  I think Lillie and I share the same vision.

THIS INTERVIEW WAS DONE BY E-MAIL IN MAY 2005.  ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.

ALL PHOTOS OF SKY SALT FROM THEIR ORIGINAL WEBSITE.  FROM TOP TO BOTTOM:  XENIA, LILLIE CHARLOTTE, XENIA, MARK AD.

NOTE:  Sky Salt have now split up but check the tags on this blog for an update on what they're up to now.

INTERVIEW. UNSKINNY BOP DJS (RUTH/TAMSIN)

Unskinny Bop is a monthly club night in London.  It has promoted itself as an attitude-free alternative to many of the image obsessed nights on London's alternative scene.  It is a queer run club night that welcomes everyone regardless of looks/size, sexual persuasion or gender and that diversity is reflected in an eclectic playlist.  They also occasionally produce a mini zine loosely based around the topic of body image/fat phobia featuring contributions from the likes of Charlotte Cooper and Bill Savage and cartoonist Lucy Sweet.

The 2 girls that run it, Ruth and Tamsin proudly proclaim that they are "for batties and fatties --- providing disco dancing opportunities for girls, gays and misfits."   And perhaps most revolutionary of all, they say AS IT IS AT THE DISCO, SO IT SHALL BE IN LIFE.


How did you start out as DJs?

I think really the origins of deejaying for both of us was in being obsessive mix tape makers and realising that the technical skills come second to the main criteria of having a good record collection and knowing when a song will sound good next to another one.  Before we met we had both been doing bits of deejaying here and there, Tamsin at Debbie's Smith's various club nights in London, Ruth at Poptastic in Sheffield and Manchester.


Do you have any tips for anyone wanting to be a DJ/run a club night?

DJing:  1.   Listen, think and talk about music non-stop and always be on the lookout for new great songs.
2.  Don't get too hung up on genre --- if you think a song is good, play it, people will come along with you (there are some exceptions to this, I was shocked when I played MmmBop by Hanson at the Bop and didn't get a round of applause much less a heaving dancefloor).
3.  Go out a lot and dance.  It's always good to know what other nights are doing and what songs feel good on the dancefloor.


What do you like/dislike most about DJing?

Best thing definitely is creating dancefloor magic, playing some crazy mixes of songs that seem to only make sense in your own head or dancing in your bedroom and having the kids go wild.  Worst thing is serial requesters who never even dance to the songs they have hassled you into playing!

What's been the most memorable night so far?

Probably the Halloween special featuring Zombina and the Skeletones and The Priscillas.  The venue was absolutely packed with a queue down the street, almost everyone dressed up in amazingly creative and scarey Halloween costumes, we had Delia from the A-Lines and Schla La La's as guest DJ and we had two of our most favourite bands in the world playing.  Shame we were too stressed out to fully enjoy it!


You sometimes do themed nights like the Dolly Parton/Kenny Rogers one --- what themes would you like to do in the future if you could?

It is possible that we will do a Summer Fun night at the August Bop but that depends on our powers of organisation in advance, the next fully themed night will be a Divas special featuring a dress up as your favourite diva competition and a countdown of the official Unskinny Bop Top Ten Divas.  I would also really really like to have some Karaoke going on but not sure if it will be feasible so can't promise anything --- We haven't set a date for this yet but it will be fully advertised on our website etc.


You also sometimes put on bands like The Priscillas and Zombina and the Skeletones.  Who would be your dream bands/singers to have at UB that you haven't had yet?

 We only do gigs occasionally as it is hard hard work, and the Bop is definitely more of a disco than a band night.  That said we are both currently completely obsessed with The Long Blondes and have been fantasising about having them play for us.


I know that you do an occasional mini zine as well to go along with your club night which I really love.  Do you have plans to do anything else like a bigger zine or an Unskinny Bop compilation CD?

 We will definitely be doing another zine at some point but not sure about a compilation CD --- I think making a compilation should be as much about the recepient as the person making the CD so I think it would be quite hard to make one for general use.  Also we are both quite square and good so would be worried about being sued for infringement of copyright etc.  The good people of Homocrime did mention the possibility of us curating a CD-R compilation release of songs by bands we know and love, so we might give that a go at some point.


Unskinny Bop has a very diverse and eclectic playlist even for an alternative club.  I think that's what appeals to me most, that you don't just play all indie music and that I get the feeling you play stuff because you genuinely love it not because you think it's "ironic".  Is there anything in particular you would recommend indie purists should check out that they've maybe not considered before?  Anything that you've played that people have loved and they maybe wouldn't have thought they would have done.

We would never dream of playing something ironically which is why the whole idea of "guilty pleasures" as a musical genre is annoying --- why be guilty about liking something just because it is perceived to be uncool?  I don't think it is in any way weird or wrong that I love listening to Girls Aloud as much as Girls At Our Best.  I don't have anything against indie purists as they tend to be so obsessed and obsessive about music that they have got enough stuff to be going on with without checking out the new Usher single.  What I object to is casual rock fans who devote masses of time and energy on criticising Avril Lavigne for being a fake --- she's a popstar, she doesn't have to be real!

In terms of recommendations, hmm, I think that most indie purists are essentially in love with a particular strand of pop music and that it is a real shame that they are blinkered to pop in its other guises.  I blame the NME, who wouldn't?  In my experience, unfortunately, (straight, white, male) indie purists are reluctant to accept music recommendations from fat lezzer Dolly Parton obsessives but I would encourage them to listen to other stuff with an open mind and not be so hung up on credibility.

I read on your website that you said one of the things that inspired Unskinny Bop was the increasing feeling that even alternative clubs were becoming more fashion conscious and body fascist.  Do you think the London scene has changed and why do you think this is?

Basically we set up Unskinny Bop based on our experiences of 8 odd years of gay, indie, and gay indie clubbing in London and the regions.  In the old days the notion of a gay indie club was very subversive and cool and fun, but after a few years the music policy of the principal clubs didn't change with the times and it's got very stale and boring.  Around the same time as we were getting disillusioned with this scene, electroclash happened and was immediately adopted by the gay and straight alternative scenes, which drove all the fashionista types into what were previously 'our' places.  Where before you would get wrecked on Red Stripe and happily flail around the dancefloor, now you had to queue up and meet a particular dress code (read:  body size code too) just to get in.  Once inside, there was no joy in the new music, just blankness and moral voide.  It sucked ass.
So, empowered by Ladyfest, we just decided to do our own thing, play music from all genres motivated only by our love and passion for the songs themselves and the desire to create a happy, inclusive atmosphere where all were welcome.  Since then electroclash has died a bit of a death so we can be less antagonistic but our raison d'etre remains the same.


What made you decide to promote Unskinny Bop on the positive body image front and what kind of feedback have you had (positive and negative)/

It basically came from feeling that Ladyfest was a good platform to feature something to do with body image as obviously it it such a massive issue for so many girls and women but we didn't want it to be all po-faced and Mein Kampfy, we just wanted to have a big old celebration of chubsters.  Our mainstream culture tends to measure success in terms of how much money one has and how thin one is, and the best way to challenge that assumption (we thought) was for us to host a massive free party honouring our podgiest of popstars. 

Also we just thought the phrase 'Unskinny Bop' would be a good name for a disco for fat people!  Apparently though it refers to having sex with a circumised penis.  Anyway.  Since the first Unskinny Bop the explicit pro-chub focus has diminished a bit, as we aspire to be a haven for all sorts of misfits whatever their size, but we hope the fact that the club is run and DJ'ed by fat lezzers helps encourage an inclusive, accessible and fat-positive atmosphere.


How would you describe Unskinny Bop to those of us who've never been and why should we all come along?

Best. Disco. Ever.  It may ruin clubbing for you forever though as nowhere else you are likely to go will be a as good.


What are your Top 5 songs at the moment?

Lust in the Movies --- The Long Blondes.
Gypsy --- Fleetwood Mac.
Zombie Hop --- Zombina and the Skeletones.
Diamonds (Remix) --- Kanye West featuring Jay-Z.
Baby I'm Burning --- Dolly Parton.

http://www.unskinnybop.co.uk/

THIS INTERVIEW WAS DONE BY E-MAIL IN JULY 2005.  ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER 2005.

UNSKINNY BOP ARTWORK FROM THEIR MINI ZINE.