YouTube star Melanie Faye's vids may be homemade and minimally processed, but they reveal a guitarist of skill and sophistication.
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Girlschool–The Real Queens of Noise
The late 1970’s was a bleak time economically in England. Working class youth were unemployed, living off of the dole with no sense of a future. Out of this frustration and boredom, came punk rock to save the day (or so the story goes). Most of you know that story. What you may not know is that these same conditions gave birth to another musical renaissance known as The New Wave of British Heavy Metal. Inspired by Motorhead’s stripped down no holds barred approach, a new crop of bands rose up that were heavier, louder and more straightforward than the likes of Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple. The bands didn’t…
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Rockabilly Royalty: An Interview with Rosie Flores
Rosie Flores, a lifetime musician, deserves way more attention than she’s getting. In fact, Rosie has put in so much work, not only for herself, that she’s created important spaces in history time and time again. Rosie started playing in her first band (an all girl band) in San Diego when she was 16 called Penelope’s Children. The band started touring when they were 18. After that, Rosie went on to start Rosie and the Screamers. “That band was phenomenal, they were amazing musicians. The excitement of playing with the other two guitar players really set me off on wanting to play, they encouraged me to keep playing lead.” Rosie…
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Them Are Us Too’s Kennedy Ashlyn Speaks on Bringing Amends to Light
Them Are Us Too’s Bandcamp bio reads “femme 4 femme, sad 2 sad”, a description that summarizes the dreampop band’s sound perfectly. Their first Dais Records album, Remain, came out on March 24th, 2015, and the cult of TAUT formed around them. With Kennedy Ashlyn’s soaring, Kate Bush-esque vocals and Cash Askew’s reverb-drenched shoegaze guitar, they gifted endless femme energy to the indie rock world. Their music feels like unfolding a note from a high school friend about her deepest, darkest secrets—each emotion blown to cinematic proportions, inviting the listener to feel in ways they may have forgotten how. Tragically, Cash Askew passed away in December 2016 in the Oakland…
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An Interview with Ruby Boots
Australian songstress, Ruby Boots (Bex Chilcott) released her sophomore album, Don’t Talk About It, this February on Bloodshot Records. The path she’s taken as a musician has been one of dedication and patience. The now Nashville based musician was kind enough to chat on the phone with me about growing up in Australia and her music career. Izzi Krombholz: Tell me about life growing up in Australia and how you got turned on to music. Ruby Boots (Bex): I didn’t really play music until I was 22 and I grew up with two brothers and I left home I was 14 and I was living in Perth and by the…
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The Resurgence of L7: An Interview with Donita Sparks
Getting to see L7 live this spring was a long awaited dream come true. Honestly, I’d always hoped there would be a reunion but was doubtful. Then, when news of their documentary got announced I held my breath. And it happened, L7 is back at it! When I spoke with Donita Sparks on the phone, of course I had to gush about how cool it was to finally see them live and I admitted that I smiled through the entire show. Donita was cool about it and said, “there’s a lot of shock and awe and joy going on in our audiences.” I mean, how could you not be in…
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Good News from Treya Lam
Daffodils, violets, lionesses, redwood trees, wind and waves: Treya Lam's metaphors come from the natural world.
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The Badass Babes of 007: A Playlist
The sexualization of women in James Bond movies can be pretty questionable but it’s hard to deny how many badass babes are a part of the Bond world. Whether they’re a Bond Girl or a villain, they’re always strong, witty and drop dead gorgeous. From 1995-2012, the Bond movies casted Judi Dench as M (Bond’s superior), the only female to be casted in this role who is both steadfast and wise and calls out James Bond in his misogynistic ways. And what would a Bond movie be without Miss Moneypenny, the lovestricken and kind secretary? Whether you love James Bond or hate him, we couldn’t do Issue 007 without dedicating…
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Song of the Moment: “Like A Prayer” by The Lopez
“Like A Prayer” by The Lopez from their new 7″ is an incredibly joyous song. In fact, both songs on “Like A Prayer” (Throwin’ Shade on the B side) force you to move. They’re upbeat and poppy but in a rocking way. The Lopez excel at adding fuzz and grime to their pop tendencies to give their electronic music a punk edge. Their sound very much reminds me of old Hot Chip or the band, Friends. The Lopez is perfect for a spur of the moment dance party on a hot summer night. Their new “Like a Prayer” single was recorded and mixed by Madeleine Campbell at Accessible Recording and mastered by Shelley Anderson…
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Born to Take the Highway
The open road can be lonely, but at least Mitchell is in the driver’s seat.
