Promoting and Supporting Women in Music
Kate was back in the studio this week celebrating Record Store Day (13th April) and Riot Grrrl Day (9th April). She played loads of new music from the likes of Elsa Hewitt, LibraLibra, Runah and Zoey Lily – as well as classics from Bikini Kill and X-Ray Spex.
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Fueled by almighty vocals, hefty guitar riffs and commanding percussion; Le Butcherettes‘ powerful sound ricocheted around the glittered walls of Moth Club last week. Celebrating the release of their fourth album bi/MENTAL, the group delivered a passionate mix of old and new material to their London fans.
Opening the night were DIY garage punks Big Joanie, who were in high spirits having just returned from playing SXSW. The trio’s understated and relatable sounds went down well with the crowd, with ‘Fall Asleep’, ‘Used To Be Friends’ and ‘Down Down’ proving to be the strongest songs in their set.
Cited as their most personal album to date, bi/MENTAL is an ode to Le Butcherettes’ frontwoman Teri Gender Bender’s Mother, and the tracks were as visceral and vulnerable performed live as they are on the record. Teri’s trademark falsetto voice was breath-taking. She flitted between screams, cries and authoritative vocals which matched her erratic but focused performance style. Her band mates – Alejandra Robles Luna (drums), Rikardo Rodríguez-López (guitars) and Marfred Rodríguez-López (bass) – performed with equal amounts of energy; switching between off-kilter sounds and infectious, rolling rhythms with enviable precision.
Teri’s howls and cries cut through the air when she broke the fourth wall and entered the centre of the crowd mid-set and laid on her back. She commanded attention wherever she stood, and spoke fluent Spanish between songs to keep listeners on their toes. As for stand out tracks, it’s difficult to pick just one – but ‘give/UP’ and ‘struggle/STRUGGLE’ stood out among the set list. Both felt like seething, buzzing explorations of grief despite their opposing tempos.
Inspired by the “the death of a living mother”, the duality of life, and the inevitable strife caused by the fluctuation of mental health; Le Butcherettes bi/MENTAL is a cathartic burst of emotive rock designed to clear the cobwebs between your ears – and the band’s live set does exactly that.
Catch Le Butcherettes on their upcoming UK live dates:
Tues 9th July – Boston Music Rooms, London
Weds 10th – Green Door Store, Brighton
Thurs 11th – 2000 Trees Festival, Cheltenham
Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut
Tash and Kate were back in the studio this week with a show jam packed full of new music from the likes of ZAMILSKA, Bang Bang Romeo, Novaa, Le Butcherettes & Lupa J.
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If you need proof that sisters are doin’ it for themselves, look no further than Velvet Volume. The Danish trio, formed of siblings Noa, Naomi, and Nataja have shared their new single ‘Honey’ and it drips with youthful, fiery angst. It’s an explicit ode to the insecurities faced by vulnerable teenage girls.
In the last couple of years Velvet Volume have played international festivals including Reeperbahn, Eurosonic, London Calling, Paaspop Festival and more. Their debut album Look Look Look! was released in 2017 to critical praise in their native Denmark, and caught the attention of Nettwerk who recently signed them up for an international deal.
Talking about their new track, the band explain: “Expressed in an unrefined and very loud way, [‘Honey’] is a song we wrote back in 2013… so you can really sense the unapologetic and explicit young vibe in it.” The trio are planning to tour throughout 2019, so keep your eyes peeled for more info.
Listen to ‘Honey’ below and follow Velvet Volume on Facebook for more updates.
Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut
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