Looking through Instagram I stumbled upon The Blowupdollz and I really enjoyed the snippet of their sound on their first post. It was very RAW and ENERGETIC. The sound like as if they're playing in someones basement or in someones garage and I just fell in love with it especially with those VOCALS! If you haven't listened to it along with another released track on their Instagram I totally recommend it! It was funny enough because Tiger's Blood and I were talking about the representation of women fronted bands in the valley and that's when it hit me. I had to show him The Blowupdollz! I look forward to seeing them live one day! This feature is on The Blowupdollz @theblowupdollz
Pictures are by @momisphotobook
Introducing the band they are!
Mya (drums), Nikki (guitar & bass), Jazz (guitar), Jeremy (bass), & Alex (vocals).
They share on what they've been enjoying as of recently as well
"We've been enjoying being a little more active in the scene. Sharing our music with people and just making time for things that we appreciate and love to do whether that be outside of music or not. "
They continue by giving out a couple of shout outs as well
"Shoutout to Jerry, and all the other dollz out there. Anyone who has felt overlooked or used. Our dear friends Olivia and Debb, the workers at doctor john’s for being cool enough to let us take photos there. And OF COURSE Momi for taking these sick shots you’ll be seeing."
We begin by asking how the idea of the band began and what pushed it forward as they say "We had sat on the idea for about a year maybe? The name itself came from Alex calling us dollz all the time so it kinda just stuck with us haha. We had shared poetry and music that kinda brought up the idea to make music together. Once we figured that out It all flowed pretty naturally once we committed to transferring our experiences as women and just humans in general into something more. " The name came from "Alex calling us dollz" I like that! I really like that they mention "transferring our experiences as women and just humans" like yes we are all human, but these are their experiences as a group being put forward. When it comes to music we do have our abundance of love songs, the break up songs and much more, but as they mention "we committed to transferring our experiences as women and humans in general to something more." They're definitely more than just a "women fronted band" since in the end we are human after all and don't we all have our experiences? Especially with their song "Strange Old Man" which has even been an issue and even sadly an experience/occurrence within our community. As we continue I'll be using the songs Why do you like girls that hurt you? by Pinky Swear. With the title itself you can guess what it will be about but this is HER experience and with lyrics such as "don't get me wrong for wanting what i can't have cause i know you're getting lonely;I'd love to keep you company until she's off your mind... don't get me wrong for wanting to hold your hand...why do you like girls that hurt you?" Besides this we also "Until you love me" by Pinky Swear that says "I want your face between my legs. So I can strangle you after you give me head." I bring these up as an example to explain the raw energy they contain which even by listening to the 30 second snippet by the Blowupdollz on their Instagram page you can envision Alex yelling into the mic as she says "YOU WANNA GET DIRTY, LET'S GET DIRTY" Mya banging the drums, along with Nikki, Jeremy, and Jazz plucking at their guitar. Bringing it back to their song "Strange Old Man" which is inspired by "all the dirty creeps out there" and it's rather refreshing! Yes it's a great song, but it also touches on a topic we don't usually listen to. Now with their ideas brought to life I look forward to see how they continue along with the music released as time goes by.
When it comes to a genre or if they could create a genre for themselves they said "We kind of dip our toes into whatever. We don’t really know what to label ourselves at the moment, we just play what we want when we want." There's nothing wrong with that, but what's great is "we just play what we want when we want" it's their thing so it's all them.
When to their music on Instagram for what's available and their first show what do they wish to evoke? Especially as they begin to appear more and release work "We would like for people to feel the same way we feel when we play our music together. Delivering so much emotion to an audience even leaves us in awe and we’d like for them to feel that too." I mean even from just listening to that 1min or so snippet with the inclusion of the 30 second snippet from one of their first posts it really leaves a lot to be said, but enough to know what you're getting yourself into. It for sure left me in a feeling of "awe" along with those I've shown it to.
With Sauce House being their Debut Show how was that as they explain? " Sauce house was insane and unpredictable. We were really grateful for all the love we received honestly it was so nice to see! It was pretty surreal to share our music outside of our practice space and in front of a lot of other people." That's what Sauce House is all about! Introducing new bands and giving them a space to put themselves out there. I do feel like it was a good choice as well for their debut.
What can the Blowupdollz say about their upcoming shows? "We have a few shows lined up this summer, we’ll be back formally at the gremlin for our first actual performance there this Saturday, May 28th opening up with some amazing local talent for Colleen Green. Not long after that we’re going to be opening up for Scowl and Destroy boys on June 17th at the iconic Cine el Rey. It’s truly all an honor, everything has happened so quickly but that’s life." That truly is life! It's so unexpected, but these are milestones and there is so much more ahead of all of this for sure! This is only up until June they have so many months ahead along with what they wish to accomplish before the year ends.
So we know the show dates and who they're playing with, but what about their music what can be said about that? "We do plan to at least release a single soon, and our debut album towards the end of the year. It depends on what resources we have but we’ll make it happen." For sure focusing on the single and having that as something to push is good. With the way music is recorded along with self-marketing is crazy as well especially for artists. I'll keep my eye out for that single, but I do recommend listening to what's on their Instagram.
art by @megavaun on Instagram
Looking through the members on the Instagram bio I am noticing the majority of the members are women. What are your thoughts on the shortage of women fronted bands in the valley? I can name a couple, but it's not compared to the amounts of men fronted bands as they say "We think it’s bullshit! That was also something that pushed us to start this project because of how little you see women being represented down here. We all deserve to be heard." When it comes to women in music in the valley I can think of some, which include Pinky Swear, Mt Casino, Comedian (no longer together), Italia, Hiviscosity(album on spotify), Royal Angst, Jam Club, Lost In Limbo, Queenkillahbee, those involved within Chulita Vinyl Club and there's more, but these are some that I can name on the top of my head. Each with their own unique sound of course. Great artists! I do agree I do want to listen to more women/she/her/they/them artists as well and see the representation within the music scene.
How do they wish to grow with the band as they explain "keep investing in ourselves and in our sound. If we have each other we always have the Blowupdollz. We just have so much fun together and being able to share the blowupdoll experience with anyone who cares to listen is really heartwarming." Of course they have each other they are the DOLLZ, but this is their beginning and they have much more to experience. These upcoming two shows will most certainly NOT be their last along with any other ideas they have.
If they could play any other musicians who would it be? " If we would have been born at a different time The Cramps would have been something to die for, playing with them would be the coolest thing. More artists would have to be Acid Bath, The Stooges, No Doubt, Deftones, we could go on forever honestly there’s a lot of cool artists out there." I can imagine something with the Deftones for sure? The Venue? Oh wait the Deftones would be OPENING up for the BLOWUPDOLLZ!
From their debut show to their work provided on Instagram what sort of feedback have they received? "All good things from what we’ve heard atleast haha." Love to hear it!
We don't have the track list yet, but from what they currently have what would they said their favorite song is? "We really love all of them, they all hold so much weight in a different way. Drifting is one of the most fun to play, Strange Old Man is a classic and it’s not even out on anything yet haha! We are writing some new stuff at the moment something a little more mosh-able mwahahaha" Ah yes the certified classic being "Strange Old Man." One day! ONE DAY I'll experience a Blowupdollz set especially if these are as they the new stuff is "a little more mosh-able." It sounds like they are really having fun with this and that's great!
The Blowupdollz share their thoughts on the local valley scene,
It has room for growth which you can already see happening, but like mentioned earlier it mainly consists of men. Not to say they aren’t talented but we wanted to start something different that would change all of that.
Along with one final comment,
This experience has been so sick and we’re so grateful to everyone for the support. However we’d also like to add that just because we are a women fronted band doesn’t mean that’s all we are.
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