Search Results for:

DEATH VALLEY GIRLS

Death Valley Girls

Levitation Sessions

    Originally recorded back in 2020 in the heart of a global pandemic, the band reunited to record a live film in their practice space in Los Angeles, CA.

    "Wow! Getting to do this project was such an honor, and a treat! We finished recording our record Under the Spell of Joy one day before lock down. Rolling out an album under normal circumstances is a huge, and all consuming job. Then figuring out how to compassionately, respectfully, and successfully roll out an album during a world wide catastrophe, and especially an album about spells, and incantations for joy, was a real head scratcher! Getting to work on this live recording during that period allowed us to focus on a way we could be most helpful in a world of sorrow, and forced us to be creative. We were desperate to be of service. We realized astral projection - and concepts around leaving the 3D experience was an exciting idea. If we could connect people on the astral plane, we wouldn’t have to feel so alone! So we decided to start the session with an introduction on how to astral project! Learning how to meditate on this concept turned out to be the greatest gift, and a lasting escape during this terrible time. This recording finally getting to be on vinyl is so exciting! The idea that we can all meet up in sky, and leave our problems behind for a bit is such a fun exercise! Now all you gotta do is drop that needle and fly! Thank you for letting us!" - Death Valley Girls

    TRACK LISTING

    1. Astral Projection
    2. Abre Camino
    3. Street Justice
    4. Death Valley Boogie
    5. Sanitarium Blues
    6. More Dead (Than Alive)
    7. 666
    8. Disco
    9. Wear Black
    10. I'm A Man Too
    11. Dream Cleaver
    12. Disaster (Is What We're After)
    13. Electric High

    Death Valley Girls

    Islands In The Sky

      For the better part of a decade, LA’s scrappy rock n’ roll mystics Death Valley Girls have used their music as a means of tapping into a communal cosmic energy. On albums like Glow In The Dark (2016), Darkness Rains (2018), and Under the Spell of Joy (2020) the band challenged the soul-crushing banality of modern society and celebrated “true magical in­nite potential” through a collage of scorching proto-punk riffs, earworm melodies, far-out lyrics, and lysergic auxiliary instrumentation. But on their latest album Islands in the Sky, Death Valley Girls’ songwriting mastermind Bonnie Bloomgarden uses the band’s anthemic revelries as a guidebook to spiritual healing and a roadmap for future incarnations of the self. And while these may be the loftiest aims of Death Valley Girls to date, the resulting music is also by far their most infectious and celebratory.

      “Death Valley Girls are a gift to the world.” - Iggy Pop

      “Harnessing the allure of the occult and the power of self-help, the Los Angeles garage rockers break free from their roots and ascend to the realm of spiritual psych-jazz rockestra.” - Pitchfork

      “(Death Valley Girls) taps out of traditional songwriting and tune into a new spiritual consciousness…” - Spin

      “An insistent Banshees like boom and groove.” - MOJO

      TRACK LISTING

      1. California Mountain Shake
      2. Magic Powers
      3. Islands In The Sky
      4. Sunday
      5. What Are The Odds
      6. Journey To Dog Star
      7. Say It Too
      8. Watch The Sky
      9. When I'm Free
      10. All That Is Not Of Me
      11. It's All Really Kind Of Amazing

      Le Butcherettes / Death Valley Girls

      The Universe / When I'm Free

        Is there a better pairing of kindred spirits than a split seven-inch single featuring Le Butcherettes and Death Valley Girls? We're hard pressed to think of one. Sure, the interaction is fleeting, but damn is it satisfying.

        We've got Le Butcherettes on side A taking on one of Death Valley Girls' most cosmic numbers, the kaleidoscopic centerpiece off Under the Spell of Joy album, "The Universe." Le Butcherettes' fearless and charismatic mastermind Teri Gender Bender takes the tune into even trippier territories, replicating the original song's sonic tapestry of synth, sax, and guitars with layer upon layer of vocals. Only the sparse accompaniment of acoustic guitar and modest percussion keeps the song from being fully a capella. It's a perfect interpretation of Death Valley Girls' communal and choral aims.

        On side B, Death Valley Girls offer up a new tune - the deliciously ecstatic "When I'm Free." Like every great Death Valley Girls song, it's a celebration of life bolstered by fiery rock n' roll riffage, spiritual organ, dizzying sax, and Bonnie Bloomgarden's defiant and triumphant vocals. Suicide Squeeze Records is proud to offer up this meeting of mystical minds on vinyl and digital platforms on February 11, 2022.

        Death Valley Girls

        Under The Spell Of Joy

          The album opens with “Hypnagogia,” an ode to the space between sleep and wakefulness where we are open to other realms of consciousness. The song slowly builds along a steady pulse provided by bassist Pickle (Nicole Smith) and drummer Rikki Styxx. Tripped out saxophone bleats from guest player Gabe Flores swirl on top of the organ drones laid out by guest keyboardist Gregg Foreman. The band’s choral objectives for Under the Spell of Joy are established right off the bat, with Bonnie Bloomgarden’s melodic invocations bolstered by a choir, giving the album a rich and vibrant wall-of-sound aesthetic. The song ominously builds on its hypnotic foundation until it opens up into a raucous revelry at the four-minute mark.

          The portentous simmer of the opening track yields to the ecstatic rocker “Hold My Hand,” where verses reminiscent of Velvet Underground’s “I’m Waiting For The Man” explode into big triumphant choruses. From there the band launches into the title track, which marries the griminess of The Stooges with an innocence provided by a children’s choir chanting the album’s primary mantra “under the spell of joy / under the spell of love.”

          Death Valley Girls have always vacillated between lightness and darkness, and on “Bliss Out” they demonstrate their current exuberant focus with a patina-hued pop song driven by an irrepressibly buoyant organ line laid down by keyboardist The Kid (Laura Kelsey). A similar cosmic euphoria is obtained on “The Universe,” where alternating chords on the organ help elevate soaring saxophone and keyboard lines out beyond the stratosphere. If you’re looking for transcendental rock music, look no further.

          “Death Valley Girls are a gift to the world.” Iggy Pop.

          “If Charlie Spahn Ranch girls had formed a band that was part-Stooges, part-Bikini Kill, all groove, then they’d have sounded like this.” Classic Rock Magazine.

          “A striking record, all brazen fury and bratty beats, something resembling hard rock before Sabbath” Noisey.


          STAFF COMMENTS

          Barry says: A ruthless, but melodic jaunt through snarling punk riffs, snapping percussion and fists-in-the-air groove from Death Valley Girls here. Expertly toeing the line between distorted drive and more thoughtful, slow numbers. Utterly essential, and a superb early morning blast.

          TRACK LISTING

          1. Hypnagogia
          2. Hold My Hand
          3. Under The Spell Of Joy
          4. Bliss Out
          5. Hey Dena
          6. The Universe
          7. It All Washes Away
          8. Little Things
          9. 10 Day Miracle Challenge
          10. I’d Rather Be Dreaming
          11. Dream Cleaver


          Latest Pre-Sales

          239 NEW ITEMS

          E-newsletter —
          Sign up
          Back to top