Tag: Clem Burke

Derby Dolls and All-Stars

Posted on by stilettocity

k150_20heel iconA night with the Derby Dolls is always a knock-down good time.  These girls on wheels are tough, strong and gorgeous. I personally know a few Dolls myself and I’m in awe of their spirit and stamina! It’s not an easy sport – the girls skate at high speeds on an angled, “banked” rink (I can barely make it down a flat sidewalk on skates!) and work to block and knock each other to take out the other team’s “jammer” working to score points by passing opposing players.

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On a recent Saturday night I headed down to the “Doll Factory,” a great big warehouse near downtown LA that features the rink, a vendor room and a stage for bands during intermission. On this particular night were two bands with some well-known musicians and icons of the LA’s rock legacy. First up Forty Volume, an all-girl band featuring Iris Berry, best known as the hottie scenester and creative writer in LA’s early ‘80s punk/ rock scene who sang in bands including The Ringling Sisters and the Lame Flames and lived at the infamous Disgraceland punk house. (She still looks amazing, by the way!) Backed by rock photographer/manager Dawn Laureen and Jill Guido, they busted out a few punk covers such as Iggy Pop’s “The Passenger.”

Fourty

Then it was time for some Doll action! It was the LA Ri-ettes in competition in with each other – half the team dressed in pink, half in black and pitted in fierce fighting for the win. What was great about this bout was the friendly competition, you could see them laughing and chatting with each other before they lined up to do some pounding. And what I loved was that great Doll spirit when one went down injured, they all dropped to the floor in camaraderie.

During intermission it was back over to the “Doll Mall” where venders were set up selling drinks, snacks, jewelry, knick-knacks and of course, Derby Dolls Merchandise. And a special treat tonight, The International Swingers took the stage. This all-star band features, Glen Matlock (Sex Pistols), Gary Twinn (20 Flight Rockers) Clem Burke (Blondie) and James Stevenson (Gene Loves Jezebel, The Cult). Now you can’t say they did covers songs since most of the songs were from bands they’ve been in, mixed with a bit of Bowie and some originals as well. Twinn’s voice pulled off the range from Johnny Rotten to Debbie Harry, while they all kept the super-cool presence and awesome playing of seasoned rockers on stage.

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Be sure to check out the Derby Dolls’ upcoming bouts held on Saturday evenings and Sunday afternoons. For the schedule and more info, visit their website: www.derbydolls.com

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Go dolls!
Kastle

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Tag: Clem Burke

Like a Rolling Stone

Posted on by stilettocity

k150_19heel iconAs the Rolling Stones celebrate 50 years of rockin’, fans are coming together to share their love for the band and the music. As I came up in the club scene, almost every musician I knew wanted to be as cool as “Keef,” and every girl wanted someone with “moves like Jagger.” They were wild, sexy, dangerous and oh so stylish, so it’s not surprising that some of my favorite musician friends would join together to form an all-star band to bust out some classic Stones songs in celebration of the band’s upcoming tour and a photo exhibit at the Project Gallery.

Singer/guitarist Jonny Kaplan (Lazy Stars), bassist Bruce Witkin (The Kids), keyboardist Rami Jaffee (Wallflowers), drummer Clem Burke (Blondie, International Swingers), pedal steel guitarist Chris Lawrence (Lazy Stars) and violinist Jessy Greene (Foo Fighters, Wilco)  rocked out under the name “Bitch” and it sounded oh so sweet! Kaplan had the perfect voice to pull out that bluesy, hip shakin’, rock ‘n’ roll, and what can you say about an all-star band, they know how to bring it!

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Bitch

After the show, there were plenty of hugs between old friends. LA Weekly Writer/DJ Lina Lecaro spun a great e-mix of Stones tunes and we took pix like it was a rock ‘n’ roll high school reunion.

Spotted in the crowd: KROQ DJ Rodney Bingenheimer, International Swinger Gary Twinn, Charlie from Custom Made Scare and Marko from Sugarcult and scenester Vinni Stiletto (gotta love the name!)

See the party pix below:

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Charlie & Markolina

Lina LecarobrianJones

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Vinni StilettowKeef

You gotta roll with it,
Kastle

Instagrampinterest

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Tag: Clem Burke

The Checkers, International Swingers: Rock!

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I’m a rocker. When I feel excited, happy, angry, frustrated or I just want to drown out my noisy neighbors, I put in my earbuds and rock out. Music has always given me a boost from when I was a teenager and decided I want to move to Los Angeles to become a music journalist (I covered music and nightclubs for the Los Angeles Times for 5 years) to now. I have an entire wall of shelves dedicated to my massive music collection including vinyl, CDs and books. I refuse to give it up in favor of much more compact digital versions. (Yes, moving is hell!) Though I don’t hit the clubs every night like I used to, I still get out for a good show once in a while. Below are some photos from a recent show with the Checkers and International Swingers that reunited me with some old friends and classic rock stars.

The Checkers

I feel like I’ve grown up with singer Julie Green, we’ve known each other so long. Her band is a savvy mix of cool girly pop, mod and new wave. She’s got a rad ‘60s style that I love but she can break you with some punk rawk attitude! Check out their CDs “Running with Scissors” and “Make a Move.”

 

The International Swingers

Talk about all stars! Featuring former Sex Pistol Glen Matlock, Blondie’s Clem Burke, Gene Loves Jezebel/Generation X/The Alarm’s James Stevenson and 20 Flight Rockers’ Gary Twinn, this band blew the roof off lil’ ol’ Skinny’s bar in North Hollywood for a not-so-secret show before they headed out for an Australian tour. They performed hits from all of their previous bands and the crowd went absolutely ballistic, especially when they busted out a little Pistols’ anarchy. Yeah! Bring it!

See photos from the show here.

Rock on,
K.



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