Hail Hail Rock N' Roll

Ghost Writer

2011-11-07T22:42:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! I've taken my blogging elsewhere! Please check out my site I just launched showcasing me & everything Civet! Www.VivaBandita.com is where I take on Music, Life, Fashion & all things artsy....oh and ROCK N'ROLL! I missed writing too.....So I set up a photo/super crazy writing blog to help me channel that inner Neil Strauss.....Please come check it out!

http://www.vivabandita.com/blogs/news

Liza

“Cause you have grace on a bad day...” The Explosion

2011-05-10T09:30:00.000-07:00

I haven’t been online much lately (even though I’m out on tour & doing what I love!)because I was trying to show my relationship the right kind of RESPECT as it got sorted out in a difficult time. As some of you may already know, Tobe & I have decided it’s time to call it quits. I’m not here to place blame on anyone or try to make anyone the bad guy, but I also would like to say a bit about it. I have always tried my best to be an amazing girlfriend & I feel I did more than my part in this relationship to make it work. Unfortunately, due to recent circumstances, I don’t think it’s the best thing for either of us to be together. I realize we had a lot of mutual friends and band friends & I would love for everyone to show us some respect during this time. This isn’t about taking sides or proving whose more popular, but about letting two people who were in a very public relationship keep some privacy. I am thankful for the times we had & I wish Tobe (& his Street Dogs) all the best in the future. Thanks to all the fans & friends who stood behind us solo and as a couple...

AP - Sexism in Punk

2011-03-30T14:46:00.000-07:00

A small part of this ran in the feature below, but I wanted to share the rest!

http://www.altpress.com/features/entry/do_you_feel_like_a_man_ben_weasel_incident_opens_discussion_about_sexism_in/

-What do you think the incident with Ben Weasel tells us about sexism in both punk rock and music in general?

Unfortunately, I think this shows us that sexism is still alive and well in the world today. It also tells us that the lines between what behavior is appropriate and what is not, have been severely blurred. A few decades ago hitting a woman was so insanely taboo there wouldn't be any discussion about it. The fact that there's even been discussion on boards and social networking sites about that girl "deserving" it because she was in the audience, is insane. I wasn't there to see the incident firsthand, but my experience fronting an all girl band for over 10 years has taught me a lot about sexism in music and the need to respect everyone regardless of what you do for a living! Times have definitely changed, but integrity never goes out of style.

-Is sexism still an issue in the punk scene today and how is it manifesting itself beyond the Ben incident?

I've done a lot of interviews where this question comes up and honestly the amount of sexism I've experienced is pretty rare and far between. There have been a few times where people have spoke down to me or tried to take advantage of me as an artist, but I've always just seen that as an opportunity to right the wrong. Since I fronted all female band for over 10 years I became good at stopping sexism in its tracks and actually helping said person realize why what they were doing wrong. I guess standing up for myself was my own personal way of creating change.

-Is there a difference in the way bands treat their male and female fans? Is this specific to any genre?

There will always be those bands that talk shit and call their fans out, but that is what the fans of certain come to expect. Some fans are actually fans of bands BECAUSE of this particular reason such as Guttermouth (who we have toured with and were totally respectful!)... Or if you want to think back to GG Allen times, that's another example. The difference between this and the Ben incident is that a lot of that "stage" abuse is just for show. It appears that Ben just snapped and forgot he was the singer of a band and a person that has to answer for his actions. At the end of the day it is never acceptable to hit a woman and really it shouldn't be acceptable for anyone to hit anyone. Period.

-Are the doors open for women to both be in punk bands and to work in the music industry outside of bands? Is there any resistance from their male counterparts?

There are more women in punk music today than ever before! Whether it be working in the industry or being in an actual band I believe that these women are gaining respect by doing what they love. There doesn't seem to be very much resistance at all. People will only treat you how you allow them to treat you and I believe that a lot of the women in the industry don't take sexism or bullshit lightly. This in turn sets a great example for women not in bands, etc!

-What does a female musician have to endure in order to survive in the punk scene today? Is there anything positive that comes from it?

Female musicians have to develop a thick skin in order to be in the game to begin with. Punk rock is by nature rough and dangerous and I've found that you really have to back your shit up if you want to play punk rock. Pay your dues, respect all other bands, play well and do what you love...I think any female musicians playing punk rock helps the cause! The more the merrier!

-What should we take away from the incident with Ben and how can we use that to change things for the better?

I really, truly think that at the end of the day this should be an eye opener to people to really just treat each other with respect. Male or female. And musicians shouldn't take advantage of their position or think they can get away with certain behavior because they are who they are. On the opposite side however buying a ticket to a show doesn't warrant verbally abusing the band, it just doesn't give someone the right to assault you. We have made so much progress, let's not set ourselves back or set a bad example by letting this kind of behavior slide!

CIVET FANS PLEASE READ!!!!

2010-11-08T14:45:00.000-08:00

It breaks my heart to have to write this letter to you right now. I believe in this band with all of my heart and I’m not about to let it go without a fight. I wake up everyday just to live, breath, eat, sleep and bleed this band. It is my passion & my one true love in life. Over the last 10 years my sister Suzi and I have given everything we have, and sometimes what we didn’t have, just to play music. Yeah, I admit at times it was tough, like when we had to put our stuff in storage in order to tour, or deal with losing a member, or leave jobs, or people we loved, but at the end of the day all sacrifices were worth the one thing we really believe in, which is music.

We do it for ourselves, but more importantly and ULTIMATELY, we do it for you guys. The truth is that being in a band is just like being in a relationship. When you lose someone it always hurts, but when you lose two people who are supposed to be your family, it’s almost unbearable. I am sorry to have to share this right now, but Suz & I really feel like we need to just be honest with everyone and hopefully your love and support that has kept this band going will help us to heal.

It is heartbreaking to come to you guys today to share our bad news. In the middle of our Nashville Pussy tour our rhythm section walked out on us. Granted, Jacq gave us a little more notice than Roxie, but in the end it’s all one and the same. It is unfair to leave the band in the middle of a tour and leave us scrambling to piece our lives back together. We have a finished record on the way and all the opportunities in the world, not to mention the BEST fans anyone could ever ask for! These are things to be truly thankful for, not to run away from. We can’t speak for them on why they left, only that it’s hard to understand is why two people we loved and trusted would do something so selfish and leave when there are still shows to be played and commitments to be fulfilled. The fact is that this hurts YOU, our fans…. it hurts the people that believe in us. Suzi and I are brokenhearted to lose two people who were our best friends, but we cannot give up on our dream because others decided to grow up. We realize that we are a huge inspiration to others and need to stay strong. It was a tough decision, and we didn’t want to send the wrong message, but we are gunna be brave and finish this tour. We have some friends flying in to do the last 6 or so dates, and we would really, really appreciate your support and understanding. At the end of the day this is OUR dream. Suzi & I wrote you guys one hell of a record that we cannot let fall by the wayside because of other peoples actions. We do it for you guys & YOU give us the opportunity to be able to do what we love…. It breaks my heart to write this letter, we are as hurt and shocked as I’m sure all of you are. We promise to come back bigger and badder than ever & we’ll definitely see you on the road next year!!!! Please rally behind us and help us to continue what we love and come out swinging with our new record in February….

Thank you for your love and support, it means the world to us!
Xo
Liza

Feminism is the dirtiest word I know.

2010-08-24T08:38:00.001-07:00

There's a time and a place for everything in life. Tonight is the night a show in Poland of all places has forced me to really come clean with myself. I don't really like to touch on feminist stuff because I used to feel that it's a personal issue and I do enough as it is supporting fellow female bands (and fronting my own!). There are such negative things associated with speaking your mind as a woman in rock. God forbid you are volatile like Courtney Love or borderline "too in love with the females" like smarter than most, Kathleen Hanna. That's right, I'm coming out and saying it, that there is an unspoken rule as a girl in music not to take too much of a stand. Uh, on anything. That's why most women in bands say "oh, we don't like to be seen as a girl band" or "gender doesn't matter in music"…That's such bullshit. It's sad because all this is to me is a cop out. You are too scared to be seen for what you are that you downplay it in hopes that it will go away. It's not going away!

Tonight what happened in Poland was destined to happen eventually. There's still a lot of wrong in the world that needs to be righted. I'm telling this story in hopes that the next time you see something wrong, you act on it, like I did, regardless of who you are. Female, male…in a band…working at the burger joint…we are all the same. I generally don't like to call myself a feminist and at the end of the day I love men just as much as the next chick, but things are not equal and I witnessed that at this show. I might be changing my title. Tonight in Poland we played an amazing show with the Adicts. I experienced firsthand the kind of discrimination I've been saying in interviews for years that I didn't really believe existed anymore. We tour, we play with guy bands. We are well respected. We're not hoes. We are positive role models for young women. Nothing we do suggests that we want anything other than your friendship and loyalty as a fan. Tonight we took the stage to a really really great crowd and 2 songs in I got to see that the double standard is alive & well in Poland apparently. There was a guy photog that tried to jump up on stage and actually stick his camera up my skirt. Like I wasn't even a real person or maybe like I was a stripper at a strip club?! Now, I need to note that I'm pretty tough and I brush off things that aren't a big deal, but there was a lot riding on this moment. There were so many little girls in the crowd…..more than I've seen at a show in a while. They were all cute and civetafied. I couldn't possibly stand down something like this. I did the only thing my instincts told me to do…Stand up for myself! I got some help from our road crew to grab him….but he gave some excuse and they let him go. I just wasn't really satisfied with that at all, and at the risk of looking like Courtney Love in the 90's I put my guitar down and let my sister take the next song. I climbed off stage and confronted the cowering bastard who was now in the back of the room….the details from here on out were not very important….I demanded the camera or it to be deleted. All in all it wasn't about the photo at all, cause everyone knows there's pics of me out there where you can see my shorts….yes everyone….I ALWAYS wear boy shorts under my skirt, so even when you think you saw something, it's shorts…congrats. It wasn't about the photo at all. It was about the fact that this person thought it was OK to violate someone's personal space and objectify them like that. What if that had been your mother or your sister onstage, how would you feel? Think about the rage my brother probably felt seeing that? If it was one of your own it would be a whole other story right? The majority of men I come across are pretty enlightened…they encourage their women to really live their lives, and there's a certain amount of respect there. Now I don't know if homeboy does this all the time or whaaatever, but it doesn't happen on my watch. I truly felt that in that moment, that if I didn't stand up for myself in front of all these women AND MEN who have respect for me, all would be lost. Everything I've worked for from day one….stolen, by someone who hadn't been taught how to treat women right. Blows my mind. I found that when I got in the crowd and in this persons face I wasn't "lowering myself" but I was standing up for everyone in that room. I was met by a lot of fans who grabbed him and got in his face as well. That support was resounding. It really struck a cord with me. Security took him outside and at the end of the show a woman came up and gave me a roll of film. That's right…a woman handed me the film.

I went back onstage and played my little heart out, which is what I do every night. I played for all the little girls in the audience who had to witness that. I played it for the Polish men who were embarrassed that one of their favorite bands would come to their country and be disrespected like that. I played it for my future daughter….and my grandchildren and everyone who knows the truth…that just because we aren't living in the 50's anymore, doesn't mean that housewife mentality is gone. We just don't talk about it even though we should! You can't keep me in the kitchen, and you sure as hell can't keep me off the road.

Lost in Translation

2010-07-22T11:45:00.000-07:00

Travel Day

“It’s a long, long way from Houston baby” or rather it’s just a long long way from where I was last year….I finally adjusted to being in a really healthy awesome relationship and I’ve got back in the swing of running things with the band (with a little bit of help of course this time around!) We just finished that record & can’t wait to share it in October. Til then I’m excited to be back on the road as we head out to Europe again…I love it over there (Even though I gotta admit, there’s some thing about coming home to Long Beach that is really the best feeling in the world) Hopefully I’ll be able to see more and do more this time around…last time we came over here it was really cold and we were on tour with the street dogs (I was so wrapped up in Tobe I couldn’t think straight ) I’m starting to get used to the different countries…like Germany to me is similar to the us, but a little more hard around the edges…my favorite is Sweden….I wish we were going to Stockholm this time around, but I’ll take Oslo...lots of festivals too. I don’t think I’ve played any fests in Europe yet, so this should be very interesting…totally excited, but a little homesick. This time around we’re bringing out my little brother to tech… should be an experience since I think he’s really used to having lots of things done for him etc….today I was like “you’re hungry? Well go get some food” ha ha….he’s young, but I really think this experience will change him for the better…..maybe he’ll even get the itch like me and Suzi…the one that keeps you wanting to travel and keeps your best feelings when you check into a hotel & check your bags…it’s a different kind of person that thrives on being in a new place everyday….it’s a good way to live….never get boring!

Prague or Praha - Mini Vacation

We hung out in Prague at our drivers house. It was good to be back in a city we were familiar with and it’s always cool to be able to locate the h & m or know how to ride the train….we have knowledge of both of these! We’ve stayed at our driver Mdogs house before….it’s this really cool flat on the 5th floor and his parents are never home! We ate our fav potato pancakes at this little pub. Its always a shock coming back to Europe and remembering that people still smoke indoors….I always feel kinda lucky that no one in my band are smokers….that’s the worst…Jacq and I went with
Mdog to the Mighty Sounds Bar & felt totally local…

The second day in Prague was the best because it straight up felt like summer camp. We went to this lake, which isn’t really a lake, it’s a mined out old rock area that filled up naturally with water….it’s only about a few hundred feet, not very big…but its super murky and goes down so deep no one knows,…there’s fish., And who knows what else….lake monster? We jumped off the cliff into the water. That was one of the most thrilling jumps of all time….once was enough though! Played some vollyball (yes! Vollyball!) and remembered what a competitive jock I am….ha ha…It was here that I experienced the best cider of my life…hands down THE BEST! I am a cider conosuier as people who know me know and it was fucking incredible…and on top of that, the selection was HUGE!!! Enough vacation…lets get some shows going!

Had an AMAZING run at Mighty Sounds...the photos speak for themselves...there's some shows where the vibe is just there...the vibe was TOTALLY there....the response to our new stuff has been amazing...I'm really really happy right now...We got to catch up with our homies in H20, sans a few of the guys for these festivals....it's always nice to see people you've toured with when you are a million miles away from home...ok maybe not a million....but a lot! Same goes with the Serengeti fest....good to catch up with some members of Flogging Molly & hang out with our new drinking buddies Valiant Thor....where's the hard liquor?! Great show sans some technical difficulties...and it's not everyday we get to open for GWAR!!!!

Munich-

This show was awesome…Sweaty, real….rock n’ roll….the ghost in our room that night was super NOT awesome. The fact that some people knew about it, and didn’t share…super NOT awesome! I would have slept in the van for sure over this…IT was strange because I had this gut feeling not to go up to the club flat. I actually didn’t even make it up there until 40 min after we played. When I realized I was the only one up I got a little creeped out and laid down only to hear door opening and closing & scratching on the wall….horrible stuff….

But the show was good! Ha ha….and Pernod from Big Cheese came out to the show to bring us some magazines…he gave us the cover, which I’m sure will help out the shows….we were totally stoked on the turnout last night…..it’s starting to not even feel like an hour long set at this point….

I need to change my guitar strings when we get to the next venue for sure…..3 shows and one super sweaty one is too much….gotta make sure we don’t have any malfunctions….

Thanks to everyone who came out to Munich….you guys were rad even though we were in a sauna…Sometimes that’s the best though!

Writing & guest starring....

2010-05-16T13:21:00.000-07:00

Lisa Johnson & I doing what we do!!!!

We've been home for a while....writing, writing, demoing and now, just now finally everything fell into place. There's something about a record that just can't be forced. I've never felt like a song is something you yourself create. It's like it has a mind of it's own...some are better than others (for the record, everything on out new record IS AWESOME) So the story goes something like this...We did some ghetto recording sesh at AMP in North Hollywood before we left on the Street Dogs tour. It was ok....then we came back and took some time to really live and grow and work on our songwriting...We've heard that from everyone! You think that people in the business push "LIVE SHOWS"...no, you're wrong....truth be told the live show is the fun part, the REALITY is that good songs make your career...slow, fast, dance, doesn't matter as long as it is good. Think about all the bands you've gone to see where you can't wait to hear them play that one hit! Now if, in theory you work really hard to build your fan base and have lots of these jems people can't wait to hear, well that my dear translates into an actual career! You can put out a record every year and people will buy it, but if you hold off and put out some serious quality, it's like currency...like GOLD!!!! So Civet girls spent the holidays doing holiday stuff and NAMM in January....then the light went off...and it went off so fast and so bright I still can't even wrap my head around it. We started writing some of the best stuff that's ever gone through this band. And we wrote together! And shit got crazy....I'm glad it did because all I really wanted to do this time around is write the record I knew that I was capable of writing. Something true and something hard....Not a sellout record. Just pure civet! Suz and I figured out our (Dare I say it?) FORMULA for our perfect songwriting process! This is great because I feel like because we are sisters and have that unique bond we are able to push each other harder than an outside person would be able to do....

We are in the studio as I write (ok....not AS I WRITE, but last week and tomorrow ;) Our official demos turned out so well we decided to just pave our own way, and as reviews of the material started coming in there's no doubt in my mind we made the right decision. Somtimes it's really hard to be strong and stand up and take responsibility for things and be a big girl. I really truly feel like this record is going to make a lot of people really really happy (ourselves included)and it's a lesson to stand up for what you believe in and above all just go with your gut feeling about stuff!!!!! You don't need someone to hold your hand and tell you what to do, you know what to do!

Ok....now that I hope everyone is super excited about the record and I got to get out my 2 cents on it, it comes out October!!!!! Hope you guys continue with your love and support we've come to depend on, ha ha xo

In other REALLY COOL NEWS (!) I did a song on the William Control Record (NOIR)...it's just a chorus thing, but I was excited to have the opportunity to work on something of his since I really respect him as a musician. My awesome boyfriend Tobe was even cool enough to join me in the studio and show some support (even though he doesn't sing! Or does he? ha ha) That record comes out JUNE 8th and the hot and talented Lisa "i won't hang out until suz is 21" Johnson shot all the art for it! Pick it up!!!

I'm gunna go back to blogging a lot more, i feel like now that i'm almost done writing the record I've got a lot to say and no where to channel it! AHHHH! ha ha....don't be scared....it's all good....so does that mean that the record is just the musical expression of the blog? hmmmmm.....food for thought....

The biggest little city in the world!

2010-02-10T19:01:00.000-08:00

Ah a weekend of shows in small towns…sometimes these are the most rewarding runs! Playing for the starved masses last weekend was not only totally fun, but it was a much needed rock n’ roll ego stroke for me and the girls. It was a definite TURKEY... which is our code word for three really great shows in a row…hey if it’s good for bowling, it’s good for us!

First up was Stockton, where we played for Middah, who I kept calling Mike….i don’t know why I do this, but once I get things in my head its just really hard to get them out. The worst part is that I know him…I’ve known him for years! He came out to our first ever Stockton show where we played the American Legion Hall with The Generators and the Forgotten. The show was rad, the relationship drama on tour with me at the time SUCKED! There is nothing worse than trying to do a job and having a bf get in your way (let me clarify we are speaking EX now, not Tobe) It’s hard to do shows with significant others because everything is magnified by a zillion…. So there we were, back in Stockton….about three hours early. This is the phenomenon in rock n’ roll that we like to refer to as “hurry up and wait”. This happens all the time, it will never change…..so we checked out sketchy Stockton as they checked out us….we went to MOO Burger and Roxie got the “NO MOO” love it! We hung out in the Plea For Peace and it started to rain! EWWW! Rain on tour = not your friend! We played with a whole bunch of cool bands…definitely rockin’ their own vibes….The MexiVandals (not their name, but def the band) opened and it was good….then Asiago (btw my fav bagel at starbees) graced us with some serious pipes and songwriting that we promptly told them they would be stupid not to take it to Tooth and Nail and make some serious x-ian rock cash! The Black Horde played too…..Now we played with them at The Blackwater Café last time we came through town and I swear they sounded like the BRONX. This time around, not so much….more “metal or die” style….Skateshoes, the singer (whose house Civet has crashed at in the past) was actually wearing a priest suit! We were up! It was an awesome show with a really really great pit as well as some tough as nails little kids and the pretty made up chicks….it’s always funny to me to see how different all our fans are….We played a great show and I almost lost my teeth to the mic…

Round 2 was amazing! We made a not so hot decision that I paid for later to brave the I70 to avoid snow….mmmm, not so much…hit the snow…needed the chains…took me like 4 hours of zombie like driving to make it over the mountain….We almost got stuck in the chain off area when our chains got wrapped around the wheel well…it was like 20 degrees, snowing and all the girls were sleeping…. I didn’t want to wake them up so I got the Fed Ex guy to help me. Had to put my tail between my legs when he said he had offered to help me put them on and I had shot him down! Why does all this stuff happen to me? I’m bound to be put in a situation where I’m humbled if I don’t watch myself. It never fails…It also helps me to be a better person on a daily basis. Note to self – take help when it’s offered the first time!

We rolled into The Nugget and decided to camp out here…this was a great casino with our number one prereq, a starbees! I also got sucked into some serious gambling while there….that never happens to me, but I really felt like this one machine kept paying off (NOT!)! We loaded in to vixens and reunited with our homie Chapin to celebrate his new ownership of vixens! This man is the ultimate enabler….he doesn’t drink, but when he starts handing everyone shots you sure feel like he does!!! We passed on a soundcheck….now this is always a dilemma ….but all of my friends in bands will agree that great soundcheck = shitty show and vice versa….so why even go there? Last nights’ show was on, we know and love vixens sound system and we knew the fans were gunna be there…we went for it!!! No check and off to a great interview with friend and uber fan Chris Payne at KR-something Reno….that was easy….the only thing I ever worry about in group interviews is us sounding kinda snobby or maybe even a little stupid…it’s just that when we are all together shit gets real funny really fast..and after a zillion of these interviews that, let’s face it…all ask the same shit, you kinda sound like a robot occasionally…..So for the record, we’re really smart, and NOT assholes…..just easily amused.
Show was off the hook at Vixens that night and Youth Brigade n’ 7 Seconds, MIsfritz played awesome as well….the pineapple vodka just tasted like just pineapple and definitely snuck up on us!!! I was (kinda) the last man standing as the girls had to rescue mission Rox and left me at the club…..my conversations consisted of this (and this is how you KNOW I was a goner) – medical marijuana curing cancer, the REAL meaning of being a punk rocker, and reintroducing myself to a guy I’ve known for years, just didn’t recognize…..duh! So finally someone came to get me (cause you KNOW civet girls to NOT walk to the hotel alone)… I had a run in with a “poison” apple and missed a few calls from the bf and was smart enough to pass out in the hotel bed on my stomach (JUST IN CASE!), although I was kinda naked at least I was safe about it!
The morning met me with a, yeah… you guessed it, wicked hangover…. and apologies to my ever understanding BF…We hung out with Chapins’ baby and hot wife Jo for a while, then some serious Olive Garden to nurse our hangovers….the big joke at the OG was that everyone in the lobby was “going to dinner” and we were sitting there not talking, just playing on our phones and not speaking a single word to each other…I wanted to stand up and explain to all these fine people that we are on tour and we’re more than ok with silence….and that when you are with someone for days you just coexist….especially in a band setting…ask anyone! Totally not weird fine people of Reno!

Truckee was cute…small….reminded me of one of the tiny venues we played on the Guttermouth Tour in CA a zillion years ago…..lots of super slippery ice and no one to help load….live in a dive show….love it!!! The turnout was great, but the downside was that most people who were at the show the night before were there….how is this bad you ask? Uh, because they already bought the merch! We played with the super rad and stand up hilarious Saddle Tramps…We played pretty much the same set, still slightly under the weather, but it was super fun! I was so in the swing of playing shows that I wanted to keep going!! We left and hauled ass back to LA cause I was gunna try to catch Tobe before he flew to Co. to record HIS record…..alas, life is cruel! We missed each other by about an hour….such is the life of a musician….like passing ships in the night….3 days was great, but can we do some 3 weekers now?!

My Love Affair w/ Fender! (NAMM 2010)

2010-01-18T12:58:00.000-08:00

This was our second year at NAMM…it feels really good when you play something big one year and everyone loves you enough to invite you back the next year…not that we aren’t lovable like that ha ha! We played for Fender/Gretsch which is basically the same company with one having more classic old school vibe and feel and the other one being the typical rock guitar…Now don’t get me wrong, I‘m a Gibson girl, but a fender strat WAS my first real guitar…I remember wanting one really really bad because Courtney Love played them. I started off with a Squire (Fenders' more moderately priced child) and later moved on to a real Fender. My first guitar was black and I remember having a Cramps sticker on it and a pic of Courtney Love (of course!) I played a set of two shows/back to back nights at some club in Westminster that isn’t even around anymore…with this ridiculous wanna be Kiss copy band called FiFi Larue…the shows were good, unfortunately some jerk stole my guitar when I made the mistake of not packing it in the van (at this point we’re talking mini van, not uh, van van…) My second fender went the same way…she was gorgeous, baby blue and managed to sound amazing although I was still playing out of a shot to shit Rickenbacker amp… I remember playing the 3rd or 4th annual Mad Monster Party that we used to play every year at the knitting factory… Someone stole it from the back room along with my coffin case. That sucked… and to this day I am a straight up Nazi about someone watching the gear at all times… I always just brushed off the loss of the guitar, cause after all it’s just stuff… but I’m SURE at this point in my life if I lost the Gibson I would surely lose my shit.
NAMM, oh yeah! NAMM! So Fender put us up in the Double Tree the night before so we didn’t have to deal with the NIGHTMARE that is parking at NAMM… Now if you haven’t been to NAMM it would surely blow your mind… even for the mild gear head it’s overwhelming… all the new guitars, psuesdo-rock celebs everywhere! One out of three people looks like they came from a time machine set to the 80’s… Mick Mars was there, Yngwie Malmsteen, Strung Out played, Kerry King, Slash, etc, etc...
We played the Fender stage which is inside and set up like an auditorium…it was cool, but honestly like the vibe wasn’t there… we were rocking and a lot of these people were trade show old people mixed in with our crowd… See namm is weird because you CAN'T buy tickets, so fans CAN'T get in… so when you see a whole bunch of people singing along, which thank God there were, then that means that your fans also work for companies… extra cool! So our set was good… there we’re a ton of cameras and the video looks pretty sick as do some of the photos, but truly my favorite set was the second one, down on the motherfucking floor super punk rock style. This was where we played last year, on the floor at the Kim Falcon booth…There’s just something about playing right there that has super good vibes… I was able to jump into the crowd and really “ACT OUT” I like that… that’s when I really feel it and am stoked… Chris Pontius loved it, and you know we love him! Other pseudo big fan moment was Dhani Harrison (George Harrison’s son) watching from the side of the fender stage and telling us how much he loved it when we got done… BTW he rolled up in a bullet proof escalade. Just sayin. So we played and it was great, both sets….it was only like 3:30 by that point and I was exhausted as I’m sure all the other girls were too… we walked around shaking hands and kissing babies and later after watching Strung Out’s set we headed off to a delicious sushi dinner with the Strung Out dudes, Michael Shultz (the homie) Billy the fender marketing genius and a few others… Sushi was cool, but I couldn’t wait to get some sleep and go round 2 as a spectator at nmamm the next day!
I rocked out on the Malcom Young model Gretsch which actually sounded pretty sick after I let Tobe's super tech friend rewire the sob to run hotter...I shot some stuff for Altitude TV which is now REVOLVER TV(more on this in a bit!) and the day was pretty packed, but in a good way!
The rumors were true! Rancid actually came out and played the Gretsch floor stage on Saturday… It was nothing less that phenomenal…it was good to be a punk rocker that day…I really really felt proud…it was one of those moments that really make me feel proud to do what I do and be a part of this hellcat family. I actually got teary eyed! And I wasn’t too big shot to sing along with all the other fans, cause this was real! I later ran into Corey Parks (Nashville pussy/Chelsea girls) who was there promoting her new cabinet line (super sick and white!) It’s funny because everyone is there promoting SOMETHING! It was good to see all these people (Tim, Corey, Michael) who believed in the band and gave us their love and support… that’s why we are where we are… we give them mad props and love! Viva Namm 2010!

Sick to Death!

2009-12-17T00:17:00.000-08:00

I’ve had a ton of extra time on my hands lately (sick, bf is gone, holidays = no real work!) so I’ve been taking care of all kinds of loose ends etc….answering phone calls I’ve been avoiding…catching up on Grey’s Anatomy etc… ha ha….better than that I actually started sewing again (yay!) and I finished a collage tonight….I feel like I’m very artsy, but in an alternative way. For example…..tonight I was really feeling frustrated and um, restless I guess so I got out some spray paint and started going through magazines trying to channel some of that craziness I was feeling…..The end result was pretty cool, it’s the biggest piece I’ve done so far, for lack of a smaller canvas – I definitely work better on the one that is a 8 by 11 or standard paper size….The collage deals with a little bit of relationship stuff and how you feel lonely or isolated when your significant other is on the road…there’s a couple stalkerish pics of tobe on there (which by the way I’m sure he’ll be thrilled about! ha ha) and some of me as well (photobooth stuff!)…Definitely one of a kind, and because I’m all about purging it’s going up for sale….

New SONG posted I co-wrote w/ Elvis Cortez from Left Alone!

2009-12-08T15:08:00.000-08:00

Yes, that's right....this song was about 10+ years in the making....he's always been a good friend of mine, even though we've gone long spells without talking over the years....this is probably the ONLY person in my life who was around in the beginning of civet (circa 1999) and is around now...ha ha.....so enjoy!!!!

Go check out his myspace

http://www.myspace.com/elviscortez

and support your music scene!!!

Oh and while I'm at it....I've decided after a lot of thinking to make my FACEBOOK open to the public....and actually announce it....I just feel that I get a lot more personal on that page and do constant updates and I would like my fans to have access to that...I mean....why not? You guys make this band and my projects what they are and I'm eternally grateful!!!! Just remember to behave!!! ha ha!!! Come find me!

I'm in Houston right now hanging out with my boyfriend Tobe and getting inspired by the STREET DOGS practice as they gear up for another tour....I think Texas (they are right, everything IS bigger here!) is a bit too sticky for my taste, but stuff is cheap and the company is great!!!!! go check out and support www.myspace.com/streetdogs

Give me some lovin' feedback on that NEW song!!!!

"it's only been a couple months"

2009-12-02T01:43:00.000-08:00

So much has changed in my life it's crazy, but I feel like as a person I've stayed the same....people close to me are all getting engaged/married and having babies and a part of me is screaming "I'M NOT READY TO GET OLD AND STOP LIVING"...not that I think that getting old = babies or is entirely BAD....but I really love my touring life, and my band life and drinking and hanging out and to a certain extent just my independence....I feel like I'm at a point in my life where career-wise I'm on fire and it's just getting better and better everyday, I've got a great new (which might actually be old!) outlook on the band and I feel full of energy, in control, etc.....but all around me there it is...the fucking babies, the "say yes to the dress" episodes, all the people close to me getting engaged....it's scary...Like tonight, suz and I went to Target to get me a Xmas tree and we run into Tatum, who is just gorgeous, but she's also suzi's age and has like a 4 year old....holy shit! like, when do you live? how do you pay for that? i would hate to have a child and not be able to buy him/her/it everything it needs and wants (to a certain extent)....I don't know...lots of crazy stuff to think about lately and I'm not really sure where I fit in...I'm a girl...i wanna get married, it's in my blood....but so is rock and roll.....soooooooo I guess it doesn't matter cause it's not my decision anyway! Boy does that take a lot of the pressure off!!! Yay for tradition!

Wild in Glasgow...Tonight!

2009-11-02T10:22:00.000-08:00

Manchester, England….
You guessed it…just how they said the crowds suck here…they kinda did…or maybe it was the spice girls costumes we came out in, uh cause we didn’t give a fuck. I’m still feeling very much a girlfriend on this tour, but I feel like the more space I give myself the better I feel about everything in general…I am a real legit moving person, with a career and a history and lots of things…. Dont' get me wrong, i'm MADLY IN LOVE for the first time in a long time, but vibing with another person while being really close space invaders everyday is kinda tough. I feel like I’m getting better. Dealing with my issues a little bit more, I need to make sure I’m not being crazy about nothing….Liza, for the record, totally gets crazy about NOTHING sometimes…ha ha…but honestly…that’s what makes you great, being slightly eccentric.

Nothing to see here

The tour itself has being going GREAT!! I’m definitely feeling the northern euro vibe like Sweden, Norway etc. a lot more than all the countries I’ve visited in the last few months….It’s crisp and everyone is really really good looking ha ha…oh and Belgium…..LOVED Belgium…I finally got to meet (and shoot with!) the one and only Cindy Frey who is not only talented and super cool, but beautiful…I’ll have some of those pics soon….Tobe took me over to Vaudville 79 the store Tommy X owns…see I think they just hide all the super cool people in Belgium….He hooked us up with some clothes (that I proudly wore onstage) and his gf was at the show as well…It was cool to meet him outside of the whole US Bombs /Ex shadow….It felt good.

I’ve been drinking heavily (what’s new?!) and just having a good time in general…like I said earlier I definitely feel like this has been a trip where I’m wearing several different hats….Our merch girl bailed on the tour, so we’ve been handling all that, then I’m in the band (duh!) ha ha and the girlfriend vibe I’ve been rocking…I feel sooooo busy!!!! And truth be told when I’m not rocking out or hanging out I’m trying to sleep as much as humanly possible….I love love love my sleep….
Tonight we’re in Glasgow Scotland, which totally reminds me or my dad cause my family is Scottish
Is this real life? Am I really on tour in Europe for the 2nd time in like 4 months…and with my bf who I love love love!? Damn!!!

I tour harder than my boyfriend... (tobe n' I in the UK)
Kinda channeling the Claire Danes look

Ain't no money in rock n' roll

2009-11-01T11:52:00.000-08:00

Euro Update #1

Back in Europe…back on tour with the st dogs….shows have been really good…really really good, except for the first night, where apologies to our Berlin fans we totally shot ourselves in the foot by overpricing our tshirts….duh…ha ha….We had a wild drinking night in Stockholm followed by a equally wild night in Finland drinking again. It’s really hard to not drink around our tour and label mates, they are definitely seasoned drinkers….we definitely can’t go out at all without things getting exciting, whether it’s a bar fight or old flames, we just can’t seem to keep the drama under control….We just made the cover of our first magazine in Europe….SUE magazine and to add more fuel to the fire our magazine in all it’s glory was at the bar we chose to drown our sorrows in whilst in Finland….The thing about drinking is your perception of things totally gets skewed depending on how much you’ve had to drink….I’m always right when I’m drunk….unfortunately everyone else is too ha ha…my night was just a big rowdy messy mess of alcohol and civet/stdogs shirts…..sometimes after a night such as this it’s good cause it puts me in check…I want nothing more to go crawl back to the rock n’ roll love I came from, put all my time and effort into something that I know won’t ever disappoint me, and if it happens to, it’s never personal….it’s rock n’ roll….I want to write…I want to break away for a second and get back to the basics that feel really good..I wouldn’t be out here touring and dealing with all the bullshit if the pure act of playing and being one with an audience every night wasn’t so intoxicating. It’s never about the money or the love or the crazy hangouts, it’s always about the music and I just have to not forget that….Sweden, here I come, a little worse for the wear, but ready to rock n’ roll…..

Bardot or bust!

2009-08-22T21:10:00.000-07:00

Here's my blog that ran on my good friend steph's site!!!!
*****************

Now, I'm super psyched to bring you today's guest blogger who went to extra effort to get me her really amazing ballad while she and her kick-ass band were on tour with Social Distortion....I'm talkin' bout the one and only LIZA GRAVES OF CIVET!

If you've been following my blog for awhile, you know how much I adore Liza and Civet. I haven't been this into a band since I discovered the likes of Social D, Rancid, Hole, and Nirvana back when I was like 13.

If you haven't been following my blog, well here is the lowdown on Liza:

Liza Graves sings (and plays guitar!) for the femme fatale band Civet (check them out here!) And when she's not out touring/recording and generally trying to change the way women are perceived in music she does a bit of blogging/ modeling/ musical collaborating/ creating/ running her indie label (callgirl records)! She also is a VJ on Altitude TV which you can check out at www.rockonaltitude.com

Lastly, I cannot recommend Liza's blog enough. If you ever wanted to know what life is like for a real rock 'n' roller, you must start reading http://lizagraves.blogspot.com/. She's not a name-dropper or a kiss-ass, she just tells it like it is.... As she is about to do in this ballad.

The Ballad of Big Sister: Liza Graves

I am many things in my life… a rock n’ roller, a writer, a lover, a vj, an occasional dealer of weed (in the great state of CA where it’s legal), but most important, I am a big sister. In the grand scheme of things I have an even greater job and that’s shaping the lives of two growing human beings! I like to a think I had a hand in who they have become and I will be there to always take them through the tough times. If I’m lucky my little brother will be there to walk me down the aisle…..er, someday…not soon!

My little brother Joe is 15 and smarter than me (or so he thinks!)…he’s one of those kids that just was given what he wanted all his life…he’s gunna get older and land some girlfriend/wife/significant other to take care of him all the way, I can feel it…my job is to teach him to love and respect women. I like to think he respects his sisters….He’s had a bit of a bad upbringing, bit it’s not unfixable. For a 15 yr old he’s got his head on pretty straight! He totally doesn’t think I’m cool at all…There’s plenty of kids who would love to be able to say their big sisters play in a rock band, oh but not my brother….he’s into other things, like that Screamo/Hardcore stuff…Our convos go something like this “Joe! I just landed a Social Distortion tour, do you wanna come see us?” Joe, “Naw, that’s cool man….when are you gunna play with Saosin?” I swear he likes bands I’ve never even heard of which makes me feel either a) really old or b) really uncool….ha ha….

On warped tour recently I was able to introduce him to the toothless singer of that band “The Devil Wears Prada” who I didn’t even really know at all….I had my ALL ACCESS pass and this desire to impress my brother, so I made it work….I think he thought I was pretty cool after that (for like a day!) Someday, I tell myself, someday I will do something that bridges the little generation gap we’ve got going on. I’d love to get him on the road to tech for us, but I don’t think that would ever really work out. I mean, would you really want to tech for your two older sisters?

Did I tell you my brother is cool? He is, he’s one of those eternally cool kids, not the socially awkward ones, I look at him and just think, “how come YOU get to go through high school that cool and we were totally suffering as awkward ugly ducklings?” Someone definitely hogged the “suave” gene in our family!!! I wanted to include my brother in my tale because he doesn’t get enough attention from us, we are always on the road…I recently got to hang out with him in Seattle at my grandmas and he flew through Stephanie’s new book…which also focuses on a sister/brother relationship. Joe, am I cool yet?

My partner in crime aka my sister aka Suzi Homewrecker, on the other hand, I like to think I was actually responsible for turning out…She was doing great in school and was in a mock “sorority” as well as an active member of the cheerleading team….typical wannabe all american girl (in high school you’re never who you want to be)…I put a stop to that real fast!!! As early as 14 I would have her sit in for a song or two at civet shows….she still was blond, but I had all intentions of handing her a bottle of black hair dye, a guitar and an official spot in my band as soon as she was old enough. “Old enough” came sooner rather than later, she was officially drafted at 15.….just 15! I meet kids now in bands as young as 17 and I just can’t even wrap my head around someone that age being able to tour….It’s mind blowing and I have no idea how she did it…The period she entered the band in was crazy too….We weren’t just playing backyards anymore, we were starting to actually get somewhere….Suz and I had just schmoozed our way onto a coveted spot at DISASTER RECORDS (Duane Peters’ label) and had started feverishly writing. My sister and I pretty much single handedly penned the Massacre album…granted she was still a little young and inexperienced to be writing great epic rock songs, she definitely was my sounding board. I can remember sitting in my room being the bossy older sis, “Suz, play this!” so that I could write my solo over it. I’ve always written better with someone around, and my sister seems to have that magic something to get the good stuff really flowing. I’ve always felt like that though, not soley in music. Suzi has always brought out the best in me, the crazy fearless side….I like that when I’m around her I feel like I’m 20, not 25...she keeps me young….ha ha….

Suz and I have been though the ringer together and I’m proud to call her my best friend….There was even a time when my bad rock n’ roll influence actually started to sent her down the “road to ruin“. It was about 3 yrs ago, we were on the road with my sisters boyfriends band the Breakdowns (now the Strangers). She’s gunna kill me for telling this one, but I think it illustrates a really big point….that no matter who you are, or where you are, family comes first. We were all feeling a little cocky, it was our first tour in a while, we were getting in a little bit of late night “boy trouble” at a Motel 6 in Sacto….We had played a great show and split off into our separate groups at the hotel. I started feeling like something was seriously, seriously wrong…Like, I just knew…I jumped out of bed (one I probably shouldn’t have been in anyway) and ran to find my sister at the party room in the Motel 6.….Sure enough, there she was, my little 17 yr old partner in crime doing lines of coke with some serious bad influences. I was livid….more than livid I guess I was just scared. Being scared makes you do some seriously fucked shit….I grabbed her out of the room and pretty much pummeled her…I couldn’t stop screaming….Everyone said it wasn’t a big deal, but you know what? I knew better. I knew deep down that if I didn’t make sure she knew that this wasn’t ok NOW, it would happen again. I was fully responsible. I brought her into music. I put her in this life so early….and granted I set a really different rock standard of no drugs and no sleeze, it was still my fault that she was around those people at the Motel 6 at age 17… That night I had to make the choice of my sister, or my music….and all I could think was, “I don’t want to do this without her” …So after I gained control of myself enough to stop throwing punches at her and her bf (sorry Dave Stucken!) I told everyone we were leaving and threw her “good time” having ass in the van. We drove straight home without stopping…I knew that that in itself was a statement. That I would NOT put something like the band in front of her, that nothing was more important in my life than family and a cancelled tour was just one of the sacrifices I was willing to make to make sure she turned out alright in life. It worked. She doesn’t do drugs and although she pretty much grew up with the opportunity to be a big bad rock n’ roll kid, she’s totally got a good head on her shoulders. She’s respectful, she’s driven and she is one of the most amazing people I know…Granted we still argue about things like who the best Beatle was or whether a Fender or Marshall head gets better sound, for the most part it’s smooth sailing…and the best part of all of this is, I get to tour with my sister/ best friend…

Balance is the ultimate struggle in my life….I have to balance my relationships with my career….my rock career with my day to day job, my ego with my down home personality, my “Ms. Liza Graves” with “Just Liza“, my family life with my road life. In the end its definitely my family that keep me grounded. I like to give my sister and brother credit for keeping me grounded, reminding me that at the end of the day there’s nothing like family, that’s for life yo!

Today's Contest:
Really, there could only be one prize I could offer to go with that blog entry and that would be a copy of my book, I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone. I wrote that book because I dreamed of the day a ballsy woman would rule the world of rock. Liza and the ladies of Civet are exactly those kind of women. Not to mention the book is about family loyalty, whether it be the family that you are born into or the family you form from your friends.

So leave a comment to enter. Tell us about your sibilings or if you're an only child, friends or cousins who are like siblings, and the influence they have on you.

ballad of a life worth cyberstalking

2009-08-12T21:19:00.001-07:00

I did a guest "ballad" for my good friend and AMAZING author Stephanie Kuehnert to help celebrate her NEW book "Ballads of Suburbia"!!! It will be posted tomorrow, come by, show some support and comment away!!! I love to hear from everyone whether it's on my blog er, or on myspace or at shows!!!! xowww.myspace.com/theblacknotebooks

Tonight we are playing the LAST show of the tour that never ends....we are in New Mexico at the Atomic Cantina.....tomorrow morning I'm flying out to TX for a little much needed vacation....Things are getting a little sketchy in my personal life, so I just want to say that I really love everyone that I am close to....I'm really good at being strong and doing what I believe in and I BELIEVE IN THIS. I believe in being loved and sharing your life with someone who "gets" you.... If you've had your chance and you've been cut from my life, please just move on, it will be better for everyone...no need to get all crazy stalker on me please.....

Also my facebook is private....i'm not really a facebook fan so i rarely go on there, there's like 10 friends.....serious!!!! Come see me on myspace or twitter or on my BLOG cause that's where it really gets juicy!!!! I'm the most boring facebook person EVER!

ps. I will be back on http://www.rockonaltitude.com/ in about a week and a half.....see ya there!!! I've got a ton of new pics to put up as well...shows have been amazing, but i'm ready to get home and recharge a bit!!!!Love you guys!!! Thanks for all the SWEET tour memories!!!

"Still Alive"

2009-08-05T23:12:00.000-07:00

This is Matt Steinke...I not so secretly hate him...we met a million years ago when I was trying to date Tim from Sugarcult (not something I'm proud of ) I am however, proud to call him my tech friend...er, when he's on the good stuff!

We are reaching the end of our Social D tour...I'm sooooo fucking thankful to be where I'm at...I'm gunna be truthful and admit that I'm a little bit fried right now, ha ha...I mean, I've been out here for about a month and a half and I'm NOT tired, just so deep into tour I'm sure my "come down" is gunna be knarly....I am lucky that I get to do my tour detox in Texas with someone who is super amazing to me...I'm gunna need a serious vacation to come down from my ultimate "rock" vacation!

I've got some awesome pics from our night out in Edmonton seeing Eagles of Death Metal...I'll be sure to post those in the next one! I got a little bored with the show by show format, so here's what you get, a motherfucking curve ball:

THE GOOD...THE BAD....THE UGLY!

The Good: Best shows had to be the headliner we did at the Distillery in Calgary after our social d show got last minute cancelled (this show was the STUFF OF LEGENDS) we actually got to the next show and people were TALKING about this one!/ The last 4 or 5 shows killed it....including Vermont/ Montreal/ Milwaukee etc....all the shows started getting sooooo good we just called it a "Turkey" er, or after 3 good shows in a row we just decided we won the game! There was a dance invented!

Good = Stalking Dahmer in hidden tunnels and sightings of children playing at the best show of the tour, The super haunted Eagles Ballroom in Milwaukee....it was good to come back, although we're convinced we took something away with us....

Also good was getting to meet up with Tobe in Ohio...how cool that our bands were playing within a few hrs of each other....best 6 hours of my life...ha ha...

Nicknames! Liza Smash- the Guz- Suzi Showrecker- Titties Tytell...it just NEVER ended....the boss- wild turkey- etc...etc...."is there something going on here?"

The Bad: Me, chasing my homies in Final Summation out to their van begging to be taken back towards the West Coast with them while giving a big schpeal about why NOT to become a slave to the music industry...ha ha...ahhh! Sorry guys...it had been a LONG day and you are the only band from "back in the day" that NEVER got weird on us when we got successful...props for that! Love you!

Bad would also be my FIRST time at a strip club, in Canada, no doubt....a first with a first I guess...it was scary to say the least, they have different rules out there, like there is full nudity AND alcohol (scary canadian beaver!)....there were also a TON of people from the show there as well, so it was extra mortifying being rock-agnized that night....I was like "I swear this is my first time"...the response to that one was "sure...it's my first time too!" no one believed me and I was being mocked....ugh!

I think that seeing the River City Rebels in Vermont counts as bad, as in Bad ASS....ha ha...there's soooo much history there...Bopper (aka THE RIVER CITY REBELS) and I just had a really great time slagging all the dirty exes and talking about the good ol' days, like the VERY FIRST real tour we did with them and the DP Gunfight out to TX in 05

The Ugly:
Ugly was the casino show, so ugly that I unfairly yelled at my sisters bf DAVE (also in the opening band the Strangers) yelled at him to change her string on the gretsch....to which Craig (social d's tour manager) leaned over to him and said "you better get scared, that's gunna be your sister in law...ha ha" in his ridiculously thick accent.....great I'm the future nightmare sister in law... - the night was saved ONLY by my immense ROULETTE winnings as well as my SWEEP of the BLACK JACK table....

Also ugly was also our tech....getting caught with his hand in the cookie jar and trying to stir up the van by making people question their loyalty and friendships...you know how you stop that? you send that shit home, and that's just what I did...it was fun while it lasted, but not everyone can handle the van with us!

Oh you know what is really really ugly? All of the dumb motherfuckers the are on the civet "rejects" list....lets just say we had a really UGLY listening party and laughed heartily at your expense....Wait? Was this done on garageband?

I'm not gunna name names, but SOMEONE wears a leather jacket with NO SHIRT underneath and needs to be stopped...ha ha....he knows who he is....for shame!!

The ugly also involves Dave from the Strangers trying to fight our friend David from Simple Plan tonight in Montreal....gentlemen, there's plenty of civet to go around...let's not get all barbaric! It was good seeing David, cept he knows THE TRUTH...that Suzi was in the "Shut Up" video....sweet!

GOOD MOTHER FUCKIN' TIMES!!!!!

And this is Lucas.....he chased me down outside of the casino and made me teach him some rock n' roll moves...I have this theory that his dad named him that after an unhealthy Star Wars obsession, regardless, they are both SUPER SWEET....do I look like a mom?

AMP Magazine Blog

2009-07-28T21:30:00.000-07:00

I wrote this back in November for AMP MAGAZINE (i think it only published online, but who knows!) Anyway...it's the FIRST TIME I've read it, cause I didn't think it actually went out there, but it's soooo good it makes me cringe and smile all at once...that's the stuff I LOVE, so I thought I'd share!!! There's NO comments allowed...I bet it got pretty knarly....but you know what they say...."well behaved women rarely make history"

The truth of the road….
In about a week we leave for tour again and damn I can’t wait! There’s something about living in a van that really calls to me. I’m not alone either. Being on the road , as long as you are with a band you get along with and the money is alright, can be one of the best feelings in the world. Who wouldn’t want to wake up, eat, hang out, then play to adoring fans? This much attention has it’s downfalls however….I mean really, you’re getting told “yes” and “damn, you are amazing, hot, rocking ________(fill in the blank) every night of the week, that by the time you get back home from tour, your perception of reality is a bit skewed. That might even be an understatement. This is a huge reason why relationships are strained on the road, I really believe it has nothing to do with how many “groupies” are available to you, but the fact that your significant other back home sees you for what you really are, er, a starving (albeit sexy) musician and occasional drunk. But on the road, you are like a superhero, and all that drinking you try to curb at home is encouraged EVERY NIGHT by the free drinks and minimal amount of driving to your hotel (if you even have a hotel, if not, even better, you stumble to the van!) You are surrounded by 24 hr party people (thanks Andrew w.k.) who are celebrating YOU being in their town…..Now if this sounds too good to be true and you’re not in a band, but now thinking you should start a band, STOP right there! The market is over saturated, there is no place for you….go home…It will probably take you 5 years to get to the “touring band” stage….so if you’re gunna get into making music, please get into it for the joy of creating and playing, not to experience the two faced beast that is tour life….Soooo you sleep in a van, you hang out and drink, you “play” every night…..is that all there is too it? Yep…..pretty much, save for the occasional interview or crazy van death story…..You are simultaneously bored and busy at the same time, how is that?….you get to the club at 3pm to load….but in reality you probably don’t load til 6pm...it’s the hurry up and wait game…..slowly you lose touch with your buddies at home…with your boyfriend/girlfriend/dog/mom…. hell, they couldn’t possibly understand the stuff you are experiencing out here. Oh and f.y.i, tour stories don’t translate very well…..what happens on the road stays on the road (aka code of the road)!!!! I’m excited that this time out I don’t have to report back to a boyfriend or any nonsense like that, that’s taxing…All the friends you lose back at home are replaced with other friends in bands who “get you” or fans whose house you crash at while on the road …Ok, so I’m sure you’re thinking “man, I thought she said touring was great?“ ha ha it is I swear, it is the most amazing time of your life… And besides the few drawbacks and hard work (everyone should move equipment, singers who don’t play, that totally includes your little bitch asses too) with a little luck and some great t-shirt designs, and the steady decline of gas you should come home with a little bit of money, a whole lot of new friends all over the country and start the infamous “after tour detox”….aka the come down…damn I love the road!

http://www.ampmagazine.com/index.php/blogs/comments/liza_graves_of_civet/

Live and Let Die

2009-07-25T17:33:00.000-07:00

First Social D show
Seattle WA, Showbox SODO

This had to be one of the BEST shows of my fucking career….stellar! We brought that shit!!!! Ha ha…the crowd was amazing, as always, I really really love Seattle…..My grandma lives in Seattle and I’ve spent a lot of time here…there’s something that makes you kinda crazy in the water, but I think that if you don’t stay too long you should be safe! Despite all the shit I’ve heard, Mike Ness is a pretty stand up guy…he came in right off the bat and introduced himself and told us to let him know if we needed anything. The only band that ever rolled THAT legit with us was Dropkick…I’m really big on the band that comes and introduces themselves to the opening band or support band…it’s just respectful…So stay tuned, but Mike Ness is looking pretty stand up guy. It was good to see a lot of our friends on this tour, Suzi’s ex Dave Stucken came out with the opening band the Strangers. Our favorite tech (Alk Trios tech) Matt Steinke is out here and peace has been made, so we are all set! Oh and Jonny Two Bags….last time I saw him I was getting arrested, that’s always fun right? Seattle we love you, and we’ll be back soon!!!!!

Highlights include my mom starting the circle pit & pulling some "highway robbery" on Guitar Center in exchange for tix...love it!

Vancouver aka Vancougar Canada!

Great show even though I was a little under the weather…it was our first time throwing our tech Jared under the bus…we let him flail a little bit and learn his was around our stage plot etc. Sadly it was an “EPIC FAIL” when my guitar strap broke! Yes, again! I will tell you why I think this is: (I have a Gibson Classic that is chambered and I'm convinced there's a pocket where my guitar strap screws in, it eats all of the toothpicks I put in to secure it!!!) I had to run offstage and grab my back up since tech city was no where to be found…other that that the show was stellar. I was a bit tipsy cause my throat has been bothering me and figured a little whiskey/hot water/honey combo might help…and damn did it! My voice was good and my balls were out…ha ha...I was pretty tough cookie last night…I accidentally gave myself a slight rugburn during a rock slide however…debating whether this move is good for my health….Suzi (aka the NEW number 2) did the scariest jump I’ve ever seen from the stage to the baracade, which we had talked about at soundcheck, but it was way too far to make….she uh, totally made it….shocking!!!! Ness was watching from the side of the stage and I’m a bit guilty of snarling at him while we played…I was boozing and not afraid of anyone, even motherfucking Mike Ness…ha ha…Although the border was cool and the venue started off cool and the show was WAY cool….the phrase of the day came to be “Epic Fail” ha ha….fucking Canada…I haven’t decided yet whether or not you have a special place in my heart yet….tonight we shall see!!!!

Border cross 2 was a fucking EPIC FAIL….all I’m gunna say is you catch more flies with honey and I have NO problem with authority…it’s easy if you know how to work people…I can’t handle the negative energy around me right now, just need to get back to the venue for my show STAT!

Me and our Euro Driver MDOG!!!

"Vhat the Hell?!"

Vancougar (Round 2)

This was the first show of my career I’ve ever came close to missing! It was phenomenal….i can’t believe I made it….and well, it rocked….lots of boom boom, swagger swagger at this one! We had to get on a "boat" in order to head over to Victoria...this resulted in us actually filming a mock "I'm on a boat" video....yes, we are that fucking funny on our days off...stay tuned! I have a special appearance as "T Pain", Er, "T Graves" ha ha

Victoria

Just being in this sleepy vacation town made me think of that one man Army song “Victoria” how about “the two of us, we talked to much, can you hear them? Calling your name? I wanted sooo much more, than to be a martyr for, a dying breed”... We played at the “Royal Theatre” which was just that, a theatre….everyone had strictly assigned seats, the upside of playing a theatre, like a legit one, is that the sound is always immaculate! The crowd for this show was sparse, it was so bizarre, I really thought no one was gunna show up by the time social d went on. I even had a bet going with suz as to whether or not he would actually play…I lost, he did! During our soundcheck he came up and busted my balls about dropping a water backwards off my cab last night….spilled all the way down the front of HIS marshall cab…eek….I was like “that never happened, I have no idea what you are talking about”... The techs had came up earlier and said, the Boss (yes! They fucking call him the boss, he’s SOOO cool) requested no more water on the amps…My luck he was watching the whole thing with himself….

the late, great One Man Army...better that way (cd butchers the live show)!

Show was killer!!! Like I said though, the crowd was sparse…it’s hard to judge a show like that, so you just have to go bye how it felt to you. My monitor mix has been phenomenal since Jared our tech has been on the job….I’ve never been so happy with my stage sound! I had NO voice all day, side effect of that nasty cold I made worse by flying home….I did everything all day long, emergency, hot tea, aloe vera juice, listerine, and finally fucking olive juice. Yes, it was REALLY gross, but I had to play the show and I needed a voice for it, so I sucked it up and took a big swig of the thick stuff! Wouldn’t you know it fucking worked! It was super temporary, like 10 min per swig, so yeah, you guessed it; I had to drink several gulps during the course of the set. At one point I looked over at Two Bags on the side of the stage and did the biggest, meanest gulp ever. He looked horrified. Suz says he must love it, but really he’s got to be terrified…after watching me get arrested last Sept and some of my onstage antics, good luck figuring that one out! Ha ha

Tour is getting good, we are starting to get in the swing of this particular tour, I feel at ease like I was missing in Europe…I know everyone (didn’t hurt that I knew a lot of people before the tour) It really feels like home. I was afraid to do this tour, cause Mike Ness is fucking scary, but you know what, there’s something really REAL about him that puts you at ease…like why would I ever be afraid of this guy? He’s a good guy. I think that was the secret to his success, that something of ease that he lends people…

can't put your arms around a memory

2009-07-22T13:30:00.000-07:00

I'm not suprised....cause at the end of the day I hardly knew you...and from what I've seen you hardly know yourself anyway...so the reality was I couldn't love someone like that....I guess I shouldn't be shocked at the lack of effort on your part, it's the same lack of effort I've seen for years. It boils my blood that you are still able to irritate me even though you are not in my life. I expect it, I expect you to date all of my ex band members or chase down my current ones on the street. Nothing you do or say can change things, not that you would try anyway...remember, the lack of effort is what broke us.....so don't fucking pin this on me, when I said "hey call me back if you want to keep doing this" and I get nothing, that's on you, not me, no matter how hard you want to make me out to be the bad guy (to your mom, your new friends, your bands etc)...The fact that you just couldn't seem to work in my life or accept me in your "new" one is what put the nail in the coffin. I deserved to be treated better. And while I'm getting my tattoo covered (finally!) I'll remember the fact that you didn't fucking have one in the first place, and that spoke louder than everything else in our relationship...I'm glad you aren't my problem anymore...

Eurotrashed Pt. 3 (ciao!)

2009-07-20T17:21:00.000-07:00

Why Prague!? Why?!!!

I will never again drink another “mushroom” aka a coca cola and red wine drink aka “hoba” ….sounds super dangerous to begin with right? I probably wouldn’t have even started on those if I hadn’t had one too many drinks already! Our day off we stayed at our drivers house, M Dog…who is totally cool and young and we’ll probably take him out on the next run. He had the new Left Alone CD with lyrics and I proudly showed off my song….”porcelain”…that motherfucker….it took him 10 years to admit things were about me…well it’s too little too late all the time with that particular man….plus I think you get to a point where you are no longer attracted to people you were into as a child…I grew up….sorry….besides I’m totally only interested in dating older men now :)
Our day was long and sweet, consisted of a ton of H&M shopping, a traditional pub meal…we saw the famous bridge, clock and castle….which was weird because no matter who I asked none of them had a name? Spent too much money…drank way too much booze! We headed over to a pub to hang out with some of M DOG’s friends, who were all really cool and polite even thought Jacq and I were drunk and obnoxious….I don’t remember much after the “mushroom” incident, but I’m lucky to have a sister who did bar rescue at 3 am AND assisted with the most important drunk dial ever…ha ha….it was a good night….so good I wouldn’t repeat it if someone paid me…ugh hangover city here I come!
　
Vienna and our last day in Austria!!!
　
Don’t get me wrong, I had such a great time on this tour, maybe a better time on the headlining shows than on the Dropkick shows, but I just can’t wait to get on that plane and get the fuck back to the states…there’s this weird homesickness I feel….where I can walk into a Starbucks or a B of A or turn on my phone and talk to my mom or my man…these are things I can’t really have over here and I’m disconnected. I’m sure Oct’s euro trip will feel a bit different b/c I will be out here with all the people to love, a little less too miss!!!
　
Vienna show was good!!! There were some very obvious civet people and as always, the opportunity to reach like 3000 of Dropkicks fans…that’s always a treat….there was something about Vienna and the open air theatre that was pure magic…the sound was amazing for an outdoor festival…I was still suffering a bit of a hangover from my run in Prague, but other than that the day was good!!!

RANDOM FANS IN DRESDEN, EUROS AND THEIR BOUNDRIES!

We spent the night in the haunted (supposedly) bunks that are in a building across from the venue….It was crazy!!! There was an all night party going on downstairs….like just cause the show was over didn’t mean people had to leave! They played some of the best rock n’ roll music I’ve ever heard…they were even rockin’ Sahara Hotnights “Rock-a-way Beach" cover! We left the windows open cause it was a million degrees and read all the graffiti in the bunks…the best was the “ACO loves cocks” one…ha ha!!! Lots of exes on those walls…the strangest part was when a couple came in and asked Elia and I if they could use the table….we were like “wtf? Are they gunna have sex?” but no... they straight up did lines of speed of the table in front of us poor terrified American girls….goes without saying that we immediately moved the “speed” table off in front of the door to barricade ourselves in! The rest of the night was uneventful except for a crazy nightmare about a “zombie hostel in Vienna” ha ha…As I was falling asleep, just as I thought things couldn’t get any more magical fucking Distillers’ “LA girl” came echoing through the hostel windows….”That bitch”, I thought !
　
Oh Austria my love… Round/show number two you definitely have to be my fav show of the Dropkick run! All around good time had by all and even though I wasn’t drinking cause I think I’ve got a little cold, I sure felt drunk most of the night….usually we have good shows and it seems like the parting show is always fucking stellar…like we really feel the need to show what we’ve got as we are walking out the door..ha ha…not that DKM haven’t seen the good, the bad and the ugly, oh and what we are now! But you always want to play your best. We did well tonight….my “Dirty Glass” run was awesome, er, that is until Ken Casey choked me out from behind…I really hope some video of that surfaces….oh shit! Speaking of video, jacq showed us that new video but THE DEAD WEATHER…pretty fucking impressed….it’s funny cause I thought that they were called “The Dead Mothers” and I thought, "Damn that’s a SICK name!!!" Anyway, it truly seems like everything Mr. White touches turns to gold, AND damn can someone buy me sweet leather jacket like that girl in the video!!!

IF YOU LOVED ME, YOU'D BUY ME A JACKET SUCH AS THIS
　

　
　
We had a blast hanging out after party style with DKM…like I said all of the guys are really fucking cool, really married and really reserved, so it’s rare that we all get to sit down and talk tour or equipment or life etc…it’s special…even more special was the fact that everyone was ridiculously drunk but me (ugh cold!) plus I swear I still feel hungover from the other night? Grizz was telling me how him and Andy (supreme sound master) were gunna give me an earful when I came offstage in poland like 10 min early, but they were scared when I started screaming at them first….there were NO monitors and Grizz had helped me fix my strap (sabatoge!!!) that broke 3 songs in…I was in KILL MODE….they said they were like, “uh, nevermind, she's obviously way more heated than we are, we’re just gunna let this one go” …lots of fun stuff….it’s always good hanging out with the crew and I got the epic business talk from Ken about where to go next (and a lil bit of antiantiflagging)…I knew it was coming…I know what we’ve got to do to get there……eveyone get scared…we’re really to be that band…..
　
DKM n' CIVET TAKEN OVER THE WORLD　

Travel n’ such!
It was sad saying goodbye to our driver Matayas, other things that were sad include our shitty exchange rate, sleeping at the airpoirt for 7 hrs, oh and of course being picked up by a cousin I hardly remember and getting dumped off at grandmas once we got to seattle….wait, grandmas ruled, but where the fuck were the homemade cookies?!!!!!

Eurotrashed Pt. 2

2009-07-14T14:40:00.000-07:00

You have to kiss a lot of these babies to find your prince!!!

7/8 Nurmburg, Germany - aka the homecoming!

This has to be my hands down favorite show of the tour so far…something better might come up, but it’s gunna be hard to beat the intensity and the pit and the haunted SS barracks we played in! It was packed!!! We pretty much sold the place out which is a feat since it was our first time touring Europe! Motherfucking STREET DOGS better book some bigger venues for the upcoming October tour….oh and kick us down a bigger guarentee too (cough cough!)….We closed off the set again with a sweet encore of American Girl and Misfits “Horror Business”….highlights of the night were the guys from Shark Soup coming out to the show and us doing shots with real german girls!!! Or maybe my “is my husband in this room tonight?!” rant from stage….in reality all I can think about is someone I’m missing in Texas….but I get carried away sometimes, and I’m not gunna lie…I’m kinda like a boy in the way I oogle/objectify men….I think it’s from the amount of time I’ve spend on the road. I’m hard. I’m mean….I like dirty sex….etc…ok…maybe that’s too much…but now you know…thank you rock n’ roll turning me bad! And thank you Nurmburg for loving us!!!!!!

7/9 Roma- Italy!
I slept the whole day in the sprinter….everyone else did….we’re talking a fucking 12 hr drive and everyone was out….save for our crankasaurous driver Matayas (aka MDOG) from Prague….he gets scary when he’s not super funny and, gulp, rested! I’m afraid to meet other Prague people after him “Vhat the Hell!!!!?!” The venue was cool at this show! Too cool for the show itself…Our Italian myspace fan club showed up (hi ladies!!!) and I threw something at someone a la Courtney Love, could go without re-living this one…

7/10 Trento - Italy!!!!
This show was off the hook….we really got to know our promoters and hang out….they were a sweet couple and we can’t wait to come back and play for them again. The venue was outdoors….full on summer festival…it was free (but we still go paid of course!) there were a ton of people!!!! This had to be one of my favorite shows of the tour hands down…we played great AND I got to get super drunk and have an Italian dance party/discoteque…as jacq would sometimes say “I love us” ha ha….we headlined with a DJ after us closing out the night. The band before us was a psychedelic kinda jam band. I was in aww….definitely not my thing, but I’m sure if I was on acid (which I’ve never done and do not endorse) I would probably eat that shit right up! Soundcheck was a little flat feeling, but once all the people got in there the show got easy…That’s my fav, when I forget I’m even playing and it just flows really naturally…it’s a combination of crowd energy/ my energy/ the rock n’ roll gods smiling etc… If this is any indication of the calibur of the evening let’s just say we closed with “American Girl” by Tom Petty and I finally did it!!! I got down on my motherfucking knees and did the super rock on the floor move…not sure what came over me, but it felt right so I went for it! Gotta love those Italians….they ate that shit up….at the end of the party we walked down this big hill through the vineyards to our hotel (in the middle of NOWHERE) ….drunk…singing….being kinda scared by the lightning storm etc….at that point I’m sure I just could have died I felt so happy….in fact the night went soooo well we all didn’t go to sleep…like AT ALL…There was a lot of drunk Gallows skyping (not for me…can’t work my cam, nor do I want to work any Gallows) and drunk IM-ing (more MY speed) and just loud girly talk…..drinking…and more drinking….Italy, we think we’ll keep you!

7/11 Dresden, Germany

When we got this tour I think I didn’t realize how many shows in Germany we were actually doing…this makes me sooo excited, even if no one has heard of the air force base I was born on L….my guess is it’s probably closed and an 80’s memory…Still! BORN IN GERMANY…This venue was a bitch to find….we illegally drove through this beautiful park in order to get to Junge Garden and reunite with our Dropkick family. Soundcheck went well….Dropkick has the best crew ever and I’m not gunna lie, sometimes I’m actually more excited to see Andy, Evan, Judd, Grizz... etc than the band…these guys are down in the trenches with us at every show….Don’t get me wrong I love Ken to death….but he’s kinda like the punk rock god father….Ken calls on YOU to talk…ha ha…kidding, but seriously, talk about taking a band and making an empire out of it!! Go look at the early Dropkick stuff…that was just a punk band…with a bunch of punk kids…Ken rules with an iron fist…instills fear in people. That’s how I want to be…an even more smart and savvy business person in the smoothest running (and damn if it isn’t) super punk as fuck good time that Dropkick is….the precision with which they run their shows you’d think you were watching fucking U2!!! The beauty is they are still punk as fuck! AND they release everything themselves…how amazing is that?! To be that size and that smart that you don’t need a label….pure profit yet a purely good time….I’ve never met a Dropkick fan that didn’t have the best time ever at one of their shows….it’s show business for sure…I’ve seen it a million times and that shit just doesn’t get old!

I got to go up and do Dirty Glass which is always a mixed blessing…I’m stoked…it’s sometimes hard to go from that to playing in my band, no matter how good the show….its amazing to be in dropkick even for like the 5 minute song duration. It makes me want that fan/band connnection so much more…that thing you really cant put a name on….amazing!!! The best part of dropkicks set ?(besides the wild turkey letting loose on an undeserving rag) would be when AL Barr just starts busting out the german….like legit german….omg al barr speaks german…who would have thought? I mean, it makes sense really, I just didn’t see it coming….amazing!!! Really great night we topped off with a little bit of rain, Ken casey showing us Liam/Noel Gallager fight youtube videos. Oh and the best part! Sleeping in the fucking van cause our hotel we booked online had no reception hours from 12am-6am…er, NOT civet girl hours….Coldest scariest germanest night of my life…..Poland (according to Mdog our driver, it’s 3rd world?) here we come!!!!

EuroTrashed Pt. 1

2009-07-10T18:41:00.000-07:00

Jacq and I with the biggest Boom Box I've ever seen!!!!

7/5 Rossum - NL

I’m not gunna lie - today was pretty incredible….it was the very first show we’ve ever done in Europe and while there were definitely some technical issues…i.e half of my set I had to play strapless…as in the guitar, not my clothes…AND the fact that the response was kinda weird…..I thought, hmm….NOT GOOD…then we killed it in merch! Turns out it’s just the way people react in the Netherlands. The venue owner, mind you, the venue was more barn, than venue….Adrian….was amazing! He even insisted on auctioning off 4 Social D tix that he had secured us….We had booked a show the next night, which put an extra 200 Euro in our pocket, score!!!! We got fed an amazing authentic Holland dinner and Suz and I ran? cart wheeled? through the pear field in the back. This crazy pegan metal band headlined….it was truly something you had to see to believe…they were in full viking gear, and although they sounded amazing, I just couldn’t get my head around the fact that this was something I’d only seen in VH1 the history of metal specials with the chart that breaks down all different kinds and Ronnie James Dio freaking you out….

Where do I get one of these dreaded babies!!!???

I’m sooooo excited to be going to Germany tomorrow….It will be like going back to my homeland... I hope I feel overwhelmed coming back to my country….Our driver Matayas, aka M DOG is rad…..he called us out when we said we didn’t drink….he said that’s not true cause he’d seen it on our myspace pages (research?)….I guess he was driving Left Alone about a month or so ago….funny cause I was doing a little bit of reconnecting via online to Elvis during this time and who woulda thought we landed the same driver!!!! I swear that band haunts me. For a good five years of my life I was on again off again with Elvis (crazy that I would repeat the same pattern later!)…and damn it if that mother fucker didn’t break my heart….good thing I grew up and realized that I’m a great girl and need to be treated right! No thanks Elvis and Ace….yay Tobe….Anyway, gunna spend the next two weeks convincing M DOG that Left Alone (and some other bands whose shirts he’s been sporting) are the enemy ha ha….seriously need to sleep off some jet lag and a little bit of a heartache!!!

*Highlights*
The Dutch Ron Jeremy
Pegan metal is alive and well
Reno Divorce doing Social D dirty
Welcome to Amsterdam! Drink!!!!

7/6 Stuttgart -GERMANY!!!!

“Don’t you hate it when you pack too much shit and you end up using only the top layer?” Elia on tour clothes

Stuttgart!!!! Fuck yes…..here’s our group photo with the 2 opening bands Shark Soup and Stehcafe! This show was pretty packed….I was stoked on everything ‘cept the stupid Charlie and the Valentine Killers poster (eh, thanks, but NO thanks!) for their upcoming show…. It was a super cool bar and an AMAZING show! We stayed in a hotel with Shark Soup, who we totally needed to check in cause dude only spoke German…..their merch guy looked like a super German Jared Leto and handled that shit….At that point there was no crazy hotel parties as we had all done a ton of drinking at the club (I was carrying around my own personal JD bottle if you wanna get an idea of where I was at!)…plus that hotel was like something out of HOSTEL, totally terrifying….not to mention the guy at the desk kept our passports. I made it!!! It’s ok!

“Did you seriously just put your eyelashes on the bodet?” Elia to Suz

7/ 7 Magnolia Summer - Milano, Italy

Italy! OMG…..I’ve been here a few times, and man are these men touchy…..I think it’s in a good way…it kinda freaked some of the girls out….We got to drive through Switzerland today…I’m gunna be honest I slept through most of it, cause Matayas is a pretty good driver and Suz takes the floor of the van when I want a whole bench….It was BEAUTIFUL! We stopped at a WC that overlooked a huge lake….it was incredible…I actually felt the urge to throw myself into it….Tahoe ain’t got shit on the Swedish waters….customs was a little scary, but the hot dude at the Italian border made up for it…we just started doing the usual, which is to hand over a postcard with us all looking dolled up, that generally shuts everyone up…M Dog couldn’t believe we worked so smoothly…ha ha…The people hosting Magnolia Summer took really really good care of us and the best part was we pulled enough people to take really good care of them as well!!!! Not sure how many people were fans amongst ALL the fucking press! This band the Svetlanas (?) opened up for us….they had a chick singer who shocked the shit out of me, it was very Bikini Kill circa ‘02 with a little bit of Naked Aggression and, wait for it….. SNAP HER, mixed in! Does anyone remember that band Snap Her? It was good!!! I was impressed….we did an interview and took some photos before the show….Usually I’m all for shit like this, but I was a little overwhelmed cause it was my first internet access in ages and I just wanted to take care of some business (i.e. talk to some loved ones)… we did press up until the start of the show, which was FUCKING off the hook….lots of kids, a ton of press and it was in a green house, so it was ALL sweat…..this was the first time in my career I ever felt my space had been invaded by fans…a ton of people came up to sing, I got grabbed (in a good way!) by the audience during solos…..starting to play more for myself and in that I feel like the show I put on for everyone else comes across better!!! I am stoked on all of these HEADLINING euro gigs…we got this shit covered! It is gunna be off the hook when we come back with Street Dogs in October!

p.s. “golf clap” to Jacq tonight for joining the revolution of “we’re not taking shit from shitty men!”

Warped Tour Wrap up!!! And DIRT!!!!

2009-07-10T11:12:00.000-07:00

I had a blast the last few days of Warped….the last show was great and the dust pit was really moving, so were the shout-outs from Anti-Flag (until they showed their true colors cough, cough)….New Mexico and San Antonio were a little hot and scary….but the after party in Las Cruces was pretty sweet….I took one last final ride with Will from Aiden on the moped…I just want to congratulate him on his recent marriage and the fact the he’s gunna be a daddy!!!!! Will is rad and Aiden really, really deserve more respect than they get…their live show kills it, and I think all of Aidens fans or bands that have toured with them know just how hard working and legit they are….It’s unfortunate, but sometimes it’s hard to shake off a negative image like that. I remember when I went to do some clips for Buzznet.com about the upcoming Aiden/Civet tour…I didn’t even know Aiden yet, but I said some fucked up shit about us sharing eyeliner…I don’t regret it cause all of them have a rad sense of humor and they got it…. In fact, while I’m at it, I don’t regret anything. Despite what some people think, I NEVER hooked up with Will…he’s totally just a friend…and a fellow musician and I’m super stoked for him!!!! Congrats from Madugo!

Heading into San Antonio and Houston was totally the best part of Warped hands down…that is if you don‘t count the van breaking down in the middle of nowhere by Ft. Stockton (sightings capital of the world!) We were forced to wait 7 hrs for a tow because we were in a dead zone and got NO cell service…. We watched ALL of the warped vans pass us by, which goes against what I was told about how “oh all the warped vans look out for broken down vans, it‘s just code” Uh, code MY ASS! So our problem just ended up being some big bad bugs in the air filter, but I‘m still convinced it was extraterrestrials…

The last show was great and although Frank Carter the 3rd may not return the love, the Gallows show was awesome in Houston….if you don’t like what you are seeing Frank, get the fuck off my stage…..Justin Sane however, you are always welcome! Tobe (Street Dogs and my fav band WELT!) came down to hang out and shuttle me around like the rad guy he is for a few days…I guess I’m not really allowed to say he’s more than a friend til he’s legally uh, you know, but part of me no longer cares at this point! I went to some creepy wine bar (and lets get this straight- I am not a foodie!) but I’m definitely interested in all things dark and scary and La Carafe definitely qualified….the dirt bar or whatever it was was kinda cool too (sans the GG‘s…we won‘t even GO there right now!)… The rad bartender even played a little HHNF for me when I came in….there’s nothing better than going to a bar where they play your own music….it’s flattering and embarassing all in one….ha ha….I got super drunk on something strangely resembling the infamous Japanese OOLONG HI’S (that, by the way, is what got me into this mess in the first place!) and the rest of the night it a blur….right? Right?

Dave King (Flogging Molly) Tobe Bean n’ Me

1, 2, 3, Warped Tour Turkey!

2009-06-29T20:20:00.000-07:00

DAY 1

Oh Warped Tour! It's our third time on this SOB and I just now feel that we've got the tools to sufficiently rock it. We always do about 3 or 4 days, but this year we thought we'd go big with 7....we also couldn't say no to the great stage and $ we were offered.....The people who work on warped are amazing and don't take any bullshit...that's exactly why the tour has been around so long! Kevin Lyman rides around on his ghetto fab bike like the reigning king.... and by looks of him I'd say touring is good for you!

Day one went off easier than I expected...Pomona is notoriously just a nightmare with the heat....I ran around frantically trying to see if I could find the Gunfight play their 1130 am set....I missed it, or so I thought...they actually played later and I legit missed that....however I didn't miss waking up at 8am in SF to Duane and Goat doing skate tricks in front of our van....reminded me of the good old days when we were in the studio with Duane and he schooled us in the ways of gang vocals and punk rock freestyling (ex. "Everything Everything" off Massacre)

BREEGH-BREEGH-ORGH-ORGH!!!!! Me n' my long lost brother Joe

DAY 2
Today is day 2! My all-time favorite day so far!!!!! I was able to play the best ourdoor live show I've ever done, to a much appreciated and attentive crowd.....and then I got to catch my friends in Aiden play as well....its really hard to watch your friends on warped tour cause the scheduling is always so wonky.....just so you get what I'm saying and a little insider insight....this is a typical day of what really happens on warped!

1. wake up at an ungodly hour
2. load in
3. get your scheduled time.....get really diy and put up posters and run around saying hi to all your warped homies
4. doors! get dressed for the day....head on over to catering @ 12....stand in line for a million gazillion hours.....fyi NO ONE cuts the line, unless you are motherfucking fat mike or the equivalent!
5. now the day goes one of 2 ways...sometimes you play early, like 1 PM and there is no nap time....that just means the day starts super early! I love nap time....it keeps me from killing people! Also nap time sometimes doubles as time to see your fav bands on Warped (ie. Aiden, the AKAs, Devil Wears Prada, or AntiFlag!
6. press!!!! this is always fun cause you get to tease your fellow rock n' rollers during interviews....this can get tedious, as most interviews aren't that original, but for the most part it's cool!
7. play!!!! my friend Will from Aiden once told me that you work really hard all day just to rock out for these kids for a 1/2 hr....this is why you are here, ya better make it worth it!
8. signing!!! this happens everywhere...sometimes at your tent, sometimes at the labels tent, sometimes at a tent with a good cause! you go where your manager sends you!
9. load out!
10........BBQ!!!! this is always fun...it's just a party and really good food......
11. drive all night and do the motherfucker again....NO HOTELS!

YES! THIS WAS OUR AMAZING SF CROWD!!! LOVE YOU!

Day 3!!!!

I can honestly say I've never been happier in my life than I am right now. I'm truly blessesd.I've got an amazing band and great people in my life....two (well three if u count the band) great jobs....and fuck....we just played our 3rd amazing show at warped....that's what we like to call a TURKEY (like in bowling!)!!!! The best part was looking back today to see Justin Sane...one of my punk rock heros watching from behind me...that shit always feels good...I guess the fact that Matt Skiba was watching our set would have made me feel good too, if he had shared the fucking beer! I feel like we've really got our flow down this warped tour and we've done enough touring to have our a game on at all times! I got to be the best rock n' roll big sister today when I introduced my little brother to the toothless, godfearing, sexmachine singer of the Devil Wears Prada...My lil' bro was soooo stoked on me....made my day!!!! We did a signing for the BOARDING FOR BREAST CANCER tent....to help raise some money....I'm not really into a lot of polictical causes, but I'm really into the girl cause at all times, and I just try to do the right thing....I try to get behind boobies because who doesn't like those?

Trying really hard to keep you guys posted!!! Always sooooo fucking busy at WARPED!!!! Check out my Twitter updates www.twitter.com/lizagraves

I STALK THIS CRAZY BITCH ON MYSPACE

HUSKIES!!!!

The Veronicas

2009-06-26T00:10:00.000-07:00

Suz dragged me out to the Veronicas the other night! I thought I was gunna hate that shit, but I ended up being really really impressed! The band focuses on two sisters who are Australian.....jess and lisa who rival suz and I in terms of the coolest sister duo ever! Now I'm gunna preface this review by letting you guys know that we pounded (oh no....this is not the beverage you pound!) a whole bottle of champagne before walking out and catching a ride from our good friend Skye (Chelsea Smiles)....That's right babies! We did it NY style and didn't bring a car for our night on the town...isn't that always so freeing?

Last time I went to the Henry Fonda was for a Distillers show that Ryan Sinn had hooked me up backstage for....a million years ago....hmmm....not sure how I feel about sharing that piece of info, but I was friends with Ryan and Heather and they are really really good people.....so I'm gunna leave it at that....Tony ain't so bad either, yet I don't trust him as far as I can throw a plate of TOI....

The opening band is that girl taylor from Gossip Girl....oh shut up! Before I hear your eyes roll back in your head lemme share! She blew my fucking mind...that girl (who is only fucking 15!) is knarly and has the toughest voice outta anyone I know! I couldn't get over how much she sounded, and strangely looked like Kurt Cobain of Nirvana....suz drunkenly slurred at me "I wouldn't be suprised if Kurt Cobain came back as a 15 yr old girl"...... http://prettyreckless.com/

We were spotted immediately by Joe who works at Fender and his homegirl Celia (photo above!)...."What are you two doing here?" ha ha...yep....busted.....I don't know why everyone is so suprised...I mean we fucking went to the Spice Girls reunion too! We like pop....no shame in that, we are punk as fuck and we can like whatever we want! Champagne and pop!!!! The Veronicas put on an amazine show. It was exactly that! A show! Complete with backing tracks....a little (but not a TON) of choreography...and a little bit of switching it up with some acoustic ballads....great lights! Tons of energy and songs I knew! ("Hook me Up!") I think they even have a spread in ELLE this month....go check it out!!!! Watch out ladies "THE CARMICHAELS" pop duo are hot on your trail....

Decided on closing off the night on a bar crawl where we met up with our manager aka "mama"ger aka my personal assistant at times, and occasional fill in mom.....ok she's also my "in case of emergency" person as well now that Ace is MIA...motherfucking Laura Jean. So we walked like 3 blocks (once again...feeling SO NYC) to the scene of our Beauty Bar cover shoot for the HHNF record.....It was the first time I'd ever drank in there....pretty cool! They were even offering fake eyelash apps (not cool!) ha ha....suz and I were still on our champagne buzz then (cue "all i can taste is champagne" by sugarcult) and we were dancing and just having our own little party... honsetly there weren't that many people there....Some obnoxious drunk guys that were british tried to start a conversation....uh, no....I don't do British guys....ever. After a good catch up sesh with our friend Holly who works for the band who shall not be named, because if ya aint got nothing nice to say, don't say ANYTHING at all! Ok, lemme give you some hints.....er, they are on Warped....they are ALWAYS on warped....they aren't american.....er, joan jett....one word...er, three letters.....girl singer....OK THATS ALL I CAN SAY! Anyway.....fucking Holly is the shit and we like her a lot....She told us all about how suzi's dream black man has problems in bed....and a whole bunch of other stuff we probably didn't want to know! Go check out one of our favorite sites http://sorry-mom.com/ you can thank me later!

We headed over to the Burgundy, which is always a hot spot....Jeremy and his infamous pink mohawk were DJing, oh wait, maybe just his mohawk was DJing? We argued about his sexuality and danced in the 2 by 4 area alotted.....Oh the rock scene in hollywood....shoulda gone to the rainbow and met up with the AKA's...we rolled out when too many girls with my hair showed up.....

Hang The VJ

2009-06-20T09:51:00.000-07:00

Ok! So I thought that was a super witty title for this blog....I had my very first day at my new job (today! as a motherfucking VJ for Altitude TV), which in reality doesn't feel much like a job, but more like LIZA ON 10.....like on my game, doing what I want to do....I love people and I love rock and I'm pretty damn good at service (of the customer service variety! ha ha) so this seemed like a natural progression for me! I went in and read off the oh so scary teleprompter with a green screen in the background....ENERGY! Ha ha I had a great time...we shot a few episodes and switched it up a little bit outfit wise in order to make it look like different days (shhh! This is confidential blog secret stuff!) I'm not gunna lie, it felt really good to look down on my ex's place of employment from my VJay room I was shooting the "New Music Tuesdays" in.

"It's an old song, but the lyrics stay true. Despite ALL my men, I keep coming back to you" HHNF

I know this sounds like a GRADE A bitch thing to say, but in reality I deserve the success I work for and he was the kind of person that was never supportive of ANYTHING I did! It was almost like a bad thing in our relationship when I got offered opportunitites....good riddance! I need a man who can handle this and all the bullshit that comes with dating a girl in a band....if you can't stand the heat, get the fuck out ot the kitchen...(ed. note- don't date me, ever....or you'll have to deal with the ex/sexploitation)

Working on my new face....BLUE STEEL

"The higher the hair, the closer to God"

So after doing some cold read stuff (I actually got to help write some of my own lines....skillz) I got to interview a sick ass screamo (yes, screamo!) band from Phoenix. People who know me know I spent my fair share of time in Phoenix when I was dating Cole like 5 years ago....he ran the OLD BRICKHOUSE and while he was a beautiful God fearing man (my 2nd son of a preacher I've dated) he ran off with my $100 deposit on some paintings.....shoulda just left him as the one night stand he was supposed to be! Why I had to go dating someone all the way in AZ I have no idea....point being, I not only made buddies with these ladies (and one guy, Brandon!) because of my AZ ties, but they had seen us play at Edgefest last year when we rocked out with the likes of Alk trio and the Millionaires (Eyes Set To Kill - http://www.estkrock.com/ )....I am getting paid to do what I love and I vow to get crazy motherfucking good at it! Ha ha....Mistress Julia watch out, I've got a serious pottymouth too motherfuckers!

Off to Graysons' party at the Viper and some hang out time with the brothers Johnson!

Hate HAS to be the new Black...

Official Release Yo!

LIZA FROM THE BAND CIVET JOINS ROCK ON ALTITUDE AS THEIR NEW ROCK HOST

Liza Graves, lead singer for the band CIVET, has joined the mobile rock video channel ROCK ON ALTITUDE as a new host. Liza will be hosting a number of rock video shows in addition to interviewing bands backstage at shows and festivals throughout the year. ROCK ON ALTITUDE is the only mobile video music channel featuring the best in Rock, Pop, Indie, & Metal. Hot new music videos, live performances, artist interviews, new releases, and breaking news! ROCK ON ALTITUDE also gives you an all access backstage pass to the biggest events and festivals in music. Plus girls, games, gadgets, and movie trailers too. To get ROCK ON ALTITUDE just search “Rock on Altitude” in the music section of your phone and download for FREE today. You can also get the channel by going to www.rockonaltitude.com

MOBILE + ROCK + VIDEO

ROCK ON ALTITUDE

www.rockonaltitude.com

www.youtube.com/altitudetv

www.myspacetv.com/altitudetv

www.twitter.com/rockonaltitude

www.facebook.com search rockonaltitude

Rock of Love

2009-06-16T18:50:00.000-07:00

Long day at work that got really bad really fast....it started out harmlessly enough, with my coworker scoping out the myspace Paris
Hilton "closet" special....damn that bitch has a huge closet! It was a slippery slope and before we knew it we were watching old episodes of "My New BFF"....I really don't know who is crazier, the girls and one guy on the show or Paris herself. I mean everyone makes fun of her for being stupid and really thin and a bad role model etc.....but whats really sad is there is NO substance there....I mean...how great to grow up with everything right? Yeah, no...I think I'd pass.....struggling and working hard for what you have builds character....and I wouldn't give mine up for a hotel chain....that's why I think being broke is a blessing in disguise....you have to be smart enough and personable enough to work yourself out of the trenches....it can be done! Suz and I had some pretty rough times at the beginning of this year, oh hell maybe even the end of last year.....but we're definitely sitting on top of the world now...it's about being a survivor... (ed. note.....see below photo as to why we should all dislike her....she taps tattooed men who are meant for my sister!)

Wake me when it's over! Oh wait...it is....

Soooooo we went on a reality binge at work (more on my "work" life to come), which ya know isn't really work, but whatever.....I really love all the VH1 stuff like Daisy of Love n' Rock of Love....and the New York goes to series....I'm a sucker for bad tv (and vicodine, and the occasional drunken sexcapade, but shhh!)...those are my tops....along with rockin' behind the music specials and anything with Ricky Rachman in it! Oh and i love love love The Soup.....So I've been successfully rotting my brain lately...but all this good fun will come to an end when we hit the road in 2 weeks! Yeah! Two fucking weeks....get me the hell out of here! I will most definitely trade my sweet cable for some fresh air and trouble!

Sinister of Love (where do I sign up?)

Like A Heart Attack

2009-06-13T18:39:00.000-07:00

I took my Gin n' Juice Long Beach style and headed out to the Chelsea Smiles show at Spikes in Rosemead Saturday night...we've played here a few times, and while Brando (the promoter) is a super cool guy, the staff are always dicks to the bands...in fact I've never heard anything good from anyone about their experience playing here....They upgraded the stage (yay! no more playing on the floor) and the sound system is ok....its a better place to go to shows than to play them, in fact it would take a super cool show, or some kinda favor to ever get us to play there again! They have pool tables and I lucked out cause it was someones b-day=sweet catering! Free food? Free booze? Free ride? I'm fucking there! It's important to note that I kicked Todd Youths ass at pool...and I think I also kicked Skye's ass as well.....Me n' Skye have been friends since I was about 15....there was a point in time where I seriously ignored his calls and tried to unfriend him...I thought I was too busy....he persisted throughout several jealous boyfriends and a bit of abuse and I'm happy to say that now he's one of my really close guy friends, albeit a shitty, shitty pool player!

Show was awesome....it wasn't uncomfortably packed, but full.....Todd Harper of the late, great Welt (BEST BAND EVER!) and Duane Peters' Gunfight fame was there playing with his latest band...."The Legendary Swagger". Now I've heard a lot about this band over the last year or so and I was a little too drunk to catch the live show, but I did have to seriously fight off the urge to get up and sing "Boom Swagger Boom" with them. Saw the Murder City Devils do that song at the Glass house in Feb I have to say that the band covering MCD songs generally does them better.....maybe that's cause Murder City sucks live......I would have babies to their recorded stuff, don't get me wrong!!!! They are phenomenal and highly influenced me, but live are just a big sloppy disappointing mess.....

There was a band on tour from, well... I'm really not sure where....let's just say all over! They are one of those rare bands that comes together only to tour....Really great live band. My only gripe was that every other song I swear they mentioned the Black Halos...I only caught on to this cause I'm a Black Halos fan....(Suz owns everything, but I have the Tuuli Xmas split they did) I've heard Billy Hopeless say that he "collects girl bands".....not sure how to take this, because NO ONE collects us, ha ha.....we collect them ;) I won't take it personally, we'll give him the benefit of the doubt! Check out the Lustkillers live and smokin' at www.myspace.com/thelustkillers

The Lustkillers have their very own JEWISH SLASH....

or SHLASH if you've been drinking....

Chelsea Smiles just got back from a Euro run with Wednesday 13 (http://www.wednesday13.com/) the king of cheesy rock n' roll horror....I always miss them when they come into town, but with songs about morgues and banging dead girls i can't resist...it's catchy as shit! So it was the first time I've seen the Smiles with Skye not playing guitar and the new guitarist RJ added to the mix. It was awesome, although my gin and juice might be talking for me here. Ha ha ...I got to hang out with Viv (Johnny Martins hot wife) and catch up while watching their set....albeit short, it was rocking and packed with new songs.....A few years ago we did a "Weekend Warrior" tour with these guys that consisted of trying to do an intervention on our drugged out drummer we had at the time (NOT THE LOVELY AND LADYLIKE ROXIE)....too bad the intervention was unsuccessful, the tour itself though, was a winner...We went through Annie's Social Club in SF....and some Sacto/Vegas/LA dates....I believe one of the shows was at Alex's Bar (LBC baby!) If I'm not mistaken that night there was some guy in the crowd that was trying to piss off the guys....it was the first and last time I've ever seen anything this hardcore go down...they were like a gang! They stopped the show and jumped off the stage to fight these guys! It was like a mess of leather and rock n' roll and turf shit....amazing! ha ha.... the message being, don't fuck with the Chelsea Smiles unless it's at the pool table! "So you're a social drinker?"

My rendition of the infamous cover....

Civet/ Chelsea Smiles/ ACO tour in 2005 (some uglies in this photo!)

I am Still Dying

2009-06-08T21:04:00.000-07:00

Just added a new HEADER!!!! Thanks to Mel.....you're a doll! Also thought I'd throw a survey on there, since we can't seem to decide this amongst the band! Did an interview with Still dying magazine....you can order a copy (it's UK based!) or just read the thing here!

Note: I'm a little more lax with web interviews and zines...i don't have to be as hardcore serious as when I'm doing phone interviews with say....High Times or Punk Rock Confidential....

*****************************

Thanks for taking the time to talk to us. To begin with could you
please introduce Civet to Still Dying readers and tell us what you all
do in the band?

Ms. Liza Graves.....lead vox and guitar
Suzi Homewrecker.....lead guitar
Jacqui Valentine.....bass
Roxie Darling.....drums

How long have you been together?
Since the beginning of time! Ok not that long, but kinda a long time!

And how did you all meet?
Various people came into the band at different times. My sister suzi has been in the band for about 5 years and jacq for about 4.....roxie is the newest (and dare I say most badass?) addition to the band!

Can you give us a brief history of the band?
We came, we saw, we conquered.....ha ha....ok, that's really really brief.....in reality it was a long road, and anyone that knows us knows that worked really hard for what we have and we continue to work hard to raise the bar on the girl band standard....

Why the name Civet?
Because Metallica was taken?

Who came up with the name?
It was actually coined back when I was in middle school....long before I even dreamed of being in a band! I did...but I would be lying if I said I wasn't inspired by my friends....

You’ve had an amazing response to ‘Hell Hath No Fury’, are you
surprised by just how good the response has been?

We aren't surprised because we put our blood, sweat and tears into making that record and I think that really comes across. We work really hard to be a real band, we don't take anything for granted, we tour really hard and we put our money where our mouth is with everything..... Of course we wouldn't be where we are without our fans and label, thanks guys ;)

How did you get involved with Hellcat Records?
Hellcat had their eye on us since the release we did on Disaster Records (Massacre)....it was only a matter of time before they added us to their family....we just had to grown up a little bit and own our sound before we could get signed....

It must be really great to be involved with such an inspirational label?

Yes! They (Tim Armstrong & Chris LaSalle ) are amazing!!!! We feel proud to be part of such a tight punk rock family and carry on the legacy that is hellcat.....it also doesn't hurt that all of our favorite bands are on the label!

You’ve seemed to be on one continuous tour since the release of the
album playing with some great bands. You must really like being on the
road?
We live to be on the road! It is the best time, all the time! Imagine being out with your best friends everyday and getting to do what you love? Can't beat that!

Any gigs or tour stick in your mind for any reasons?
What about tour or back-stage stories you can share with us?
We just got back from Japan....it was mind blowing....they really know how to do everything right over there.....we can't wait to go back! There were many a drunken night in Japan, and no stories to share, code of the road!

I see you’re coming over to Europe with Dropkick Murphys in July?
Yes! See you guys out there!

Any plans for any UK shows or a full UK tour?
Yes! We are still adding Europe dates! We will also be doing a full euro tour in the fall! Keep your eyes on our page for details!!!!!

What does the rest of 2009 hold for Civet?
We are gunna continue to tour....we will be hitting Canada, more US, Europe and hopefully Australia.....some writing and a whole lot of rockn' and rolling! Xo ms. liza graves

Thanks again for taking time out of your busy schedule to talk to us
here at Still Dying. Finally, is there anything you would like to add,
or any special messages for your fans?
Thanks for supporting us! Stay true!!!!

I do my best interviews before i'm fully awake...except for the one with that stalker from High Times - sketchy shit mang! (that's a story for another day!)

Stewed, Screwed and Tattooed

2009-06-07T21:46:00.000-07:00

Also known as: two days of fun in the sun at Ink and Iron! I always tell myself that I will never come back to Long Beach again (after the incident with "long beaches' finest" last year and the threat of DEBZILLA) but low and behold here I was at the 6th annual ink and iron fest! I tried to go last year but I was met by an ex at the gate, I did a b-line out of there sooooo fucking fast... This was technically my 2nd ink and iron (er, aka "EXFEST") even though I made a valient attempt last year ... We played an awesome show with Eagles of Death Metal and the Bronx.....love love love the Bronx and the WHITE DRUGS record (www.thebronxxx.com) ....I think everyone should do themselves a favor and buy this.....if I had to sound like a guy I would totally want to sound like Matt......soooooo the show was rocktastic! We unveiled a ton of new tshirts (I'll post these pics soon!) and had a really rad chick helping us on merch (on top of our sexy "merchick" Elia) which was refreshing cause a lot of times you end up with dicks selling your merch at venues (er, like mean people, not....well real dicks) Sometimes you want say something like, "I'm sorry, are we giving you a cut of our merch in exchange for your bad attitude?" The stage crew was a little rough too, but they came around, they always do! I think the vibe was a little iffy at first because it's fucking long beach....saw lots of "new beach alliance" stuff too, which always reminds me of my punk rock hb/lb roots....77' style punk rock n' roll and the Hostage records heydays! In the end it was great to come home to lbz and watch everyone singing along.... There were a shitload of cool vendors we know and love.....Lisa from http://www.switchbladestiletto.com/ was there and Tres Noir....plus our favorite tattoo artist Lindsey Carmichael (GOLD RUSH TATTOO is where we get ours done! http://www.goldrushtattoo.com/ ), Monster Matt was there with Rock Rebel (*sick old school looking monster tees and fangs!*) as well as the one and only Adam Shaw pushing da Innes! We don't really wear INNES or anything, we just like to shout out Adam who we spent a lot of time on the 2 Dropkick tours with... Honestly, even though I was there 2 days, they weren't full days and I didn't really have too much time to browse the vendors, so that's all the vendor stuff I can share...I was too busy wondering where my next free-esque drink was coming from....

Me and the lil' homie April

EAGLES killed it the first night...that singer is pretty smoking in a strange "Joe Dirt" kinda way....I knew more songs than I thought I did and its safe to say I am now an eagles fan......same with The Sonics.....they rocked the shit out of Saturday night or was it the vicodine I took? (for medicinal purposes only of course ;)

"life's a garden....dig it"

I was having a little too much fun to leave last night so I stayed aboard the QUEEN MARY with a bunch of my friends....its always when you least expect something to happen that it does! I had a real live GHOST experience....I was laying down about to nod off when I looked over by the window to see a man hunched down....he looked like he was packing a suitcase or duffel bag....he was totally period clothed, wearing a brown slack/ jacket uniform with the traditional pointy navy hat.....I couldn't believe what I was seeing!!!! It wasn't really scary, it felt really regular, like I was looking in on someone. He was just going about his day, very normal. I blinked and he was gone....I then realized what I had seen totally wasn't real! I've taken the QUEEN MARY haunted tour a zillion times, but never seen anything...I've always believed in stuff like that, but never physically experienced it (once again, probably not the painkiller!)...so I orginally went for a boozing good time and left with a pretty good ghost story....yay ink and iron.....

Just a side note: All day we were talking about, where the fuck do these tattooed people hide? Like I'm tattooed, but we are talking severely tattooed....don't get me wrong, its sooooo hot, but where do they work? Live? Hang out? 'Cause I rarely see them out in the real world. TATTOO PLANET?

Oh and apologies: to the Bronx for the petty theft we engaged in while stealing their PB n' J....it was a void in mine n' suzis kitchen we HAD to fill!

Hightlight: Offering Jeff from the Aggrolites (our labelmates, duh!) a beer out of his own cooler...they had moved ours and put them in our spot....classic! "would you like a beer? Uh, it's kinda your own beer.....can I offer you one of your own beers?"

Show us your Hellcat!

2009-06-05T01:40:00.000-07:00

Not only is this crazy bitch my sister, but my best friend too!

The Hellcat guitar banner - go check out www.fender.com/timarmstrong

The man, the myth, the legend!

Doesn't this photo of us look like that old farmer photo? Yes, we went there!

(Civet photos by Lindsay Hutchens!)

I'm from LA

2009-06-04T22:12:00.000-07:00

Just got the photos back from the "Hellcat" Acoustic shoot…our friend (and ghetto booty dance partner) Lindsay Hutchens shot us with these amazing guitars the guys at fender sent our way (thanks Michael!) They have little Hellcat inlays….so cool…its also an electric acoustic with a tuner built in…very cool….no seriously I’m not getting paid to say this! It’s an amazing feeling guitar…the cutaway space is perfect and there’s good tone…I own three acoustics and I’m really bad at breaking new things in, but this one was easy....cheers to FENDER/GRETSCH for not just giving equipment to super rich musicians who can afford it...they love the underdog!….Suz and I do admittedly feel a little gay when writing together now that we are both jamming on the Hellcats, but we aren't complaining if we get a sick record out of it….so enjoy the photos! www.fender.com/timarmstrong

On top of the usual rock n' roll duties (we had practice AND sorted out some NEW MERCH!) I auditioned for a VJ spot….hopefully I get it! It’s with an internet station I know already and I've been dying to put all those years of being a child actor/John Robert Powers modeling classes to use! I coulda gone far had punk rock not gotten ahold of me..ha ha….kidding! NO REGRETS! I love the person I’ve grown into and the fact that I helped shaped this band into a band that I think raises the girl band standard! Plus I wouldn't trade all the fun I have with my bandmates for the world! Wish me luck…hope to get it cause it’s right up my fucking alley and I get to do a little bit of shit talking (my favorite!) I'll keep you posted!

While I’m getting personal I want to share something serious….I am listening to Go Betty Go (gulp)….not only am I listening to it, but I actually called Jon over at Side One Dummy Records and asked him to get me a copy of “Nothing is More”…..I lost mine a zillion years ago and for some fucking reason I had that song “I’m from LA” stuck in my head this morning! I think I was so blinded by hate originally that I didn’t realize what a great fucking record this is, most of the songs at least….I’m not into the crossover song, or the pirate/flogging molly-esque one…..other than that it’s pretty sick….I remember a million years ago when we played with them at this little bar in Whittier…there were a total of like 5 people there for both bands….I can remember the singer dancing while they played….I was like “holy shit maybe I should give up the guitar and dance?!” then it was like, uh NAW! Ha ha…..point of the story being I watched a great band get big and then fade what seemed like really fast….they had a huge following, but the deal breaker was when their singer (the drummers sister) left the band….what a shock that it happened right when the record came out!!!!!! I went on to hit up Aixa (who KILLS it on drums) to join us for a tribute show/song at one point and she was super cool all the way around, but it just didn’t work out…I heard their new singer was on American Idol or something crazy….ok ok….I really shouldn’t know THIS much, but I always felt like they were the OTHER girl band in LA I respected….this is starting to sound like an obituary huh? ANYWAY! Go pic up the record “Nothing is More” from a legit record store (not Ameoba….only I can buy resale recs there….that’s a WHOLE other topic ha ha) and help Jon get his end of the year bonus!

http://www.sideonedummy.com/ (ps. while you are there pick up the new warped comp we are on!)

Tracks I recommend:
“I’m from LA”
“Get Out”

What happens in Vegas....stays in Vegas

2009-06-01T19:42:00.000-07:00

The girls and I took a much needed vegas vacation....or rather less than 24 hours of super party time over the weekend....We drove out to hang out with our friends in the Street Dogs and catch up with Alkaline Trio...aka the Trio....as luck would have it the Offspring was playing too....I got some serious shit all night from knowing the words to all the songs (not that I was singing along or anything! whooo AMERICANA!) Everyone knows I have notoriously bad taste in music....ok, maybe not ALL the time.... I'm always pushing for an all rock of the 90's station....ha ha....everclear? bush garbage????!!!! love it!

So after a little last minute YARDSALE-ing, I headed out there with Rox and Suzi (Jacq would drive in even later than us!)...drinks started flowing immediately after arrival as we wasted no time getting the preparty-in-a-can started...i promptly lost $20 on the game I thought was my friend (Roulette)....The show was at the Palms, which is always nice, but attracts some of the lamest people EVER! Ran into Rusty (super NOT lame and of H20 n' Pnut jewelry fame) We were lucky to be wearing his goods we scored on the H20/Dropkick tour!!!! Go check out his shit, it's amazing and super quality! www. pnutjewelry.com

We hit the show hard....it was a lot of fun (duh!) then we headed off to "wasted space" (the club I love to hate) at the Hardrock Cafe to watch our friend Todd Morse play a set with his band Petty Cash! Not only are Todd and his brother Tobe (H20 as well) the coolest sibling team since Suzi and I (aka the Carmichael sisters) but I'm also floored by the fact that todd is friends with my favorite female artist, PINK! I can't even begin to describe how much I love Petty Cash as a band...i think it has something to do with the fact that when you are drunk Tom Petty just feels like home...and who doesn't love the man in Black??? And I thought I had died and gone to heaven when I got my first taste of metal school....wrong! Ironic that Petty Cash actually plays downstairs at the Key Club in hollywood WHILE metalschool plays (oh sorry, STEEL PANTHER)....It was cool to see people we know and love in the city of sin....

I'm gunna be completely honest with you here and tell you that this is where my night ends, as I, uh can't really remember any more of it! Mission Accomplished!

"Welcome to the Vegas, we got fun and games"

Legends and legends to be.....

2009-05-28T22:17:00.000-07:00

"Branded, branded, branded..... with everything you did....but i still see my name up in the marquee lights"

From my civet post:

We will be hitting the road as direct support for SOCIAL DISTORTION this summer! Tickets go on sale for most of these shows TOMORROW! Our friends The Strangers will also be along for the ride! We can't wait to see everyone of our fans on in canada and the Northern states and sing along to one of the most influencial bands in punk rock n' roll! See you guys on the road!

Here's the info for all the tickets going on sale tomorrow and the next day

7/17/09 - Seattle, WA - Showbox SODO. Tickets go on sale Saturday, May 30

7/18/09 Vancouver, BC The Commodore Ballroom
7/20/09 Victoria, BC Royal Theatre
7/22/09 Edmonton, AB Edmonton Event Centre
7/25/09 Calgary, AB MacEwan Hall
7/28/09 Saskatoon, SK The Odeon Events Centre
7/29/09 Winnipeg, MB Burton Cummings Theatre
7/31/09 Green Bay, WI Oneida Casino
8/1/09 Milwaukee, WI The Rave
8/2/09 Indianapolis, IN Murat Egyptian Room
8/4/09 Burlington, VT Higher Ground
8/5/09 Montreal, QC Le Medley

more dates to come! xo

It's hard when you know something but you aren't allowed to talk about it! We've known we landed this tour for about a week now, but we had to keep super quiet about it! I had this huge fear that we wouldn't be able to announce until AFTER tickets had gone on sale....this would be so fucked up because all our fans wouldn't know in time to buy tickets...i swear i almost lost sleep over it last night....so excited we get to give the heads up! Social D was a huge influence on me growing up (who wasn't fucking influenced?) We are honored to be sharing some rock n' roll with them! I think my fav albums are White Light etc, and the Sex, love and rock n' roll one.....I saw Mike Ness rock out a million times when I worked at HOB Anaheim.....and every night he would have us make him french toast....something that wasn't even on the menu! I love french toast man, and subsequently I found myself getting to eat Mike Ness-grade french toast nightly....I have some fond memories of Jonny "Two Bags" as well...."fond" being the only word i can think of to describe being in a police car in front of my moms' house at our cd release party in my tiara and cocktail dress....i have this super vivid memory of jonny holding up a frantically scrawled note that read "ALL THIS FOR A CUPCAKE PARTY?" Ha ha! What is now funny, was TOTALLY not funny at the time....yes, the rumors are true....Suzi, me AND our mother (Debzilla) got arrested at our own HOUSE and CD RELEASE party.....watch the video of us getting carried away talking to Joe Sibb about it on air at the late, great INDIE 103.1 ....i haven't quite figured out how to post videos yet, sooooooo go search that on you tube or let me know how it's done! Anyway! It's great to know we are going out with an amazing band...our opening band "The Strangers" is headed by none other than Dave of the Breakdowns, who we know all to well! We are excited to have friends on this tour and finally get to CANADA!!!! See you biotches on the road!

p.s. my title comes from a cute post that one of our fans (justin!) did on the civet page! thanks yo!

White Trash!

2009-05-27T23:22:00.000-07:00

The one and only.....beer drinking, facial hair rockin, picture taking
mother fucking....wait! motherfucking MATT GRAYSON (on the bottom right!)

Me showing off multiple tattoos the general population doesn't know I have (bottom left!)

(Above!!!!) Laura Jean, me n' Matt G!

It takes a great concept to get me moving! Sunday night was our friend and GONG SHOW presenter Amie's white trash themed party in Noho...i got dropped off at THE GOOD NITE bar on Burbank and met Laura Jean (my manager) and her man Pebs (of Buck o' nine and later SIDE ONE DUMMY fame) ...also in tow were Johnny B (who works for side one, but is a shitty proofreader and

should get fired ha ha)....oh and MATT GRAYSON (world famous photog)....Matt also kinda knows how to work on cars and prefers to smoke sativas...don't ask how I know this! I may or may not be his supplier.... Lately I feel like he's been everywhere I go....which is cool, cause he's good company....but we couldn't come up with a compromise on the fucking karaoke duet....I swear it took 2 moonpies, 1 kamikaze shot and a half a hot dog to get to our selection of ACDC'S "you shook me all night long". Anyone who knows me KNOWS this was a cop out on my part. This jammy jam happens to be my default karaoke song....It was great to be there for the free, well everything (and DAMN do i love that) plus there was something that really felt like home about being around all these trashy white people....don't ask! I think maybe it's cause I miss my mom (Debzilla)....er, then again, maybe not! I got to see my all time favorite pin-up Heidi Van Horne and scored some sweet rub on tatts....Night= success! Happy b-day Amie you sexy white trash biotch!

the beginning of the end....

2009-05-27T19:45:00.001-07:00

Hey guys! This is it! The official start of my rock blog....it's no surprise really cause I blog my little heart out on the space and in private, but it was time to get a little more official.....really share what it's like being a crazy chick in a punk rock band touring the world....get ready cause it's gunna be a wild ride! As always I appreciate everyones love, support for our music, and comments etc...we have the best fans in the WORLD....xo