The week of our two-year anniversary has come! We are celebrating big time over at Sounds of RVA headquarters. The Hotdamns are putting finishing touches on their set. The band members took some time over the weekend to answer a few questions. Read on to see what memorable shows the guys had, their favorite songs, and how a grimalkin (an old/evil-looking female cat) fits into the equation.
Do you have a favorite memory from being on the road?
Danielle Ahart (keyboard, vocals): We played a show in Charleston, SC at The Tin Roof. It was our second time around playing this venue, but what we didn't know was that one of our albums had been in the jukebox for like a month before we got there. When we started playing, we were met [with] a sea of faces we had never seen that knew all of the lyrics and were singing along to a bunch of our songs. I always imagined reaching fans that I had never met when I was young. At that moment, I felt like I had really accomplished something.
Kelsey Miller (lead guitar, fiddle, vocals): We had a lovely stay in this beautiful establishment called the Fran Mar Motel in Hickory, NC. It was lavish.
Jay Lindsey (bass): One time when we were in Charleston, SC, I got it into my head that there would be alligators in the swamp. So David bought me a whole raw chicken and I was gonna toss it down by the bank so an alligator would jump out and bite it. But instead I slipped and fell on my ass in the mud, and the chicken went into the water. I tore my jeans and, apparently, there are no alligators where I was.
David Hughes (guitar, vocals): A personal favorite moment was from playing Heavy Rebel Weekender in Winston-Salem. Jay and I were watching a side show act, working off some jitters before we played. The performer ran a tube through his nose and out of his mouth and began giving out shots of Old Crow to anyone willing to drink whiskey through his nose. We were both apprehensive and discussing the pros and cons of drinking the nose whiskey when some drunk in front of us turns around and reminds us, "It's still free whiskey." That was all the convincing we needed. We made it to the stage with the perfect blend of nervous caution and drunken swagger.
Describe a favorite (awesome or awful) Hotdamns show in town or out of town.
Danielle: This is going to come up again and again, but probably Kelsey doing one of many things: getting drunk and being belligerent, getting hammered in Cortland NY and subsequently falling from a tree having been convinced he was actually a koala bear and not human, being pushed around by super-lesbian cops in a giant SUV, and letting Nico put witch hazel on his broken face... which sucks!!!
Kelsey: Both awesome and awful was the show in Cortland, NY. I walked across the bar during the set, climbed a tree, fell out of the same tree (landing squarely on my face), and was put in the back of a police car for climbing said tree. It was the last night of our tour and there was an open bar. What was a boy to do?
Jay: Any time we were able to get back to a town we'd already played, and there would be people that came out because of us. That's a pretty awesome feeling.
David: I met Caroline, my special lady friend, at a show we played in Johnson City, Tennessee. There is no way any show can compare to that.
What are you looking forward to about the Hotdamns final show?
Danielle: Playing those songs and singing them one last time, being among my friends, and being honored to play with four of my favorite people on earth. This band made my life worth living for such a long time. I loved it so much, seeing my wellspring of friends and loved ones on that night will be such a reward.
Kelsey: I've missed singing and playing those songs, so I'm just excited to play them again in front of people.
Jay: Just getting to play a show where I know it's the last one. Not thinking about how it's going or what our next move is. A final show is a chance to play just to play and enjoy that moment.
David: I have never played in a band that did a final, goodbye show. I am looking forward to the finality of it. We had a blast doing what we did, and we have the chance to do it one more time before we pack it away. That's great.
What's next for you, music-wise?
Danielle: I have been slowly but surely working on a solo album for the last year, which I hope to record soon (ahem, Jay), and maybe the boys will make an appearance (ahem, rest of the band). Being In Alexandria has changed the game for me a bit. Things are still up in the air, but I will always play.
Kelsey: I'm playing with Jay in a metal band called Bearstorm. When I started in the Hotdamns, I had never played in a country band before, and until I joined Bearstorm a couple years ago, I had never played metal before. It has been exciting playing in both bands, and it has really enhanced my guitar playing, so maybe I'll have to pick a new genre in another few years. Anyone want to start an R&B group?
Jay: Kelsey and I are in Bearstorm. We're finishing up the writing and arranging for our second record, Americanus. It's very different from the Hotdamns, since one's country and one's metal, but both projects share a sort of thoughtful, deliberate approach and some of that lovely Richmond attitude.
David: As of now, I have been banging around with some coworkers playing punk rock. I have enjoyed the chance to play something a lot louder and more aggressive. So, if you see flyers for Loose Teeth anytime soon, come out and say hi.
Do you ever notice that Hotdamns experiences influence your daily life?
Danielle: Yes. Knowing how to be IN a band means you know how to work in small groups, accept and deny feedback, compromise, learn from each other.
Kelsey: I've gained a lot of great stories to tell, and I have no problem with sleeping on a floor now.
Jay: I think it's made me more outgoing. Booking, promoting, and even within the band, you've got to assert what you think and what you want without acting like a bully.
David: I spent years growing up with the rest of the band. I learned a lot about myself and about how to interact with other people. Nothing that I notice on the surface, but it has definitely influenced me.
If you could go back and do just one thing differently in the Hotdamns, would you, and if so, what would you change or add?
Danielle: I wish we could have remained enamoured with each other for longer. Spending less time focusing on the little things and writing more. Writing more as a group. We were maybe too afraid of the chaos of more input and more musical experimentation.
Kelsey: I wish I would have learned more chords earlier. It is kind of embarrassing how many power chords I've used in this country band.
Jay: When you get CDs pressed, they give you a price break for ordering larger quantities, like “100 CDs for $300, but 1000 for $500,” which seems like it would be the smart way to go. Now I'm stuck with all these extra fucking CDs everywhere! So, “smaller pressings” is my answer. Also, I deeply regret working at Starbucks during that time. Literally the only job I've ever hated.
David: Man, there are a handful of shows that I would have drank a lot less at.... I definitely owe a few people some refunds.
What are you doing this weekend?
Danielle: I am working on Friday night, and Saturday morning, but will be in the kitchen cooking all night and spending a night in with my husband. Soooo rock n roll.
Kelsey: I'll be learning Hotdamns songs, because it's been a long time.
Jay: I'm working all day Saturday, and sleeping all day Sunday. If I'm lucky, maybe a walk down at the river.
David: I have no plans other than getting together with The Hotdamns and knocking the dust off of some songs. [Next weekend] I'm driving to D.C. to see The Sword.
What is one cover song the Hotdamns never tried that you'd love to do?
Danielle: I wish we had done a Band cover. Like, all of them.
Kelsey:"November Rain" - We talked about doing it and I learned the whole song with solos and everything, but it just never came together. Also I think it is sad we never covered a The Band song.
Jay:"Honky Cat" by Elton John.
David:"Bomshel Stomp" by Bomshel. The Hotdamns heard this driving through North Carolina. It reminds me of a simpler time, with more honest, heartfelt music. It basically sounds like a shittier version of "Cotton Eyed Joe" by Rednex.
If the Hotdamns had a mascot, what would it be?
Danielle: A warthog. Jay always swore that one was gonna fly out of the trees on the highway while we were on the road and just run next to us as encouragement on our journey. I sorta believed him.
Kelsey: A Grimalkin with a giant garlic bun for a head.
Jay: A giant, foam Hank Williams Jr. head.
David: A grimalkin riding a cassowary.
Name your favorite Hotdamns song and why.
Danielle:"Ruin Creek" for a few reasons. After driving past a road sign in North Carolina for an exit called Ruin Creek, we came up with the idea of every band member writing a song by that title. The best song would win and would go onto the set list. Jay won (and he always does, not cuz I like to blow smoke up his ass, but because he is one of the best songwriters I know), and it has become dear to me. The lyrics, the melody, Sarah's vocal contributions, which made it that more intimate. It's one of those few perfect songs.
Kelsey: I really like "That Which Doesn't Make You Stronger" because I get to sing harmonies and play a crazy solo at the end.
Jay: Lemme start by saying that I had to pick something by me. I couldn't pick a David or Dani song because one of them would be left out. SO my favorite would be “No Hell in Heaven.” It's some of my best lyrics, it's fast as shit, and it breaks down to just those two and Kelsey harmonizing.
David:"Oh! Sweet Guilt Trip" was the first song I ever heard or played with the band. It will always be my favorite, hands down.
Come out to Sounds of RVA's 2nd Anniversary show with The Hotdamns, Josh Small, Lightfields, Bearstorm, and Sacred Teachers. Music between sets by Jamie Lay. DOOR PRIZES from Kulture (incl. $25 gift card!), Steady Sounds ($25 gift card!), Worthless Junk Records, and Cottage Lane! Strange Matter, Thursday, November 15, 18+, $5.
Straight edge hardcore band Friend or Foe will release an EP in December called Know Your Rights. This band is pretty straight up straight edge.
Check out Friend or Foe @ Strange Matter 11/18 with Break Away (record release), Stick Together, Scene Report, and Hounds of Hate. 5 pm, all ages, $10.
Cons the Child released an album, Fruits, in August, and he has now dropped this video, "Thru the Window," the first single. Chill with Cons in a very bohemian woods setting while he spouts business about your third eye, doobies, and boobies. The kid can hella accessorize, too.
Lucida Fax is a Hungarian one-man band who now lives in Richmond. His real name is Mátyás Ósági, and he has released a short, lo-fi EP called Dubrovnik. The songs are moody and drugged-out, and at times he channels Lou Reed ("Estrella Damm"). Fax recorded all but one of the songs while traveling through Spain, Italy, Croatia, Greece, Bulgaria, Turkey, and Morocco. That one song, "Taksim," he recorded here in Richmond, and it fittingly is the most rocking track. So slide down on your couch, put this guy on, and step into a musical k-hole.
By Sarah Moore Lindsey (soundsofrva.org)