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Don’t miss the hard rocking and sexy BlowUpDollz
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The BlowUpDollz are an all-girl four-piece from Palo Alto, CA with a hard rocking pop punk vibe, an ...The BlowUpDollz are an all-girl four-piece from Palo Alto, CA with a hard rocking pop punk vibe, an unending stream of catchy and aggressive hooks and irresistible charisma. Notable for thier fun and upbeat sound, the band delivers their sassy lyrics with layered female vocals and cheeky panache. But to really appreciate the BlowUpDollz, you have to see them live – and this Friday at Mountain Charley's Saloon in Los Gatos is the perfect opportunity.
When the BlowUpDollz take the stage, they are guaranteed to get audiences moving and singing along with their infectiously vivacious live performances. The band has a high-energy stage presence that shifts between moments of spontaneous and choreographed cavorting. Into this raucous mix, they even manage to work in a prominent electric violin for an extra dash of musical verve. While on stage, it is obvious that the BlowUpDollz are having almost as much fun as the crowd.
That the BlowUpDollz can inject such perpetual motion and zest into their stage act while belting out power choruses and deftly playing their instruments underscores their skilled musicianship. Make no mistake; while the BlowUpDollz are a 'girl band" with racy stage outfits and a whole lot of pluck, they are also four talented musicians who deliver a sexy and frolicsome stage show on top of – not in place of - well-crafted and tightly performed songs.
The BlowUpDollz are comprised of Fisty Pyxx (Guitar/Vocals), Taxi Teaze (Bass/Backup Vocals), Razz Taztic (Electric Violin, Vocals), and Heddy Vodd (Drums). The band’s debut, Ms. Conduct (2009), was released last year as a 15-track live studio album chock full of anthems of attitude about drinking up, hooking up, or breaking up. Although this first album was a little raw and minimally produced, it was an impressive demonstration of the young band’s potential.
Now, with a growing list of shows under their belt, not only have the BlowUpDollz evolved and refined their early material, but they have added a ton of new songs to their live repertoire. To see the BlowUpDollz on stage scarcely a year after their debut is to see a band whose skill and confidence only continues to grow.
The BlowUpDollz have established a growing and loyal Bay Area fan base with a steady stream of small local shows. But their fun sound and dedication have earned them broader attention and recognition. The band recently took the top spot at a Battle of the Bands held in San Francisco and they were a highlight of San Jose’s Left Coast Live in June. The band has also performed at the 2010 Xfest in Modesto, The Whisky A Go Go in Hollywood, Crash Mansion and Arlene's Grocery in New York City, and the Bytch Fest in Chicago.
The BlowUpDollz will be heading to the studio in the coming months to record their next release. If the band can capture even a portion of the energy and personality that characterizes their current live show into a studio release, it is a safe bet that the BlowUpDollz have the potential to become another breakout Bay Area indie band.
For more information about the BlowUpDollz, visit the band's official website and MySpace page.
Show Info:
Barb Rocks presents: BlowUpDollz and The Secret Sons
Friday, October 29, 2010
@ Mountain Charley's Saloon
15 N. Santa Cruz Ave, Los Gatos, CA 95030
Time: 8pm / Cost: $5 / Ages: 21+
Contact the San Jose Indie Music Examiner
Email Steven with questions, submissions (albums for review, show info, etc), or just to say "hi." Or connect with the San Jose Indie Music Examiner on Twitter, Facebook or his indie eXclamations blog.
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BlowUpDollz Exemplify "Chick Rock" Attitude
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"Call them sassy. Call them women warriors of music. Just make sure you call them talented."
"Bl..."Call them sassy. Call them women warriors of music. Just make sure you call them talented."
"BlowUpDollz has got the edge and attitude that define chick rock"
"The BlowUpDollz are not just singers. They play their own instruments and together put on an incredibly energetic, rockin' performance."
"When they take stage, the image is brimming with big high heels, deep colored lipstick, heavy makeup and grunge-meets-chic outfits."
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The BlowUpDollz Score #1 Hit With "The Row"
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The all-girl BlowUpDollz out of Stanford, CA are a highly energetic, four piece rock band that will ...The all-girl BlowUpDollz out of Stanford, CA are a highly energetic, four piece rock band that will appear at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco on November 15, as part of the Campus MusicFest Showcase after scoring #1 on the Campus MusicFest charts.
(PRWEB) November 13, 2008 -- The BlowUpDollz out of Stanford, CA are a four piece rock band consisting of Fisty Pyxx (Guitar/Vocals), Taxi Teaze (Bass/Backup Vocals), Razz Taztic (Electric Violin, Vocals), and Heddy Vodd (Drums). The highly energetic, all-girl band was selected to appear at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco on November 15, as part of the First Annual Campus MusicFest Showcase - a spinoff of the long running and very popular Campus MovieFest.
Fisty Pyxx says, "We are very excited that 'The Row' is currently ranked No. 1 on the Campus MusicFest charts. (www.campusmusicfest.com). We submitted 'The Row' to this particular competition because Campus MusicFest is a nationwide college competition and this particular song is our tribute to college life."
Pyxx adds, "Based on the overwhelming response to 'The Row' on Campus MusicFest charts, we can say it's definitely been well received. We have many other songs that we love, however, and we're excited to be performing those as well this Saturday at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco, as we go up to compete against three other top-ranked Bay Area campus bands. We plan to hit the stage with a lot of energy and passion, with the goal of proving the BlowUpDollz deserve their current #1 spot on the charts."
According to the band's website (http://www.sonicbids.com/blowupdollz.com), band members have definitely "an image you haven't seen in a while. We're bringing it back - old school chick rock with a fresh twist in energy and attitude." Put another way: "If Nikki Sixx and Joan Jett had a love child who was raised by Garbage, BlowUpDollz would kick it's ass, in high heels, while chugging a beer."
Within the first six months of being together, the BlowUpDollz went from playing in a garage to headlining the Whiskey A Go Go on Sunset Strip, rocking MTV's 2008 VMA pre-party as well as writing, recording, and producing a full 15 song album.
Pyxx says, "Our experience at Whiskey A Go Go was unreal. We were a young band stepping onto an old, world-famous stage - a stage that all my rock idols like Motley Crue and Van Halen had set foot upon while making music history, and that they all attributed as the place where they found their start. Here we were, a band that had yet to even reach its one year anniversary, ready to make our start. It was an extremely motivating experience to see 'BlowUpDollz' emblazoned across the headlining spot down on the legendary Sunset Strip."
"Regardless of being a young girl band, we're ready to stand up against the big boys of the music industry. We are an extremely determined group of girls and we are continuously being faced with fresh challenges that will take us to the next step towards success and we charge each challenge with an attitude that simply states, "We're ready for it... bring it on!" We've accomplished things already that bands have taken years to achieve like playing world famous venues and walking Hollywood red carpets. In addition our song, 'Tell Me Today", will soon be aired on RockRnR radio, while our song, 'The Row', will be a new AT&T ringtone download, and BlowUpDollz will even be a featured chapter in a new book all about chick rock bands. The truth is that we have gone into this experience with the mindset that we are not just going to be a college campus band that breaks up after we all graduate, but that we are going to do it, make it, and take the music world by storm."
The Campus MusicFest is being held in association with The Campus MovieFest, the world's largest student film festival. The Campus MusicFest Showcase features top student bands in the area, special bonus awards for participants in the world's largest student film festival, huge door prizes for attendees, a Guitar Hero® III Mobile Showdown, and a chance to have fun in one of the country's greatest music venues.
Campus MusicFest is from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 15. Ticket prices range from $4-$15. For more information about Campus MusicFest tickets, call (404) 875-9395. Age suitability for this event is 18 and up
Viewable at https://console.prweb.com/prweb/preview/only/51913/prweb1605774.php?SESSION_ID=51913_do491b855d106fe
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RadioRNR Artist: BlowUpDollz
http://radiornr.com/artist-of-the-day/radiornr-artist-blowupdollz/4585
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All Girl Band Ready to Rock
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Phi Kappa Psi’s 18th annual Battle of the Bands comes this Saturday, with a new and unusual talent. ...Phi Kappa Psi’s 18th annual Battle of the Bands comes this Saturday, with a new and unusual talent. For a band that formed just last quarter, the BlowUpDollz are making a splash.Consisting of Liz Buck ‘09, Lauren Palumbi ‘10, Kalena Masching ‘08 and San Jose native Ashley Kinney, the BlowUpDollz are the only all-girl rock band competing in the event. Buck, the guitarist, shares vocals with Palumbi. Masching and Kinney play bass and drums, respectively.
“They have an interesting energy, [a] stagemanship that leaves me really excited,” said Phi Psi member and Battle of the Bands organizer John Laxson ‘10.
“[F'isty] is really good,” said Pra Chandrasoma ‘09, lead singer of competing band Occam’s Razor. “She’s got a lot of energy, a lot of spirit. She’s a really passionate performer.”
Other bands competing in Saturday night’s show are last year’s winner, Vice, Ampersand, Pluto Gang and Occam’s Razor. A newly formed band right out of Phi Psi, called Full Metal Apocalypse, will be playing as the judges make their decision.
“I think it’s cool that we’re finally representing chick rockers,” she said.
When people find out that Buck and Palumbi are in an all-girl band, they “get this kind of look,” they said simultaneously.
“Everyone just thinks the Donnas,” Buck said. “It’s definitely an image you haven’t seen in a while. We’re bringing it back. It’s fresh. We have big makeup and big hair — we definitely play it up.”
Students are aware of the BlowUpDollz, but no one has had firsthand experience with the band.
“We have a lot of talk built up about us right now because we’re the all-girl band,” Buck said. “But our only audience was the audition. We’ve never even played on campus!”
The girls don’t practice on campus, either. Kalena’s father has a recording studio in his house, which emphasizes Buck’s belief that “everything was fated.”
“If we mess up, we just call Kalena’s dad to come fix it,” Palumbi said, grinning. More seriously, she added: “We have fun banter. Our rehearsals are always really open.”
Buck agreed. “If we mess up, it doesn’t really matter. We have fun messing with each other.”
In fact, the girls have jokingly assigned one another names. Buck calls herself “BadassDoll,” Palumbi is “TimeBombDoll,” Masching is “HyperDoll” and Kinney is “QuietDoll.”
“I just love the name because we do so much with it,” Buck said. “We each have our own little twist. And we definitely have our own sound.”
Fellow band member Palumbi, who is fondly known as “Razz” to her band mates, agreed.
“We play a lot in older style,” she said. “Not quite alternative rock.”
Palumbi herself sports the electric violin and feels tied down by having to be plugged in. What makes the girls unique to Battle of the Bands, besides their genre and gender, are their onstage tactics. Buck has custom picks that she will throw into the audience, and they’ve already planned out t-shirt designs. On Saturday night, don’t be surprised to see some crowd surfing blow up dolls. The theatrical antics vary from song to song.
“Some songs we have moves for,” Buck said.
“Just to make a better visual picture,” Palumbi added.
Buck continued, “Messing with each other on stage. Being buttheads. It always annoyed me watching bands that just stood there.”
Often, the girls get carried away with their stunts. Buck attributed this to having been in the Stanford Band.
“The fact that we were in Stanford Band really helps because Stanford Band is all about rocking out and having fun,” she said.
Palumbi and Masching were also in the Band.
“The Band is all about dressing up,” Palumbi added. “It basically means that making a fool of yourself is fine.”
Making a fool of yourself is one thing, but the judges will be looking specifically at the musical talent.
Laxson, who was in charge of auditioning the bands, took several factors into account.
“We look for the ability to entertain an audience, musical talent, the sound of the band and how they choose to configure their voices and character,” he said.
Buck joked that the BlowUpDollz got into Battle on account of their miniskirts.
“Being a girl band, you just bat your eyes and get what you want,” she said. But as for the night of the show, “I think the crowd should just be the judge.”
Palumbi disagreed. “It’s hard to quantify that. I can understand that they’d want to have somebody more musically inclined.”
Laxson, who is spearheading Saturday’s event, is enthusiastic about Battle, but he is as of yet unsure of who will judge. For him, the competition is not what it’s all about.
“Last year, I thought it was one of the better parties I had gone to,” he said. “To hear good music at the same time as being able to hang out with your friends in a party scene was a good way to bring together two separate spheres of people who would go out on a Friday.”
Battle of the Bands is traditionally held in winter quarter, but this year Phi Psi decided to hold it in the spring. For John, who spent fall quarter abroad, extending it to spring quarter would give him more time to plan. For the student body, the first weekend of the quarter has ideally less homework than the rest.
Though the Stanford workload is tough and Buck has already sacrificed her squash playing for the BlowUpDollz, she shrugged her shoulders.
“If you have to do it, you have to do it,” she said.
Buck is friends with members of other bands. She lived down the hall from Chandrasoma in Mirrielees.
“I’m surprised I haven’t been kicked out of Mirrielees yet,” Buck said. “I’m pretty aggressive. I just blew out my thousand dollar amp.”
Though Phi Psi received funding from the ASSU to operate the concert, the party itself is funded by Phi Psi. John has even ordered t-shirts and a compilation CD of the bands to hand out. He got the idea from the Stanford Soundtrack.
Palumbi’s eyes lit up. “We’ve now walked the walk,” she said. “Let’s see if we can—”
“Let’s see if we can rock the rock!” Buck finished.
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Lizzie Buck '05 Rocks On
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It’s taken a lot of hard work, but in less than a year, Lizzie Buck ’05 and her band mates in the fo...It’s taken a lot of hard work, but in less than a year, Lizzie Buck ’05 and her band mates in the four-girl rock group the BlowUpDollz have ascended from playing in garages and at the Stanford band shack to headlining at the Whisky a Go Go on Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood, California, and rocking the pre-party at MTV’s 2008 Video Music Awards. They recently completed their first full-length, 15-song album set to be released this coming December, and they are currently ranked the number one campus band in the nation on Campus MusicFest charts. The BlowUpDollz are about to be aired on rock radio and featured in a coming book about female rock bands, and their song, “The Row,” will soon be available as an official AT&T ringtone download. With upcoming shows in Fresno, San Francisco, and nearby Woodside, these college students are reaching far beyond Stanford to spread their love of rock ’n’ roll.
How is it possible for the BlowUpDollz to have achieved this much notoriety in such a short time? Buck says their success has as much to do with attitude as effort: “We are not only an extremely determined group of girls, but we are continuously faced with fresh challenges that we choose to take head on with an attitude that simply states, ‘We’re ready for it…let’s do it…bring it on!’ We’ve accomplished things already that bands have taken years to achieve, like walking Hollywood red carpets with famous celebrities and being interviewed for mass radio and TV. The truth is that we’ve gone into this experience with the mindset that we are not just going to be a college campus band that breaks up after we all graduate, but that we are going to take the music world by storm.”
Also key to their success may be their self-declared mission to “prove that chicks can rock just as hard if not harder than any guy band.” The BlowUpDollz have become celebrated for their ability to shock their fans and give a contagiously energetic performance. With heads banging, bodies jumping and hair flying, Buck and her fellow musicians have developed a collection of signature stage antics that include Buck’s drop- to-the-knees guitar solos that, as one fan puts it, turn the crowd into an “obedient, jaw-dropped and screaming mass.”
Buck admits, however, that it isn’t always easy to balance student life at a school like Stanford with life as a rocker. She hasn’t had a weekend off from band-related gigs and events since August, and she has given up all her other extracurricular activities to manage her studies while focusing on the band. But Buck sees this as a good thing: “I came into Stanford with the high school syndrome, where I felt I had to get involved in everything. During my junior year, I decided to strip that baggage and come to terms with what I really wanted to do. I was at the point where I could really pursue my dreams. I receded my positions in the clubs I took part in, threw in the towel with Stanford varsity squash, and focused solely for once on one passion – my true love – rock music.”
This talented young woman credits Lawrenceville with giving her the confidence required to make this decision, as it was the place that “really boosted” her faith in her abilities. With the help of several other Lawrentians, Buck took over “Lawrenceville Plays,” started presenting original songs, and sometimes even pulled other student musicians together for impromptu performances. She started small, playing for her housemates in Stanley House, but as a senior she performed at a full school meeting as fellow classmates jumped on stage to dance along. These experiences, Buck says, really opened her eyes to working with other musicians and playing in front of an audience.
As a result, when she hit Stanford, Buck knew she was ready to spread her wings. Lucky for college students and rock aficionados throughout the country, she did!
