Lovewhip

Artist Information

Biography

• Boston Music Award winners and five-time nominees
• Independent Music Award winners (sponsored by the Musician’s Atlas)
• “Show Your Love” featured on the MTV show Paris Hilton's BFF
• “Virtual Booty Machine” heard on the hit TV show Veronica Mars

"Somewhere between a disco inferno, New Wave exuberance and Blondie... the group evokes the likes of Missing Persons or the B-52s. At other times it offers pure synth-fueled booty-shaking... The album is an electrified and energetic party!"
—James Heflin, Valley Advocate

“Lovewhip may be our answer to Prince, except it's a funky, electro-jam with a female guitar-slinging mastermind” says Cheap Thrills Boston.

Dancing. Sex. Whips. It’s all fair game for Lovewhip, the Jamaica Plain, MA based electro group who whip up furiously infectious dance songs for those who love shaking that ass on the dancefloor. Playing a party-starting mix of disco, rock, dance-pop, reggae and Afrobeat, the energy and presence of Lovewhip’s live shows is infectious. Lead by the soulful electro-rock diva and singer/guitarist and electronics producer Erin Harpe, and her longtime partner in crime Jim Countryman (aka Juicy Jim) on bass. Drummer Bob Nisi brings the sexy beats and backup vocals!

Lovewhip’s most ambitious album to date, Love Electric, is a futuristic dance party complete with unicorns, icebots, intrigue, and rock'n'roll! Each song on the album is chock full of catchy hooks, mixing dancehall reggae with disco, pop and rock. The album was produced by Jake Zavracky (producer/composer, of the bands Cyanide Valentine and Quick Fix), and recorded in Boston and Brooklyn.

"It all comes together like a Kraftwerk cover band hanging out with Fischerspooner on a DEVO appreciation night at the hottest dance club in town." Look for more Lovewhip action in 2011.

Instrumentation

Erin Harpe - Vocals, Guitar, Percussion, electronics
Jim Countryman - Bass
Bob Nisi - Drums & Background Vocals

Discography

Love Electric - LP (2010)
Gimme That (2-song single) (2007)
Virtual Booty Machine - LP (2005)
Live Booty Pop - Live release (2004)
Bouncehall - LP (2003)
Whip it Baby! - LP (2000)

Official Website

http://www.lovewhip.net

Links

• Facebook
• Last.fm
• Twitter
• Lovewhip on Reverbnation
• MySpace
• Lovewhip on Bandcamp

Audio

• Wrecking Machine
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• Virtual Booty Machine
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• Let Go
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• Automatic
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• Show Your Love
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• Love Electric
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• Get It On Down
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• Gimme That
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• Sitting and Watching
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Lyrics

• Virtual Booty Machine
• Show Your Love

Video

Gimme That

Photo Gallery

Press

• A modern take of what the 80's were musically [+ Show ]
  

  Love Electric offers a first class seat on a technological voyage to a modern take of what the 80's ...Love Electric offers a first class seat on a technological voyage to a modern take of what the 80's were musically. It's brilliantly crafted and no stone unturned here. There is no doubt that stations like KCRW in Los Angeles should have Lovewhip in heavy rotation. Undeviating and awesome! Simply stated, I love this record and you will too! My 2 personal recommendations are 'Love Electric' and 'Drama Queen'.

• X-Ray Spex attitude and a pulse worthy of the Talking Heads [+ Show ]
  

  “Hit it, but don’t you ever quit. Love Electric is a ride on dance cloud 9 that will keep you up unt...“Hit it, but don’t you ever quit. Love Electric is a ride on dance cloud 9 that will keep you up until you realize the light reflecting off the disco ball is actually a sunbeam. While less-original party rockers will find one groove and play it to death, Lovewhip takes seemingly disparate styles of dance music and finds a way to bring them together into an album that isn’t the least bit repetitive.
  
  Album opener, “Love Electric,” blends shiny, modern production techniques with X-Ray Spex attitude (and sax styling) and a pulse worthy of the Talking Heads. Short musical interludes blend the space between songs, making transitions like the one from dubby “Becky Oh” to Justice-style synth pop number “Wrecking Machine” completely natural. “Chauffeur Blues” is a classic blues cover providing a short respite between two high-energy tracks at the end of the album. The bare bones setup adds a nice contrast to the glossy mix present everywhere else on the CD.
  
  Lovewhip back up their unique album with unique promotion. Want to throw an end of the decade party? Check out their website for house show prices or an opportunity to buy a guitar used to record the album.”

• An ode to hedonistic pleasure [+ Show ]
  

  Lovewhip has their finger on the pulse of what makes people want to move their feet and shake their ...Lovewhip has their finger on the pulse of what makes people want to move their feet and shake their booties. Every track on their new Love Electric CD could be blasted out of the speakers at any dance club, and many could receive airplay on local and college radio.
  
  The obvious hit single here, “Gimme That” is an ode to hedonistic pleasure and Lovewhip provides a pulse pounding score here for a pretty intense encounter. Lead singer Erin Harpe can hold a note forever, showing there is real musical talent behind all the cool, sexy phrases blowing through the song.
  
  Talent underlines all that goes on, and there’s a lot going on. Timing is key to this band that never stops coming up with something to make you want to move. Production rules. Jim Countryman’s bass lines are more prominent than ever. Sax lines leap out of the stereo speakers. A variety of beats are etched into the listener’s consciousness. The blend of instruments with electronic sounds is pitch perfect.
  
  A combination of electro-beat, jazzy sax, and Harpe’s velvety voice winding its way through your consciousness like the snake in the Garden of Eden to tempt you into all kinds of sinful pleasure.

• A mash up of all the world's most danceable music [+ Show ]
  

  What is Lovewhip about? Love. Whips. Dancing. And we'll throw sex in there, too, just in case it was...What is Lovewhip about? Love. Whips. Dancing. And we'll throw sex in there, too, just in case it wasn't implied by the love and whips. They've been called Boston's greatest electro band, and it's obvious why. They're a mash up of all the world's most danceable music, from electro to Afro-beat, to reggaeton and post-punk; their rhythms are deep and inescapable, and their lead singer is hot. It's a hell of an experience to see them live. They don't really leave any choice-you're going to dance, and you're going to like it.

• Lovewhip's goal is to seize control of your core (and all associated body parts) [+ Show ]
  

  Lovewhip's goal is to seize control of your core (and all associated body parts) and work it until t...Lovewhip's goal is to seize control of your core (and all associated body parts) and work it until they're certain that you are able to work it on your own. How does Lovewhip work it? It's an entire concoction of a highly mobile bassline, a drumbeat that sounds like a lust-heightened pulserate and an electrifying vocal performance from Erin Harpe. Listen to it a few times and let us know what you think. Not that it matters by the time the phrase "state of shock" begins reverbrating over itself, because let's face it, they've got us firmly in their grasp.

• Party, party, party, drink water, and repeat the process indefinitely [+ Show ]
  

  The inaugural spark for Lovewhip came about when Harpe, an acoustic blues woman by nature, plugged i...The inaugural spark for Lovewhip came about when Harpe, an acoustic blues woman by nature, plugged in and applied her half-picking, half finger-plucking, Afro-pop guitar techniques to club-friendly electro dance methodology. Both styles were forged to inspire the assemblage to party, party, party, drink water, and repeat the process indefinitely.

• Exciting dancehall-punk-disco collisions!
  

  Exciting dancehall-punk-disco collisions!

• An electro dance martini [+ Show ]
  

  It’s an electro dance martini. Take a few shots of synth, pour on reggae and funk drums, shake, shak...It’s an electro dance martini. Take a few shots of synth, pour on reggae and funk drums, shake, shake, shake and serve over rockin’ guitar lines.

• Off-the-meathook reggaeton smash and Casio-beat dance punk [+ Show ]
  

  If you remember Lovewhip as the funk/juju band from a couple years ago, it's time to take another lo...If you remember Lovewhip as the funk/juju band from a couple years ago, it's time to take another look. After getting kidnapped and reprogrammed by the city's foremost basement-party hipsters, frontwoman Erin Harpe has been reborn as a soulful electro-rock diva . . . [w]ith Cassette's MicL Potvin and Plunge into Death's Mark E. Moon adding off-the-meathook reggaeton smash and Casio-beat dance punk and vocodered come-ons, it's Stefani-esque certified potassium.

• Lovewhip can whip up some of the most feverish dance rhythms in the city [+ Show ]
  

  Lovewhip has a celebratory and upbeat feel that has kept crowds dancing everywhere they play. Lovewh...Lovewhip has a celebratory and upbeat feel that has kept crowds dancing everywhere they play. Lovewhip can whip up some of the most feverish dance rhythms in the city.

• Pure joy [+ Show ]
  

  Come with me to the dance floor now, you don't have to worry if you don't know how, all you have to ...Come with me to the dance floor now, you don't have to worry if you don't know how, all you have to do is move your feet and shake your body to the beat." The execution of those moves won't be a problem as you listen to the rest of this album that combines reggae, afro-pop, ska, soca and something called "world booty funk" into a celebratory, irresistible party soundtrack . . . Pure joy.

• Lead vocal reminds me of MIA -- but better [+ Show ]
  

  What an interesting mix of styles and sounds. I love the synth in "Show Your Love." Singer Empress E...What an interesting mix of styles and sounds. I love the synth in "Show Your Love." Singer Empress Erin has a very enjoyable voice! Honestly I do not think I have ever heard anything quite like this, mixing the caribbean styles with electro. "Virtual Booty Machine" lead vocal reminds me of MIA -- but better.

• Lovewhip have certainly carved out a unique niche here, combining reggae, funk, rock and electropop to make a very distinctive sound [+ Show ]
  

  These four original songs have a funk element to the music that makes each and every song prime danc...These four original songs have a funk element to the music that makes each and every song prime dancefloor material. The "Sitting And Loving" dub slows the track down considerably, molding it into a laid-back lounge groove, while the "sittingwatchingwaitingthinking" mix of the song makes the song sound like it recorded like in a old gospel choir setting. The Kraftwerk-esque electro feel of the "Show Yr Love" remix easily made it one of my favorites. Overall, this is a very interesting release. Lovewhip have certainly carved out a unique niche here, combining reggae, funk, rock and electropop to make a very distinctive sound . . . Recommended!

Setlist

Lovewhip's repertoire includes over 25 originals and select covers. The sets can be divided into two 60 minute sets or three 45 minute sets.

Basic Requirements

Calendar