Bonfire Beach

Bonfire Beach is thrilled to premiere “Dream In Shadows”, the latest track from the band’s forthcoming LP, on Culture Collide this week. Click here to listen to the track and be sure to catch the band live on their remaining dates as they wrap up a successful Fall tour supporting The Dandy Warhols. Bonfire Beach’s Self-Titled LP is outOctober 14th on Cleopatra Records.

Dexy Valentine is the front woman of Magic Wands & Bonfire Beach.

“Dexy Valentine’s Bonfire Beach project drives a wedge between her dreamy work on Magic Wands, and her desire for a rumbling motorbike, heroin-chic aesthetic dusty enough to get compared to B.R.M.C.” -LA Weekly - Music News Nashville - Oct 1, 2014

The Dandy Warhols have enjoyed MTV fame, toured with David Bowie and starred in a hit rock documentary (“Dig!”), but the haze-poppy Portland, Ore., rock quintet never put out a live album before now. It’s a live rendition of their 1997 breakthrough album, “Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia,” featuring “Bohemian Like You” and more fan favorites we’re sure to hear again. Los Angeles’ Bonfire Beach opens. Chris Riemenschneider - Star Tribune - Sept. 12 2014

“Dexy Valentine’s Bonfire Beach project drives a wedge between her dreamy work on Magic Wands, and her desire for a rumbling motorbike, heroin-chic aesthetic dusty enough to get compared to B.R.M.C.” -LA Weekly

Dexy Valentine is the front woman of Magic Wands & Bonfire Beach.

Magic Wands have garnished great success in music licenses via Zynch, having songs featured on Victoria’s Secret, Vogue fashion Week, Gucci, Zara, T-mobile, Beauty & the Beast, Vampire Diaries & the Diablo Cody film “The Power of Few” with Christopher Walken & Christen Slater. Magic Wands have toured & opened for The Kills, The Horrors, The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Black Keys, The Raconteurs, The Breeders, The Wombats and have made appearances at SXSW, Glastonbury & Lollapalooza.

Presently Magic Wands are finishing up their second album tilted Stranded on Earththe anticipated follow up to their acclaimed debut album Aloha Moon that was released late 2012.

Meanwhile Dexy Valentine has delved into a darker sound and embarked on a side project called “Bonfire Beach” where she waves her magic wand over the gritty golden lights of Hollywood’s lost angels to the moonlit seances of the gypsy trodden beachcombers.

Bonfire Beach’s debut self tilted album is due out on Cleopatra Records & the band will be main support for The Dandy Warhols’ fall tour this Sept/Oct. The LA Weekly has given praise to Bonfire Beach listing them in “LA’s top ten bands to blow up in 2014″ as well as listing Dexy Valentine at #2 in the top ten rising female fronted bands in
Los Angeles.

Bonfire Beach’s debut single/video “Spit U Out” has just been released via Manimal Vinal.

The track has an edgy punk sound and has been compared to The Gun Club meets Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. Bonfire Beach will be releasing their new self-titled LP on October 14th via Cleopatra Records. - CLEOPATRA RECORDS INC. Aug.29 2014

Dexy Valentine either doesn’t sleep, or lives in a parallel universe where each day has double the amount of hours as the world inhabited by the rest of us mortals. These are the only conclusions one can draw about the singer who leads a double life fronting her bands Magic Wands and Bonfire Beach, which respectively have an upcoming album release and a fall tour supporting The Dandy Warhols. We caught up with the prolific frontwoman to talk about her whirlwind year, and to check out Bonfire Beach’s new video for “Spit U Out.”
I’m excited that Magic Wands has more music on the way, but it’s also really nice to hear you delving into your dark side with Bonfire Beach. What inspired the project?

I actually started Bonfire Beach before Magic Wands, but it had to be put on hold because I began touring the US and Europe with MW. I strayed away from it due to the fact I wasn’t in a place where I was ready to confront my dark side; I ran off into the lighter sound of MW. But as with all things, you can only run for so long before it catches up [with you]. The goal now is to transform it into something better, and I think everyone in the band is on the same wavelength with that.

Between the release of Lit last December with Bonfire Beach and the new Magic Wands album, it’s clearly been a very busy year for you. Do you work on music for both bands simultaneously, or does each group require you to get into a certain mindset for a while?

Lately, I’ve been doing back-to-back shows and rehearsals for both bands. Each does require a certain mindset– it’s really a matter of me investing in a different gear for Bonfire Beach rather than using the same stuff I use in Magic Wands.

Tell us about the current Bonfire Beach lineup—what is everyone’s musical background? How did you all meet?

I met my drummer Charlie through a producer when I first moved to LA, then we met the bassist Brandon and the guitarist Steve through mutual friends. We all hit it off because we love the same kind of music. We began writing songs together, everyone in the bands has there own thing going on. Brandon plays in Night Nail, Charlie drums for several bands, and Steve has his own band called Red Sun Red Sea.
The song and video for the new single “Spit U Out” has a PJ Harvey To Bring You My Love-era vibe going, and with bands like The Muffs and Veruca Salt reforming, the ‘90s are very much having a moment right now. Were you inspired by many artists from that decade, particularly female musicians?

I had several girl crushes from the ‘90s: Kim Gordon from Sonic Youth, Kathleen Hanna of Bikini Kill, Elizabeth Fraser of Cocteau Twins, and Bilinda Butcher of My Bloody Valentine.

Give us a little background on the video concept for “Spit U Out”—in it we see pyramids, cats, and sharp objects. Do you care to explain some of the symbolism, or is that for us to figure out?

I’ve always been a fan of esoteric symbolism and I’m familiar with occult stuff. I’d seen some art house short films recently that served as a muse for the colors, it’s open to your own interpretation.

You drop a lot of LA references on the new album. What places in or around Los Angeles do you find to be the most creatively inspiring?

LA at night is my favorite. As long as I can see the moon or a sunset I’m pretty inspired.

You lived in Nashville at the start of Magic Wands. What are some of the major differences working in the music scene in Nashville vs. LA? What made you decide to move back west?

Magic Wands had to come to LA to mix our first EP & record our album, it took a lot longer than expected. We didn’t really plan to move back, it just sort of happened. As for Nashville, It’s a great city, but when Chris and I formed Magic Wands we weren’t part of a scene. We got lucky and opened up two shows for Jack White which was the extent of us playing in Nashville. I’m grateful to have group of friends in LA in bands who are all really supportive of each other.

What are some other bands you’re really into right now, both locally and otherwise?

Lately I’ve been listening heavily to early Cocteau Twins and not much else, especially their first record.

Will Bonfire Beach and/or Magic Wands be embarking on a national tour soon? What are some of your favorite cities to play in?

Yes, the Magic Wands album is being mixed right now and we’ll be touring soon. Bonfire Beach will be supporting The Dandy Warhols on their fall tour. I think my favorite cities to play so far have been Montreal, London, Edinburgh, San Francisco, Seattle & NYC.

What’s your favorite film you’ve seen so far in 2014?

I recently saw Beautiful Noise, which is an indie music documentary that chronicles the birth of shoegaze.
Who is your favorite film director of all time?

Stanley Kubrick, Roman Polanski, David Cronenberg, Bergman, Ken Russell, Dario Argento, and David Lynch. So the answer to that question is, I have many favorites.

What’s one thing you haven’t done yet this summer that you’re looking forward to?

I’m looking forward to getting on the road & catching Slowdive at FYF.

Bonfire Beach play The Echo for Echo Park Rising on August 17th, so catch them live and keep an eye out for the new Magic Wands album in the coming months! - iheartcomix - POSTED BY DEVAN COOK ON THURSDAY AUGUST 7TH, 2014

The Dandy Warhols are excited to announce that BONFIRE BEACH will be joining us on all club dates for the upcoming Fall US tour. Check these cool cats out, they’re blowin’ up. - dandywarhols.com Aug. 4 2014

Back in the ’80s and ’90s, being a Southern California garage-rock band meant adhering to period-correct tones, gear, and aesthetics of the 1960s. Thankfully, the anachronism police of yesteryear have moved on, grown up, or vanished into their Etsy stores. And this leaves bands like L.A.’s Bonfire Beach a lot more creative freedom than the Vox-guitar-and-Beatle-boot-clad set of yesteryear.

You also have to commend Bonfire Beach for scaling down its lineup to a simple quartet. (What is it with all those Los Angelino garage/shoegaze hybrid bands having between seven to 10 people onstage just to create a simple sound, anyway?)

To be fair, Bonfire Beach’s “Spit U Out” has more in common with Love and Rockets or Black Rebel Motorcycle Club than bands like the Warlocks or Brian Jonestown Massacre. It starts with Steven Fleet’s sinister fuzz riffing over a seductive beat provided by Charlie Woodburn and Brandon Robert’s pulsing, voluptuous bass lines. But it’s not until guitar strumming chanteuse Dexy Valentine comes in that the song takes life. Her haunting tenor is as alluring as a young Debbie Harry filtered through the dark charisma of Alison Mosshart. - Premier Guitar July 8 2014

Back in the ’80s and ’90s, being a Southern California garage-rock band meant adhering to period-correct tones, gear, and aesthetics of the 1960s. Thankfully, the anachronism police of yesteryear have moved on, grown up, or vanished into their Etsy stores. And this leaves bands like L.A.’s Bonfire Beach a lot more creative freedom than the Vox-guitar-and-Beatle-boot-clad set of yesteryear.
You also have to commend Bonfire Beach for scaling down its lineup to a simple quartet. (What is it with all those Los Angelino garage/shoegaze hybrid bands having between seven to 10 people onstage just to create a simple sound, anyway?)
To be fair, Bonfire Beach’s “Spit U Out” has more in common with Love and Rockets or Black Rebel Motorcycle Club than bands like the Warlocks or Brian Jonestown Massacre. It starts with Steven Fleet’s sinister fuzz riffing over a seductive beat provided by Charlie Woodburn and Brandon Robert’s pulsing, voluptuous bass lines. But it’s not until guitar strumming chanteuse Dexy Valentine comes in that the song takes life. Her haunting tenor is as alluring as a young Debbie Harry filtered through the dark charisma of Alison Mosshart. - Premier Guitar - July 08, 2014

Dexy Valentine of Magic Wands took a moment top talk to us about eyer new music venture Bonfire Beach, which we’re super excited about.

How was it starting a band?
I’ve been playing music since I was sixteen. I remember the first time I started a band feeling like I was embarking on a lifelong journey that wouldn’t be as easy as finishing up school and getting a day job but I didn’t really care and made the commitment. I actually started Bonfire Beach before Magic Wands but it ended up getting put on hold for a long time, I recently got all the original members in one room & we became a band again.

Fave song on the new record
Electric ocean, it’s one of the slowest song on the record but it’s a good song to escape to.

Who are your music idols?
Most of them aren’t around but, still living I think there are a few left who’ve retained their star power and mystery: Morrissey, David Bowie, Stevie Nicks..

Courtney love or Cyrinda Fox
Cyrinda Fox

What makes a rockstar?
Doing what you want to do, not conforming to what’s popular, and fitting in with the current trends, being unique, doing your own thing and not trying to emulate someone else too much, believing in what you do and not letting anyone or anything outside
that make you compromise.

Best spots to hang in LA
I’ve been isolated up in nichols canyon for a while working on Magic Wands new album so I haven’t been out much, but when I do I like this dive bar on the east side called Footsies, Cha Cha lounge in Silver Lake & Roosevelt Hotel Tropicana Bar is cool on
certain nights.

Tell us a bit about why you started Bonfire Beach
I started it because I have great chemistry with Charlie, Steven and Brandon,
we’re all old friends, the music is a bit darker than Magic Wands and I really
needed another outlet.

What is up next for your music?
Right now Bonfire Beach is working on new 7″ single & about to shoot new video
then do a small west coast tour, Magic Wands is about to release a new album & tour as well. - GALORE MAG - June 20th, 2014 at 12:04 pm

When Dexy Valentine unveiled her side project Bonfire Beach in late 2013, it made for a great early Christmas present. Setting aside the dream-pop she makes in Magic Wands, Bonfire Beach dives headlong into gritty shoegazing, recalling the deliciously foreboding rock of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, the Duke Spirit and the Raveonettes. We share Valentine’s self-made video for the single “Spit U Out” as something of a news bulletin — the release of the full-length “Lit,” which was to have been last Dec. 17, didn’t quite happen as planned. And now Bonfire Beach has teamed up with Manimal Vinyl. The album has a July 17 release date, it says here, and with Magic Wands finishing up work on their new album “Stranded on Earth” (and playing some of the new songs May 23 at the Troubadour), it should be a very busy summer for Valentine. - See more at: http://www.buzzbands.la/2014/05/15/video-bonfire-beach-spit-u/#sthash.E0Dx5BoT.dpuf - Buzzbands La , by Kevin Bronson on May 15 2014

Next was Bonfire Beach, fronted by badass Dexy Valentine, and I am probably not the first one who is going to compare them to Black Rebel Motorcycle Club? That was the first band name that crossed my mind, and they had a bit of Brian Jonestown Massacre’s psychedelia too, which are not bad references to begin with. The quartet had an aggressive, layered, dark and bluesy sound, which was fitting their black leather jackets and dark sunglasses, and I was totally digging it. Rebellious enough to match the classics, trippy but not druggy, there is already a strong buzz around them, and I totally see why they were recently listed among the ’10 LA bands who will blow up in 2014′ by the LA Weekly. - Rock NYC - ALYSON CAMUS April 30 2014

Hope Sandoval (Mazzy Star), Elizabeth Fraser (Cocteau Twins), Harriet Wheeler (The Sundays), Dolores O’Riordan (The Cranberries), Belinda Butcher (My Bloody Valentine), Kim Deal (The Pixies/Breeders), Siouxsie Sioux…

If you’re anything like Creations LA, these are some of the female musicians who feed your consciousness. They’re the ladies you grew up with, the ones who shaped your dreams of becoming a front woman (even if you had a voice fit for a bad reality show audition).

Dexy V’s talents are a celebration of the type of ghostliness and poise we expected from the celebrated female-led bands of the 80s and 90s. In Bonfire Beach’s debut release, Lit, she makes her mark in the millennial wave of girl power, arguably joining the ranks of acts like Metric and the Dum Dum Girls. The group has even been dubbed one of the “10 LA Bands Who Will Blow Up In 2014” on LA Weekly.

“Makes me feel like I’m going to explode all over LA into a million tiny pieces,” Dexy said about the buzz. “There are tons of talented bands in LA. It’s an honor to be singled out. It was really appreciated but nothin’ I’d ever let go to my head.”

Although their release is fairly new, Bonfire Beach is actually an old project she’s revisiting. “I recently got back into it & was fortunate enough to get the rest of the band all in one room to relearn the songs,” she said. The band currently consists of Brandon Robert (bass), Charlie Woodburn (drums) and Steven Fleet (guitar).

Of course, Dexy is still a member of Magic Wands, who played The Echoplex on July 8th and is expected to release a new album, Stranded On Earth, this year as well. “Bonfire Beach [is my] darker side. Magic Wands is my light side,” said Dexy. “It’s a bit bipolar.”

Bonfire Beach recorded Lit over a couple months but it was written organically. “It was channeled,” said Dexy. “I wish I’d like…set out to write an album but it never works that way. Songs come through me or they don’t. The process was easy. The record was made in my apartment so if I felt like recording in the early morning or late night, I would get into it.”

Her favorite tracks are “Electric Ocean” and “Black Tinted Moonlight” (hear them below). “They are the slower tracks I connect with most right now,” she explained. “Inspiration these days has been coming from life experience. [Had] a bit of a hectic start to the new year so I’m trying to turn poison into medicine and channel it into my music.”

When she isn’t making musical lemonade from life’s lemons, she listens to tunes from artists such as Cocteau Twins, The Chameleons and Solid Space. (Elizabeth Fraser gets another endorsement. Telling you. I don’t make these things up.) - Creations LA

Dexy Valentine is on fire. Not only is she the voice behind the magic in Magic Wands, now she gets to add another fantastic musical endeavor to her resume: Bonfire Beach.
My first initial reaction while listening to Bonfire Beach's nostalgic debut, Lit, was that Shirley Manson needs to hear this! I was brought back to the first time I listened to Manson's pre-Garbage band, Angelfish, with a hint of The Raveonettes. Needless to say, I am deeply taken with this album and it sure has 'lit' a fire within my heart. Pun intended. - Buzznet Jan. 28 2014

Dexy Valentine of the Magic Wands is scratching a long forgotten itch. Her new band Bonfire Beach -- with bassist Brian Nope -- just released a stunning debut album on Buddyhead Records titled Lit. Slinky and dark, this psychedelic work sounds like it belongs in a David Lynch film. - LA Weekly Jan. 02 2014

Bonfire Beach’s debut album Lit is a high-octane musical amalgamation of garage rock and dream pop left out to bake in the desert sun.
It’s the sound of gazing at the hazy city skyline from Cahuenga Peak. It’s the sound of scoring some shit down on Sunset. In short, it’s the sound of Los Angeles and it doesn’t take long for Lit to demand attention.
The garage pop swagger of the album opener “Spit U Out” bursting out of the speakers is one of the more memorable album openers in years. The combination of sunburnt guitar riffs and singer Dexy Valentine’s sensuous cooing isn’t necessarily a new sound, but the band approaches their sound with such carefree ease that it’s easy to forget that you’ve heard the same thing before. Tracks like “London Boys” and “House of Love” largely follow the same format yet never get tiring in their relative simplicity.

While the harder-edged tracks make Lit a fun record, it’s the flirtations with experimentation and different styles that really sets Bonfire Beach apart from others. The feedback drenched “Electric Ocean” showcases a different dynamic, complete with synthesized flourishes and drum machines that sounds straight out of the ’80s. Imagine Debby Harry dropping a ten-strip of acid and jamming with a psychedelic band and you’ll get the idea. Likewise, “Bells (Hollywood Forever Reprise)” provides a gorgeous, string accompaniment to the more straight up “rock” version of the song. But perhaps the best moment on the album is “Red Sun” which sees the band incorporate all of the elements throughout Lit to create a dizzying, sexy and haunting song.

Really, there is little to find fault in with Lit. Musically, it retains enough rudimentary pop elements to keep casual listeners intrigued, while there is also plenty of “meat on the bones” so to speak. Sure, Dexy Valentine’s musings and allusions to Los Angeles may get a little strenuous at points (especially for those of us that don’t really give a shit about L.A.), yet that doesn’t change the fact that her knack for singing a great melody is top-notch. All of those elements combine to create a surprisingly sunny and promising debut album from Bonfire Beach. - Gutter Bubbles Dec. 18 2013

Dexy Valentine of Magic Wands has taken a detour back to her roots and revamped some older dreamy goth punk rock material she had brewing prior to forming Magic Wands. Her new band Bonfire Beach which is composed of her and some friends are about release “Lit”, their debut album via Buddyhead Records on December 17th, 2013. The ten song record conjures up visions of ghosts from L.A.’s seedy rock n’ roll past ala The Cramps, Gun Club, X & The Doors while lyrically it reads much like a love letter to her city of Los Angeles, California. I sat down with Miss Valentine the other day to ask her about this new record… Here is what she had to say about it:

Travis: Describe how Bonfire Beach is different from Magic Wands and what inspired you to release this music now in 2013?

Dexy: It’s a tad bit darker and heavier, magic wands has elements of that but not
to the degree this does.

Travis: When I listen to this record I hear a lot of references to the city of Los Angeles, would you say you have a love/hate for the city?

Dexy: At the time I wrote these songs I was definitely searching for balance and went a little off the deep end, I made some references to LA and Hollywood because at the time I was writing these songs I was doing a lot of mischievous roaming through the city at night, the record is an expression of my observations.

Travis: Do you have any plans for Bonfire Beach to play some live shows?

Dexy: Yeah, I guess if time allows it’s something I’d like to do in-between recording the next Magic Wands album which will be out in 2014.

Travis: What were you inspired by at the time of writing these songs?

Dexy: At the time I was channeling things & exploring my own darkness. I wasn’t giving up on anything more like standing my ground and saying hey, don’t fuck with me world but at the same time underneath that I was really vulnerable, I don’t really write this aggressively anymore so it’s cool to reflect on it and it will be interesting to perform these songs live being I’ve been away from them for quite
some time. - Buddyhead Records Dec. 17 2013

For Dexy Valentine, her new album as Bonfire Beach is not moonlighting; it’s more of taking care of unfinished business. Fronting the dream-pop outfit Magic Wands, Valentine plays an engaging romantic space queen. Now, along with some friends including bassist Bryan Nope, she’s revisited some music she conceived in her early days in Los Angeles — darker, hard-charging psychedelia that conjures up the troubled ghosts of the city’s past. The album “Lit” (out via Buddyhead Records on Dec. 17) sounds like something the Duke Spirit, the Raveonettes and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club might come up with after doing drugs in a Hollywood alley. So long, dreamy; hello, danger. - See more at: http://www.buzzbands.la/2013/12/05/ears-wide-open-bonfire-beach/#sthash.fqw6VjBb.dpuf - BUZZBANDS.LA Dec. 5 2013

Hope Sandoval (Mazzy Star), Elizabeth FRASER (Cocteau Twins), Harriet Wheeler (The Sundays), Dolores O’Riordan (The Cranberries), Belinda Butcher (My Bloody Valentine), Kim Deal (The Pixies/Breeders), Siouxsie Sioux…

If you’re anything like Creations LA, these are some of the female musicians who feed your consciousness. They’re the ladies you grew up with, the ones who shaped your dreams of becoming a front woman (even if you had a voice fit for a bad reality show audition).
Dexy V’s talents are a celebration of the type of ghostliness and poise we expected from the celebrated female-led bands of the 80s and 90s. In Bonfire Beach’s debut release, Lit, she makes her mark in the millennial wave of girl power, arguably joining the ranks of acts like Metric and the Dum Dum Girls. The group has even been dubbed one of the “10 LA Bands Who Will Blow Up In 2014” on LA Weekly.

“Makes me feel like I’m going to explode all over LA into a million tiny pieces,” Dexy said about the buzz. “There are tons of talented bands in LA. It’s an honor to be singled out. It was really appreciated but nothin’ I’d ever let go to my head.”

Although their release is fairly new, Bonfire Beach is actually an old project she’s revisiting. “I recently got back into it & was fortunate enough to get the rest of the band all in one room to relearn the songs,” she said. The band currently consists of Brandon Robert (bass), Charlie Woodburn (drums) and Steven Fleet (guitar).
f course, Dexy is still a member of Magic Wands, who played The Echoplex on July 8th and is expected to release a new album, Stranded On Earth, this year as well. “Bonfire Beach [is my] darker side. Magic Wands is my light side,” said Dexy. “It’s a bit bipolar.”

Bonfire Beach recorded Lit over a couple months but it was written organically. “It was channeled,” said Dexy. “I wish I’d like…set out to write an album but it never works that way. Songs come through me or they don’t. The process was easy. The record was made in my apartment so if I felt like recording in the early morning or late night, I would get into it.”

Her favorite tracks are “Electric Ocean” and “Black Tinted Moonlight” (hear them below). “They are the slower tracks I connect with most right now,” she explained. “Inspiration these days has been coming from life experience. [Had] a bit of a hectic start to the new year so I’m trying to turn poison into medicine and channel it into my music.”
When she isn’t making musical lemonade from life’s lemons, she listens to tunes from artists such as Cocteau Twins, The Chameleons and Solid Space. (Elizabeth Fraser gets another endorsement. Telling you. I don’t make these things up.) - CREATIONS LA.