The Flytraps

Despite the number of years they’ve been around in the L.A. club world, the Flytraps is still a band name that more people in the scene have heard than have actually seen play live. Fortunately for the scene, that’s a situation that is rapidly changing. Seemingly making up for lost time, the last twelve months have seen an onslaught of indie releases by the Flytraps including their latest Burger Records cassette release Bitches in Boots, the debut of which was celebrated at Harvelle’s Long Beach cocktail bar.
It seems difficult to fathom now that bassist Kristin Cooper wasn’t always the main singer and front woman of the Flytraps but since the
days since guitarist Marz Riesterer left the group (aptly replaced by stylish rhythm guitarist Chloe Z. Young), Kristin has developed a compelling aura of confidence and punk rock sangfroid that seems to draw their fans in. Whether she’s wildly mosh cheer leading the opening punk acts Skullcrack, Pink Mist and new Long Beach band The Tangents or strutting it up on stage with the Flytraps, Kristin Cooper is a one woman punk rock bacchanal. As she towered over the audience on stage in her black high heel boots shrieking that her gender is “more deadly than the male” in “Female of the Species’, it certainly came across as a declaration to be reckoned with as was the unbridled assault on West L.A. wanna be rock star douchebaggery in “Sunset Strip R.I.P.” Fittingly their set ended with their audacious cover of Rose Tattoo’s “Nice Boys Don’t Play Rock ‘n Roll” which featured deft slide guitar from the band’s musical secret weapon Beth Boyd and concluded with a good old fashioned gear smash up courtesy of drummer Fabian Ruiz who appeared to be imbued with a furor that channeled Keith Moon and a bit of Sid Vicious thrown in for good measure.

And make no mistake about it, the Flytraps ARE a punk band first and foremost and although in their earliest incarnation they were garage rock combo often compared to the Cramps, these days the only thing they have in common with the world’s most famous psycho-billy band is genuineness. Which is to say that, much like the stiletto wearing Lux Interior and fishnet adorned Poison Ivy, who weren’t merely wearing costumes and playing at being deviates, Kristin Cooper is truly every bit the badass, Amazon punk rock dominatrix you see attacking her bass with feminine fury and assailing the crowd with salacious streetwise sass. - Janky Smooth

Power Plant Records hosted one hell of a rock ‘n’ roll show last Friday at Knuckleheads in San Clemente, and Biff Cooper, founder of Power Plant Records live-streamed the entire thing on Reactor Radio.

A neon sign in the window that read, “Sorry, We’re Open” set the mood for the night, a perfect indication of the bar’s status as an underground gem. Sure, San Clemente has plenty of sports bars and trendy places to party, however, if you are looking for a space that has live music acts with down to earth locals and a cool atmosphere, Knuckleheads is THE dive bar to know about in San Clemente.

DJ sets were provided by Leigh Mass of Los Angeles based punk/death rock band Bell Tower Bats. Despite his gothic appearance, Leigh’s selection of vinyl included a solid mix of 70’s tunes, including Bay City Rollers, Question Mark and The Mysterians, and Mick Ronson, which had attendees dancing their asses off before and in-between performances.By the time The Flytraps made their way to the stage for their first performance in nearly six months, the bar was decently packed. Some fans were surprised to see that the line up had changed, as former front-woman Marz wasn’t on stage. Instead, she attended the show as a spectator and even received a loving shout out from new front-woman Kristin Cooper. Despite the change, The Flytraps sounded great. The ferocity of Cooper’s dynamic voice effortlessly compensated for the lack of a second vocalist, and she did a terrific job holding down the fort.
you were not able to make it for the show, don’t kick yourself too hard. The show was archived and can be viewed on the Power Plant Records website. Plus, The Flytraps have a lot of upcoming gigs, including a show at The Monty Bar in L.A. on October 6, and a slew of collaborations with Burger Records, such as Burger Oasis in Palm Springs this weekend, as well as the Burger A-Go-Go tour in early 2018 to support their first album that is set to be released in February. - OC Weekly

Words and Photos by Cam Evans

Having been watching Burger Records grow more and more since 2013 for me has always been a treat. Signing on independent acts to their label, distributing a majority of artists on cassette, and having massive success within their respected music scenes, Burger Records has become a staple in the independent music world and being one of the labels to make cassettes cool again. So imagine my surprise and excitement when I got to be apart of photographing the first two nights of Burger-A-Go-Go in San Francisco at The Independent and saying that the line up of acts was terrific is putting it way too lightly for words. The first night had the weirdo psych-rock band FEELS kick out the tour, followed by badass rockin’ rollers The Flytraps (my new favorite band) bringing one hell of a gut punch for the night. The next two bands Death Valley Girls and The Coathangers (also another new favorite) also produced fantastic energy in the room that night; in fact, while The Coathangers were setting up, “girls to the front” was being chatted to show support for the all-girls rock outfit. The second night was a much more mellow night for bands with Patsy’s Rats opening, Summer Twins followed by Winter with lush dream pop sounds, and closing out the night Dengue Fever bringing amazing energy to the crowd mixing in beautiful sounds of world music and psychedelic pop. Overall, I was super happy to be apart of both nights showcasing some incredible artists for the night, and I am hoping in the near future that I get to photograph another event for whatever Burger Records puts on. - New Noise

L.A. rockabilly-tinged punk rock troupe The Flytraps do not take any shit. These kickass musicians have been at this for a few years now, and they only get more wild as time passes. See for yourself — they play the Viper Room on Thursday, so we had a chat.

L.A. WEEKLY: The band has been together for a few years now — how do you think it's evolved?
KRISTIN COOPER (Vocals/bass): I would like say when we started our sound was more like if the Pleasure Seekers and The Mummies threw an orgy. But now, we are more like if The Cramps and KISS were at a BDSM club afterparty.

How was your 2018? Any key moments?
Some of the best moments of the year include touring with The Distillers and also the Burger-a-Go-Go tour. More recently we played a festival in Bangkok where we saw and did some very questionable things.
What can we expect from this Viper Room gig?
Glitter Wizard from Oakland are amazing — they go the whole nine yards. Gygax also don't disappoint. We will be releasing our newest 7-inch, "Kitten With a Whip," at this show so we’re gonna lay it on pretty thick for this one.

What else do you have planned for 2019?
We are heading to SXSW in March to play Burger Mania. Then releasing our full-length LP later this year and then hitting the road to promote it.

The Flytraps play with Glitter Wizard, Gygax and High Priestess at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 31, at the Viper Room. - LA WEEKLY