Tag: Wicked Cool Records

Cocktail Slippers Celebrate First LP in Seven Years with Rowdy “Say My Name” Video

On a recent Zoom call, Silje Hope and Sugar Cane are in agreement that “Say My Name” is Cocktail Slippers’ favorite song to perform live. “It’s a lot of fun to play,” says lead singer Hope on a Zoom call from her home in Oslo. It’s a dark song, she adds, the lyrics focusing on the proverbial devil-on-your-shoulder tempting you. 

“This song is quite tough,” says bassist Cane, whose joins us from Bergen, where she’s visiting family. The band wanted portray that toughness in their raucous new video, premiering today on Audiofemme. Cocktail Slippers filmed the clip themselves inside their rehearsal room, the band members dressed in purple sequins and leopard print. Their shadows dance along the wall behind them, where you can occasionally catch a glimpse of the horror classic Nosferatu. Cane adds, “We’re quite proud that we’re a productive band that makes everything ourselves.”

Last month, the Norwegian five-piece released Shout It Out Loud!, their fifth album (and their first in seven years), on NYC-based label Wicked Cool Records. “We wanted to make this album for a really long time,” says Cane. Recording stalled due to changes in the band, though they continued playing shows. Then, the release was delayed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“It’s not that easy to make an album,” says Cane. The band wasn’t keen on the idea of releasing it when music scenes across the world had come to a halt. “We wanted to promote it, do gigs, not just release it,” she explains.

Instead, they chose to release singles until venues where they could fully unleash the full-length began to reopen. That turned out to be a good move. Cocktail Slippers have been able to play live a few times since this past summer, including a record release gig. It was a little different from their usual shows, though – the audience had to be seated and the tables were socially distanced from each other. “We’ve been living under very hard restrictions here in Oslo,” says Hope, noting that the rules have loosened up in Norway since then. 

“It takes time to get used to going to concerts again and everything, but we did have a fantastic release for the album,” she adds. “Even though people had to sit down for most of it, we were able to walk around.”

“It’s going to be great when people can stand and not have to worry about touching other people. It’s going to be very different. I’m looking forward to that,” says Cane. She adds that she was glad that the energetic rock band didn’t have to perform sitting down. “That would be awful,” she says. 

“I  can’t even imagine that – us sitting on stairs,” says Hope. “We’re not that kind of band.”

It’s true – sitting demurely is not Cocktail Slippers’ style at all. For 20 years they’ve been honing a garage rock sound that’s a little retro and a little modern. One of the standout tracks on Shout It Out Loud! is their cover of “Hush,” styled after Deep Purple’s 1968 rendition. They originally performed the cover as part of a television special in Norway. 

“We had so much fun doing it. This song is great,” says Hope. The band went on to incorporate it into their live sets and it did really well with fans. “Everyone knows the na-na part. Everyone knows the song,” says Hope. “People were asking us about it, so that was why we played it a lot.”

Still, they hadn’t recorded it, not until they intended to release it as a B-side for a 7” release of “She Devil (Shout It Out Loud).” They recorded it as if they were playing it live inside the same studio where they made the rest of the album. When they sent the finished product to Steven Van Zandt, who founded Wicked Cool Records and co-produced Shout It Out Loud! with the band, he told them that it needed to be an album track. 

Cocktail Slippers have collaborated with Van Zandt a lot over the years; Springsteen fans know him well as regular guitarist and mandolin player in Bruce’s E Street Band. “We’re not sure how he found our record,” says Sugar Cane, but it was sometime in the early ‘00s. “He picked it up on his radio station and we didn’t know that he was playing it for a year when he contacted us and wanted us to play on a festival in New York City. That was the first contact we had with him.”

In their two decades as a band, there have been challenges for Cocktail Slippers. It’s difficult when members move from Oslo; the logistics of touring gets complicated when band members have kids. “The success is that we’re having so much fun together,” says Hope. “I think that a special energy is created when we play.”

The pandemic made things especially tricky though, depriving the band of their income from performing. “How can we rehearse, release the album, get PR and do photo shoots and video shoots with no income? That’s a challenging thing,” says Hope. “But the success is that we are really, really proud of this record.” Now back and better than ever, Cocktail Slippers channeled plenty of pent-up energy into the video for “Say My Name” – and allow fans across the world to appreciate the explosive energy that’s gotten the band through it all.

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MUSIQUE BOUTIQUE: Jessie Wagner, Loma and MORE

Welcome to Audiofemme’s monthly record review column, Musique Boutique, written by music journo vet Gillian G. Gaar. Every fourth Monday, Musique Boutique offers a cross-section of noteworthy reissues and new releases guaranteed to perk up your ears.

You might have encountered Jessie Wagner fronting her NYC-based rock and soul band Army of the Underdog. Or maybe you caught her as a backing vocalist in the touring bands of artists like Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul, Chic, Lenny Kravitz, or Duran Duran, among others. But now she steps out on her own with her first solo album, Shoes Droppin’ (Wicked Cool Records). It was, in fact, Wagner’s gig with Stevie Van Zandt that led to her being signed to his own label; he calls her an artist whose “music is eclectic and unique and impossible to categorize.” Which is what makes her album such a pleasure to listen to.

Shoes Droppin’ opens with the gospel fervor of the title track, which is based on Wagner’s own experiences in coping with the sudden ill health of a loved one, a situation that resonates even deeper today. “What have I done to deserve all this?” goes the song’s recurrent plea, matched by a wailing harmonica. But it’s a song rooted in strength; Wagner sings lyrics like “This burden has gotten too hard to bear/Tell me Lord, are you still there?” with such force, it’s clear she’s not going anywhere until she gets an answer. The thoughtful “Caretaker” honestly addresses the difficulties that arise when one has to step in that role. Balancing the angst is “Lover’s Lullaby,” a hopeful, gentle number offering comfort.

Wagner cites Amy Winehouse and Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings as influences on “End of Time” and “My Darlin’, My Dear,” respectively, and she certainly hits the same retro-soul/jazz vibe that they do. She’s at turns introspective; “Great One” is an acoustically driven piece about artistic insecurity, a topic that’s also the theme of “Passin’ Me By,” something you might overlook as you’re carried along by the buoyant brass arrangement. Horns are even more to the forefront in “Over and Over,” a playful number about succumbing to temptation; “You might be the one to change my ways,” she teases. She closes with another confessional number, “What You Get,” a song about admitting one’s faults and vowing to do better, with the brisk beat underscoring its mood of forgiveness. Wagner’s warm, rich voice is a versatile instrument, making her able to navigate the realms of rock, soul, and jazz with ease. It’s a personal record, but one that has stories that everyone can relate to.

The music of Loma is the perfect musical accompaniment as the heat of summer gives way to the coolness of fall. It’s enigmatic, and a bit mysterious, creating a sense of anticipation for what might come next. Then there’s the album’s title, Don’t Shy Away (Sub Pop). It’s something that extends an invitation: don’t be afraid, come inside.

Loma was something of a side project between Cross Record’s Emily Cross and Dan Duszynski, and Shearwater’s Jonathan Meiburg (Cross sings, and all three members play instruments). The group released a self-titled album in 2018, followed by a tour that climaxed with a set at Sub Pop’s SPF 30 festival (celebrating the label’s 30th anniversary). The band thought the show might be their last; as Cross put it, “It was the biggest audience we’d ever had. We thought, why not stop here?” But after they’d gone their separate ways, they found they missed each other. They also got a bit of unexpected inspiration when they learned that Brian Eno told a BBC radio listenership that he kept the band’s “Black Willow” on repeat. So what else could they do but reconvene?

This is an album that casts its spell in a slow, insinuating fashion. “Fix My Gaze” is the stark, cryptic, opener, Cross’ clear, high voice set against the spare instrumentation. This song of imprisonment leads naturally to “Ocotillo,” a droning, modern day road song, the steady beat eventually giving way to a cacophonous clatter as Cross celebrates her freedom: “All my ties are broken, I’m in wonderful disarray,” taking that last syllable up to the sky. Despite the omnipresence of synthesizers, there’s a strong organic feel to the record thanks to piano and violin, Cross’ clarinet, and the gorgeous harmonies of songs like “Thorn” and “Elliptical Days.” Appropriately, the final touch was given to Eno, who mixed the closing track, “Homing,” a number offering the calming feeling of a prayer. This album works like a tonic on the restless mind, drawing you in and leaving you refreshed.

Right Back Where We Started From: Female Pop & Soul in Seventies Britain (RPM Records) is the natural follow up to the label’s earlier set, Am I Dreaming? 80 Brit Girls Sounds of the Sixties. The title track is Maxine Nightingale’s soul pop classic that became an international hit, and sets the stage for a collection of enticing treats.

Well-known names pop up throughout. Yvonne Elliman, whose hits include “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” and “If I Can’t Have You,” shows off her harder-rocking side on a cover of the Who’s “I Can’t Explain” (with Pete Townshend on guitar). Dusty Springfield’s sublime rendition of “Spooky” is a masterclass in sophisticated cool. There’s the unexpected delight of discovering that Eartha Kitt actually covered Donovan (“Hurdy Gurdy Man”). Fans of the stylish ‘60s TV series The Avengers will note the name of Linda Thorson, who played “Tara King” on the show, delving into dreamy pop on “You Will Want Me.”

There’s even more fun to be found among the acts that are lesser known (especially in the US). Margie Miller takes the sultry “Fever,” and whips it into an uptempo slice of funk that’s irresistible (record collectors have paid over $100 for this single, so it’s great to have it available on a more reasonably priced collection). A powerful, versatile singer, Miller also appears on the poppy “Ninety-Nine Ways,” originally released under the alias Etta Thomas. Ruth Swann gives a Motown-flavored spin to “Tainted Love” (originally recorded by Gloria Jones; Soft Cell’s cover came in 1981). The wonderfully named Mother Trucker come on all bold and brassy on “Explosion in My Soul.” And you will never hear “Na Na Hey Hey (Kiss Him Goodbye)” the same way again once you hear the absolutely killer version by the Chanter Sisters, who also appear on this set credited as Birds of a Feather, burning their way through “Leaving the Ghetto.” As an added bonus, RPM’s usual great liner notes are packed with information.