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DANGER! DANGER!

IT'S DOLL SQUAD ON THE ATTACK...

The Doll Squad delivers the wild sounds lead by Joey Bedlam

Doll Squad is a band named after the 1973 film by Ted V. Mikels with Tura Satana that was the framework for Charlie’s Angels when a group of female CIA agents perform as assassins against a heartless arch villain with a plan to overthrow the world using their skills in martial arts and guerrilla warfare to confront this evil madman in a good vs. evil action thriller.  The band itself is out of Melbourne, Australia, and is celebrating its tenth anniversary as lead vocalist Joey Henrichmann, aka Joey Bedlam leads the attack.  Her vocals and style take one back to the 60’s and 70’s girl group sound updated with a unique style that sets Doll Squad apart.  Joey’s life is also an interesting trip like an adventure movie comes to life as she and her family escaped communist rule to freedom and to her new home in Australia. They have shared the stages with the likes of Killing Heidi, The Stems, Stray Cats, The Rev Horton Heat, The Horrors, and The 5, 6, 7, 8’s The Street Dogs, The Remains (60s), The Models, and The Angels.  She is joined by band mates Yolanda on guitar, Aleks on bass, Lulu on percussion and baking vocals and Ash on drums.  Their music is garage fueled power pop and will hypnotize your senses.

 

"I had a very interesting life, says Bedlam.   My dad grew up in Transylvania in an orphanage.  He was shipped off to Bulgaria and married my mum. Then when I was four years old the three of us escaped Bulgaria (a communist country) in a car and partially on foot all the way to former Yugoslavia.   The penalty for escape was shooting on site in the area of the border or if found after that life imprisonment and I would have gone to an orphanage.  My parents risked our lives to get to a free country.  That’s why The Sound of Music freaks me out but makes me cry with joy at the same time.  That’s why I am obsessed with America too.  All former Eastern Europeans are!  You grow up very on edge with an experience like that.  You grow up traumatized but you learn determination. Hiding for over 6 months all over Europe before we got to Perth, Australia.  But in those days nobody acknowledged that kind of trauma.  These days there are all sorts of treatment and attention being paid to these types of things not to mention ‘political correctness’ but back then you got on with it in a new country as best you could.  We were tough.  All this accusing people of prejudice around the world and pointing fingers and demanding compensation and not letting the holocaust go…it’s just noise…people need to just get over by now.  It’s a whole new generation.”

 

“Doll Squad really is different; we don’t just say we are!  We really are preferred by an audience.  90% of our European shows are always sold out making them even more fun.  If I had a dollar for every time someone came up to me after a gig and said ‘’that was really great one of the best gigs I have seen in a long time’’ I’d…”

 

 Despite the fact that Doll Squad was courted briefly by Kim Fowley, they chose to record their second album with Steve Lucas (of legendary Australian band X) at Bakehouse Studios in Melbourne. Making an album is not like buying a designer pair of jeans! You don’t go to some big name producer just to get their ‘name’ on your record. While it was the ultimate compliment to get attention from Kim Fowley, we felt that Australian bands should be utilizing the resources at home. Where is it stated that the further someone is from Australia the better they are at production?

Doll Squad was the brainchild of Bedlam.  “Essentially Doll Squad is my concept and I have been playing under that name for 10 years now so this year being our 10 year anniversary is a very special year for me and the band.  Most guy bands don’t even last 10 years much less a band like Doll Squad with such a specific image and musical style.  Does anyone know how hard it is to recruit women for this band!  It’s no small feat!   The current line up has pretty much been together since 2007 and it’s the most!  Yolanda on guitar and backing vocals, Aleks on Bass, Lulu on backing vocals and percussion, Ash on drums, me on lead vocals.   Our keyboard player Alice left the band to go back home and we call her “Dorothy” for this reason.  She will come back and do the anniversary shows with us though if all goes well.   I am hoping some of the original members will come and back out a few tunes as well but they are proving hard locate after all these years.” 

 

Bedlam saw an opportunity to form a band in Australia with a style that was not being done by others. “There were not all girl bands in the 60’s music scene in Melbourne and I saw an opportunity.  I was a lot older when I started DollSquad than most people are when they start their first band. How old? That would be telling!  I loved The Pandoras, Daughters of Eve, The Brood etc. all from the USA.  I also loved Shocking Blue who are my all time favourite band.  I ‘’inherited’’ the records left in the house that my parents bought when I was about 5 years old.  The guy Alfred Meli had great stuff and wrote his name on each of his records.  There was stuff by The Argyles and The Tokens among others.  When I started Doll Squad I wanted the band to be tough and sexy not cute and girly.  I wanted to blend the ugly energy of the early The Rolling Stones with the ethereal and beautiful vocal harmonies of The Chiffons or The Crystals.  I guess that’s “fusion” in today talk haha.”

Doll Squad stands apart from the mainstream of music and takes one to another dimension in music.  “I am not sure how I guess it’s a combination of the image, the sound, the lyrics and the song compositions.   I think it’s a combination of elements that contributes to this sensation.   We are very sub culture orientated.  I never wanted to be a massive mainstream band.  That’s not want Doll Squad is about.  We are about niche, do it yourself, secessionist, exclusive not inclusive ethics.  We openly support similar bands, individuals and organizations’ that defy modern day popular culture.

 

 Bedlam not only is the ring leader of Doll Squad but also is working on other projects including the Pop Hearts with Leif Pacemaker of the Piniellas in Seattle and Neon and Venom with Steve Lucas of the legendary Australian punk band X.  Doll Squad will record two new songs with Tiki Life Style by her guitarist Yolanda and Zombie Kind which Bedlam penned.  She said, “After 10 year we are coming full circle as a band and re-exploring our garage punk origins!  It’s fun!”  With the Neon and Venom project, Bedlam said, “This is a hard psyche and heavy soul project and I’m loving it.  At present we have Phil Bryant from Intoxica on the skins.  He is fantastic.  Steve has Jim Dickson (from Radio Birdman and The Barracudas) on for bass when we record in Sydney later this year and also Jim Elliott (from The Cruel Sea) on drums – both enormously competent and renowned Australian musicians.  I can’t wait for that!  Most of the Neon and Venom songs are written by Steve with some minor contributions by me here and there about backing vocals.  Sometimes, I might listen to the music Steve has written and come up with one line and sing it to him and then Steve will create a whole song around that.  He’s very capable like that.”

As Doll Squad celebrates its ten year anniversary in 2013, Bedlam believes that the music and vibe have kept their audiences dancing along and the band generating energy and motivation to pursue their passion for music.  “I think its 45% entertainment factor, 45% perseverance and 10% talent.   Being in a girl band is always a novelty and that is ok but then you also must have the musical competence and prowess to support it.  You have to make it look easy and effortless even though it takes a lot of practice and time.  People really don’t want to see you pulling faces showing them how hard the riff is you are playing.  They couldn’t give a shit about that.  The kids wanna dance!  The image can be sexy but it must not be demeaning.  It has to be strong. The songs have to be good with catchy melodies and danceable back beats.  Otherwise you only go so far on nepotism and hype.  However without a fan base and without fanzines, editorials and on line zines like this one it would amount to nothing.”

Sometimes shit is just shit even if a record label or a Youtube ratings tells you it’s Pavlova.  Don’t believe the hype.  Make your own mind up and have some fun in the process!  See the crowd for what it is – a flock.  Don’t use Itunes or Youtube use your local pub live gig guides. C’mon see the action in real life!  My motto is: “See it live and you will see it right and you won’t need to hit ‘’replay”

Find more on Doll Squad:

Teen Sounds (aka Misty Lane) in Italy and Cherry Bomb in Brussels - for back catalogue.

Kamikaze Records from Germany should have stock of our last album.

or directly from our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/dollsquad

Any other sources are not endorsed and offer pirated low quality merchandise so please don’t buy from these predators.

CAVE GURL--DOLL SQUAD

Bad Word*--Doll Squad

*by The Friggs

DOLL SQUAD TRAILER

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