If ever there was a band to put the rock in rock and roll one can look to the Darts who are out of the Phoenix, Arizona and on a mission to rock your socks off.  The raves are coming as well from the likes of Rolling Stone Magazine, Spin, The Underground Garage, Billboard, to Author Steven King.  And now Stage 1 Press!  OK, awesome garage music with a rocking blast of energy have the Darts making hot sounds and getting well-deserved credit where it is due.  The band who include singer and keys player Nicole Laurenne, guitarist and singer Michelle Balderrama, bassist and singer Christina Nunez and drummer and singer Rikki Styxx.  They are signed to Dirty Water Records out of the UK and boast a sizzling release filled with plenty of fuzz and distortion backed with high energy.  They have two 6 song eps and toured across the Southern US earlier this year and then the Europe.  “Take What I Need” is also one of the songs in the 2016 “Coolest Songs in the World” fan voting contest at Little Steven’s Underground Garage.  Their message, “That rock n’roll is not dead - and we're coming to getcha!   We are hungry to write great music, make rockin' records, tour the world and rock at any moment, with hopes of inspiring other girls to do the same,” said Laurenne. 

 

 

We all have been fans of each other’s bands and musical abilities for a long while,  One day Nicole and I finally decided “Hey! Lets write some songs together for the fun of it and record them!”  Right off the bat, we felt a mutual chemistry between each other. From there it has taken off fast. We love the fact that we're all women, striving for what we love to do most, which is rock out in what is still mostly a man's world. That's what makes it especially cool!

 

If you love the garage sound and vibe you will love this band that boasts plenty of musical influences.  “Theres so many different influences coming from what each member of the band contributes: The Stooges, MC5, Q65, The Sonics, The Rolling Stones, The Chesterfield Kings, Deep Purple, The Trashwomen, and newer stuff like Thee Tsunamis, Death Valley Girls, Ty Segall, The Ettes,  The Coathangers, and even our own other bands, The Love Me Nots, Brainspoon, and The Two Tens. The List goes on and on but you get the idea.”

 

And these ladies know how to play as you can clearly hear in the solid music that they take to another level of mind-blowing madness.  This is a band not to be overlooked.  “Well, some with a stereotypical rock mindset might overlook our musical abilities, which come from years and years of studying and practicing a lot of different styles of music between the four of us; which in fact is the very thing that makes it so exciting for us. We cannot wait to get up on stage and rock the hell out of our songs and instruments at our live shows, and we especially love it when no one sees it coming!!” 

 

 

And the experience to be part of the Darts—priceless!

Everything! But I’d say beyond the awesomeness of making music, recording, touring and chasing our love of rock n’ roll, is the opportunity to work and play with each other and all the other amazing people involved in making this possible. We are truly surrounded by a great group of people, including tour managers; labels, stylists, photographers, producers, promoters, bookers...and we feel very very fortunate to be part of a big rock n’ roll family.  Everyone involved in it - great chemistry, wanting to make great music, wanting to hit the road and rock the world and not being scared to do anything. The love we all have for music and each other drives us forward constantly."

 

"We've had a unique recording process so far. Nicole and I write the songs between our homes in LA and Phoenix, sending files back and forth electronically. Then Rikki puts down the drums by herself in a studio in LA. Then I add my guitar parts and vocals by myself in LA. Then we send all of that back to Phoenix, where Nicole records her vocals and organ and Christina's vocals and bass parts. Finally, we give the whole mess to Bob Hoag, who mixes it in Phoenix and somehow makes it into an amazing fuzzy rock record."

 

 All the raving and meyhem about the Darts is real and you need to know that these girls are going to rock your world as they not only play their instruments but attack them with a fevor.   "They better be ready for us, because we're ready to be all over it! Especially that now we are signed with Dirty Water Records, a truly great garage label in London, we are hoping we can help bring many more up-and-coming bands into the scene."

 

Yes, the Darts are putting the rock in rock and roll --an amazing band that is ready to send you into orbit with their feverish music that is fresh and energetic with a sound that will hypnotize you.

 

Just brace for what is to come warns the band...

“Sweat. Fuzz. Reverb. Legs. Screaming. Happiness.”

 

You can start at

 www.thedarts.us, which will link you to most other sites, but also iTunes, Spotify, fFacebook, Twitter, Instagram, independent record stores, independent radio stations, podcasts...