Wowzah! It's been some wild times over here in camp DVX. We just completed our new EP as a part of our kickstarter campaign to make 2013 an unstoppable year (figuratively speaking of course, the year probably won't care to stop no matter what happens to us...)!
We played an amazing and wonderful show at the Crocodile with Land Of Pines and Chaos Chaos, we are playing again at Chop Suey with Yevtushenko on Dec. 20th, and a big ol' Birthday (mine) and Kickstarter Success (hopefully) show on January 4th at the Mix with Station to Station. I could try and wax on about a lot of other arbitrary things and details, but instead I think you should just watch our video to see what's on the hotplate :D
I have been fairly out of commission for a week now... It has been a long time since a cold has grabbed ahold of me so viciously. But then again, I probably needed some of the "rest". Our Dia De Los Muertos show was fun. So was the Free Pussy Riot benefit we played. I think my mind is still blunted from this epic illness though, because try as I might, I am barely even able to string these sentences together, let alone make them witty or interesting...
So I will just be dull and frank about the upcoming events and happenings in the land of DVX. We are releasing a collection of songs (which was supposed to drop this week, but then I got sick...) in tandem with campaign for music video moolah. We are playing a big show at the Crocodile on Dec. 2nd - http://thecrocodile.com/events/6428730/chaos-chaos-dion-vox - And yeah... I really need to drink a cup of coffee or something and then get back to where my mind used to be...
But here is a fun photo of our hostess from D of D party and myself. She had the best costume and makeup of anyone in the show I think...
Happy Friday, and hopefully I'll be back soon, with all of my missing abilities ;)
What a delightful if not wild whirlwind we have been in this last week. Our good friend James from the UK has been in town and staying with us. He was even so kind (and fun) as to write a new song with us yesterday and to record some sitar on it for us :) We have also added some Paul to the mix. We now have a Paul on bass, Scobra now hitting his guitar strings, and a Paul on drums. Our first full band rehearsal is in a few days, and then the unveiling of said new outfit will be at our show on October 1st at the Fun House. Which-btw- is closing at the end of October. So for all of you Seattle punk rock fans, come out come out wherever you are, before it is too late!
In other news, we are coming around the corner towards finishing our second album, and starting our plans for an east coast / midwest tour this spring with our sound sister Niki Avataria. I am getting very excited about that!
And last but not least, here's a little video we shot probably about 2 years ago, but never had the chance to release. Here she is:
It's over, I think. Summer that is. And with it, I am wrapping up the film Ghostlight, my season of canning blueberry jam is done, we are in the midst of another round of new songs for the next album. And all the while, we continue to play shows. This thursday we play at The Can Can, October first at the Funhouse, and then Nov. 2nd we are throwing our big annual Dia De Los Muertos extravaganza at the Rendezvous... And since I am still wearing these crazy long fingernails from the movie, typing is not my forte at the moment. So instead, I'll just post some fun pics from the summer :)
I should probably explain all of this, but instead, I think you should all write a fictional caption in your mind... You'll probably like it better than mine anyhow ;)
Our show last night at The Mix with Mothrider and Terabyte and the Battery Eaters was AWESOME! And to top it off, our good friend Kiliii Fish was kind enough to do a beautiful job capturing some of it on camera. So I have to share all three videos.
Next up: Our show on wednesday at the Rendezvous Jewelbox Theatre with RavenmusiK.
I just finished recording vocals on a new song called Rain Beats Down, as well as another cool song without a title yet. Long story short, I am thick in music-making mode. I even got to record a song for the film that I am working on! But in other news, we have amazing shows coming up, and recently past. Below is a video from our first show with Kiliii Fish in his new musical project RavenmusiK.
We have also been doing a lot of recording with some cool cats at the Basement Sessions. The album from last summer is about to have a limited release on vinyl, so stay tuned on that front.
OH! and I almost forgot one of the coolest recent things: The poster for our show at the MIX this Friday night. Check it out :)
How and where do I even start? Since realizing that my last post was from Texas... And I am very much back in the NW at the present... And naturally, ever so much has gone on! So I'll attempt some chronological ditties for you to peruse.
Recap is that we released our album Alien Music For Humans and it can be downloaded at any price HERE. We also got some pretty rad reviews from SXSW where I was called a dominatrix a lot (I'm wondering if I blinded them with my catsuit powers...) and one guy said that I should be on the Mighty Boosh, which after looking it up, I find to be a great idea! ;)
Upon our return to Seattle, we played some delightful shows, and I have honestly had a portion of my head buried in the sands of bills, dishes, writing, and so forth. I am also now doing a nice little side job at my folks new nightclub, The Royal Room.
Then there is the fact that I am in full on preproduction for a film I'm in. So lots of studying, character work, oh, and I have black hair and LONG acrylic RED nails... If only you could hear the clicks as I type this ;) I am recording a song for it on Saturday, and will have a photo shoot for some of the props needed as well.
AND last but not least, Scobra and I have been working on a host of new material for our next album. I have been in the studio every day. Writing, charting out melodies, playing instruments, singing. I am starting to wonder if this music business will be my greatest obstacle. The difficulty being that I find it increasingly difficult to remove myself from the studio to do anything else....
Quality problems :D
xo.
and I promise to write more, especially when the 'CLICK' factor of my nails goes down. It's actually really hard to type like this. Props to the gals at my DMV...
On the road. All of our computers are dying on us. But it is a grand adventure to be sure :) And we totally killed in on the SPIN stage on Friday. But the power to this laptop is packed way too deep in the car, so I will keep this short for now. Here's a link to a little blog we did for Popchips, and you'll be seeing some video within a few days as well.
Well, it has been both a glorious and hellish last few weeks. We have wrapped up the Album (and if you want to know the title, watch the interview below). And we are now huddled around the kitchen table making our final preparations to leave on tour down to SXSW and up the West Coast.
To be honest, all of the odds and circumstances have stacked against us. Yet we have persevered with a good heart, and our guardian angels of sorts have been with us as well. I can't wait to finish tying up the last loose threads of this production, and to hit the road!!! :) Below is a nice little link to an interview I did earlier this week that should be able to fill you in just a bit more...
The wildness of the final phase of production is now fully upon us! It is absolutely amazing how intense the energy and work is right now. But I'm truly working on distilling something essential from this crucible of creativity. And I'm not the only one working on it either! I feel nearly bewildered (gotta throw another wild in there somehow...) by how many people we have helping us out. I have never even met half of these people personally (yet), and still they are putting in some REAL elbow grease - showing us some real LOVE.
It has also been quite the journey over this last week, to really reflect on all of this. What was I doing 4 years ago? Three years? One year? The grinding work, and the labor of love that we have invested directly into this project has been immense. And in any given moment, it usually just feels like what it is: moving a mountain with a teaspoon. Entirely possible, incredibly improbably, and without a doubt it is an epic journey that has never left me with regret. But for me, I took the two rules literally - move mountain - with teaspoons - and realized that beyond that, THERE ARE NO RULES. So it has been a very interesting perspective to see just how much we have accomplished, and even stranger to see what sort of shape it has all taken. These are probably vague fancy words to try to describe the fact that I am amazed and mind-blown as well as the feeling that a mountain of pressure/weight/circumstances could collapse on my at any moment. And who knows how good or bad it's all going to be. I for one, however, feel grand. I feel like I have my own two feet on the ground, and I am taking them exactly where I want them to be!
Scobra deserves a HUGE SHOUT OUT right now, because he has been putting in brutally long days of music production, and mixing. And we have had some of our worst, craziest, most inexplicable, and heart-wrenching brick walls in our path - especially in the tech. realm... Scobraham-Lincolns realm (oh yeah! Happy prez day to you all). So he has really been holding out like a proper member of the kriegsmarine in Das Boot, and not succumbing to the pressure.
Please like our new FB page BTW: http://www.facebook.com/Dionvox
On an entirely different note, I am happy to tell you that I am going to see Die Antwoord tonight. Haven't been to a big fun show in ages, and am looking forward to dancing my hiney off ;)
Wow! So much has gone on over these last few months! And I have been terribly remiss in posting anything on here. It seems as though the world is changing a mile a minute these days, and to be quite honest, I have been caught up in the whirlwind of it all. So first off, we are now DIONVOX, not Ramona The Band. This is a bit of a transition period, as we are working on moving over all of our sites, and getting the word out. On Friday, we will play our first show as DIONVOX (see details here) and on Saturday, we will play our last show as Ramona The Band for the 2nd annual February Freak Fest.
In other news, we are featured in the first issue of a new magazine called NW Prodigys. In fact, I'm on the dang cover!! Check it out: This is what I look like on an ipad ;)
And in other creative news, we did a crazy-awesome photoshoot with Kiliii Fish where we built a giant spider web (entirely out of 2x4 and packing tape). Kiliii took a time lapse of the building process and made a little video. Here it is:
OK! I've got to keep working on our shows now. But just so's ya know~ Scobra is in the studio as I type, putting the final mix on our album. We will release the newbie album, and tour down to Austin and back in March. Next post will include the tour schedule! :D
Ramona The Band (RTB) is founded upon no fear, and no regret. Energized by front-woman Dion Vox, and synergized by the beats of Scobra, RTB continues to paint the town red until we reside in a ruby city.
