Spinner Right Round: What's Up With Spinnerette's Brody Dalle
June 22nd, 2009
It’s been six years since Brody Dalle put out an album, but tonight the former Distillers frontwoman (and wife of Queens of the Stone Age singer Josh Homme) will hit the Bowery Ballroom with her new band Spinnerette. (The excellent Band of Skulls and Gay Blades are opening and worth showing up early for.)
Touring in support of its self-titled album, released earlier this month, Spinnerette capitalizes on Dalle’s trademark husky howl, but is more polished than punk. New York Press’ Rebecca Wallace spoke to Dalle about the new band, motherhood and Twitter.
So what do you like most about being in the City?
The food. My friends are here, so my friends who I never get to see. But everyone moved out of out of Manhattan to Brooklyn. Also, the 24-hour “Blade Runner”-esque feeling that you get you go to New York.
And this is your first American tour with Spinnerette—what sort of reception are you expecting?
And this is your first American tour with Spinnerette—what sort of reception are you expecting?
So far, so good. We played three shows already [that] went very well. Good reception so far [and] I’m expecting more good weather.
How does Spinnerette differ from the Distillers?
How does Spinnerette differ from the Distillers?
I think it’s more musical, I think it’s more tonal—I think sometimes it’s heavier.
Do you think it will appeal to the same crowd?
Do you think it will appeal to the same crowd?
No, probably not. Some of the kids have crossed over with it; some of them like it because they’re older. You know they’re five or six years older than when Coral Fang came out so they seem to have a little bit more of an eclectic taste. But some kids aren’t… it’s a really strong reaction, they either love it or hate it.
I read that you don’t consider Spinnerette a band, it’s you and other various musicians… do you think you will be the only constant in the line-up as it changes?
I read that you don’t consider Spinnerette a band, it’s you and other various musicians… do you think you will be the only constant in the line-up as it changes?
No, when I said that I really meant the live band, not the recording band. There are two bands, the recording band, which is myself and Alain Johannes and Tony [Bevilacqua], and then there is the live band that is full of musicians that are fantastic right now that I adore. It’s just going so well there’s no need to change anything.
What I mean by that is with the Distillers there were so many incarnations, there was so much heartbreak, I don’t want to go through that again. I’d rather keep it lighter so that people understand that they can’t come and go as they please, and if it’s not working out for me with a certain person then... I try not to take it too seriously because it’s so silly. I think I’m just protecting myself and protecting my bandmates as well.
There have been a lot of personal extremes in your life since Coral Fang—raising a daughter, your father passing away…how do you think that’s affected your music?
What I mean by that is with the Distillers there were so many incarnations, there was so much heartbreak, I don’t want to go through that again. I’d rather keep it lighter so that people understand that they can’t come and go as they please, and if it’s not working out for me with a certain person then... I try not to take it too seriously because it’s so silly. I think I’m just protecting myself and protecting my bandmates as well.
There have been a lot of personal extremes in your life since Coral Fang—raising a daughter, your father passing away…how do you think that’s affected your music?
It’s silly talking about it because it’s monumental. They affect your life in such surprising ways. You know, words just seem so frivolous when you talk about the death of someone you love or the birth of someone who changed your life. It’s monumental. My music is definitely affected by those experiences for sure.
Going back to the here and now, how do you think the recession will affect Spinnerette’s concerts and album sales?
Going back to the here and now, how do you think the recession will affect Spinnerette’s concerts and album sales?
I think we’re doing pretty well right now—Bowery Ballroom is sold out. That’s where the Distillers played, so I am not too worried. I know nobody’s selling 100,000 records these days, so if we sell 5,000 or 20,000 or 200,000…I’m going to keep playing music, pushing records out. The market is much smaller.
With this band, there are electronic releases and pages on social networking sites—stuff that wasn’t around to the same extent when your last record came out. How are you dealing with that stuff?
I was really adamant about doing some of this. Twitter, I really didn’t want to do, and I put it off for a really long time—and then people insisted and so now I complied. I don’t mind doing that; it’s pretty funny to read other peoples posts as well. It’s one of the only stable mediums right now to get your stuff out there. I kind of have a love-hate relationship with the Internet because you can go in there and have such a wealth of information. You have to be careful about that wealth of information though. You don’t really have a choice.