According to Stereogum.com, Bonnie Bloomgarden, who is leader of the Los Angeles psychedelic rockers Death Valley Girls, recently lost her Altadena home in the California wildfires. That loss, along with the death of her dog Tommy, formed Death Valley Girls‘ upcoming album, Welcome To Earth. We already heard the excellent lead single, “Message From The Venus Flower.” The band’s new song is a bright and emotional synth-garage bop about realizing how happy you are to have someone out of your life.
Death Valley Girls have always used mysticism, occult imagery and cosmic language as tools for thinking about real emotional life. Here, however, the spiritual dimension is grounded in something remarkably practical: learning how not to give your power away. Musically, “Basic Witch” retains the band’s exuberant psych-rock pulse while carrying more muscle than much of their previous work. The ditty features Seth Bogart and pushes forward with the kind of chant-ready energy that has always made Death Valley Girls feel more communal than confrontational. Even when the subject matter is difficult, the band rarely sounds defeated.
Photo Credit: Mauricio Alvarado
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