ATLRetro

Photo courtesy of The Sexual Side Effects.

Andy Warhol would have approved of the Sexual Side Effects‘ Franken-Party  this Friday Jan. 25 at the Drunken Unicorn. A rock ‘n’ roll fantasy collides with an art show. The crowd is scantily but fabulously dressed, clothes replaced by body paint. Go-go dancers twist and shake in Nancy Sinatra boots as multi-colored lights sweep across the dance floor. The epic extravaganza launches SSE’s Franken-Tour across the Southeast and Texas and also boasts Sarasota, Florida’s MeteorEYES, who are on their Winter Migration Tour, and self-proclaimed Atlanta nerd-rock band Go! Robo! Go!

The Sexual Side Effects have only been playing Atlanta for a couple of years, but to say they have taken the city and the Southeast by storm is like underestimating a thunderstorm before it starts firing up a tornado. In fact, it’s hard to imagine with all the high-voltage energy lead vocalist/guitarist Amber Taylor is channeling into the band, it won’t be long until they have the attention of the nation and the entire world, maybe even the galaxy if ETs are tuning in.

Over time, we figured some Kats would be so Kool that they had to be Kool Kat of the Week more than once, and Amber certainly qualifies in spades. Last time we chatted with her in July 2011, she was plotting a neo-glam revolution with her Gilded Trash events in Atlanta and New York. SSE still sports its glam roots in some of their sound, their audacious stage shows and encouragement to people to wear outrageous, sexy costumes to their performances, but the band has revealed itself to be much more. On the Retro side, one can see in-your-face post-punk, new wave and even psychedelic influences, and yet their approach feels right in tune to the 21st century. With a successful EP,an award-winning video, scoring “Best Local Rock Act” and “Best Band Name” in Creative Loafing‘s 2012 Best of Atlanta, sell-out shows from DC to Florida and a Franken-Tour on the horizon, we felt it was high time to catch up again with Amber to find out more about why their kick-off party in Atlanta this Friday is not to be missed and what’s up in a future so bright we imagine they’ll have to wear shades.

ATLRetro: Without giving it all away, what do you want folks to know in advance about Franken-Party?!

Amber Taylor: Franken-Party! is our new party. It started by making a silly flyer with Frankenstein partying with a couple of cold ones, and it inspired a eureka moment. We (The Sexual Side Effects) realized that one of the funnest and most successful shows we produced over the years was at My Sister’s Room in October 2011. The concept was simple – Art + Music. We played, had a couple of guest stars and bands from around town joined us on stage, had an art show, body painting, burlesque queens and tons of other fun eclectic art.

This whole experience can be summed up by the name “Franken-Party!” Pull all kinds of art into a blender – music, visual art, performance art, film, burlesque, drag, costumery, you name it. If it’s art, it has a home. I know I wasn’t supposed to give it all away, but, oh well, I guess we just slept on the first date. Don’t worry I like to make breakfast in the morning.

If Franken-Party is a rock concert, why so much art and half-nakedness? Do I have to be at least half-naked to attend?

It’s only part concert. It’s really an art-party that’s all about the people. People have to enter covering up their “naughty bits,” but if things get a little out of control, so be it! It’s not a party till someone get’s nekid!

You’ve expressed on Facebook a lot lately that you feel this is a big year for you and the Sexual Side Effects. Why now, what’s up and how does this relate to Franken-Tour?

Well, we have been working our tails off night and day over the last couple of years, and have reached a point where we have a team built to help us get more accomplished. In 2013, we have established an agent, publicist, radio promoter and are flirting with a couple of managers as well. This will enable us to put more time and energy into our art.

We hear Ryan McDougall is leaving the band. Who is replacing him and will Franken-Party being his last gig with SSE give the night a bittersweet tint?

RyGuy – which Mike the bassist affectionately coined him – is leaving the band. This will be his farewell show, and a farewell to one part of our journey as a band. It’s a positive thing though! The SSE has always had its core three members – myself, Mike Sidner [bass] and Clay McClure [drums]. We have evolved into a group that incorporates different people into it from time to time or project to project. We still have the same sound, same direction and personality, but now we just get to share the experience with more people and make it a bigger family. We may continue as a trio, or may get another guitarist. We have a couple of people we have auditioned, but either way the train will never stop until our dying days. Art is my mission in life, and it will never stop.

Photo courtesy of The Sexual Side Effects.

Looks like SSE is playing all over the South in the next two months on Franken-Tour. You’ve also played a lot of Florida dates lately. Any plans to go north of the Maxon-Dixon line?

We are going to work on the Southeast, Florida and Texas for a while. Too many bands want to go national overnight, and this is the biggest mistake they can make. The Wall of China was not built overnight; it was built brick by brick on a solid foundation. The U.S. is a big place, and every time we play a city we have to go back within two to three months. We are going to do about five rounds on tour in the Southeast and then figure out what’s next once SSE mania has spread far and wide. In other words, this shit is on!

It seems like your five-song EP HIGH MAINTENANCE and the video for “All She’ll Ever Hurt,” directed by David Joseph and the Comcast/Xfinity Video Award winner at the 2012 Georgia Music Awards, really amped things up for the band. Do you consider that a key turning point?

Well, it has helped a lot, but nothing happens over night. Art is hard work, and there is a long road to travel to get to the point where we want to be in our hearts. The video and the album are the introduction for the band to the world and they still get discovered everyday by people. Surprisingly the UK has really embraced us! As some point soon we will start touring there.

What’s been your favorite gig on this crazy trip so far?

Phasefest in Washington, DC, with Hunter Valentine, Vanity Theft and Glitterlust was one of the most magical shows I have personally felt yet. The club sold out at 300 people, and they had to turn away 200 people at the door AND it was $25 to get in! It was off the chain! I’m surprised the fire marshall didn’t shut it down. Well, at least my amp stayed cool. What an insane night; on top of that, we played the night before in Atlanta at a convention, got in the van after the show and drove straight to DC overnight. I remember being exhausted before we hit the stage, but when we plugged in, it was like a firecracker went off – for the next hour. Thank God for Red Bull! The last song we played the whole crowd was singing along – and they didn’t even know the words!

OK, since we’re ATLRetro, we always like to talk about the past as much as the future. Let’s go back to your roots. How old were you when you discovered glam music? Who was the performer, what happened and why did it appeal to you then?

Well, in all honesty about the glam thing, we have moved away from glam as a definitive title for us. Because of who and what I am, my relationship to Glitterdome  [at The Chamber] in the past, our parallel to the band Placebo, and of course, our Glam night we did called Gilded Trash, we kind of got that label in the begining. This isn’t totally fair to the listener though. We have a much different sound which is more rooted in Post-Punk, Psychedelic Space Rock, New Wave, Brit-Pop, Indie Rock and Indie Pop. Of course, there are elements of ’70s glam in what we do and our sound as well, but that is only a small part of the mixture. Of course, there is also the Joan Jett element of how I look, as well as the T-Rex-ness that gives that aura.

David Bowie, of course, was my all-time favorite. Pat Briggs from the Glitterdome was a big part of my fondness with David and glam in general. After I got to know and perform with him, I had a huge glam fetish. When the movie VELVET GOLDMINE came out, it seemed to boost that whole scene and the nostalgia of it all as well. Some people love that movie and some people hate it, but to me it is an important part of glitter fantasy that every child should have!

When we talked last year, you were talking about the Sexual Side Effects in the context of instigating a neo-glam movement. Do you still feel that’s the best term overall to classify the band is or has it progressed into something different? How do you describe your music to someone who hasn’t heard it before?

Well, we did set off down that path, but being true to the song and what has come out as an artist we found other elements and music we have drawn inspiration from. We are all about the fantasy of music, rock ‘n’ roll, and the show, but that manifests itself in new ways and new descriptions. It’s an art movement, creating musical art with no boundaries or constraints to what it is. We have come up with a new fusion of sounds that could be described as Progressive Psych Pop. The fun, charisma, and audience participation that glam has still manifests itself in who we are, but our sound is a little outside the box to perfectly fit in the neo-glam classification. We have grown a bit as artists as well which has made it morph into something new. Art in the context of the Flaming Lips is a better parallel for sight, sound, experience, inspiration for the show and audience participation.

OK, back to the future, are you recording anything else, perhaps a full CD, soon? What about more videos?

We have been writing and have a good number of songs laid out to be recorded. We plan to go back into the studio soon and record. We are hoping to have something proper released around Summer 2013.

Photo courtesy of The Sexual Side Effects.

You’ve said that “Really the next step for the band is to take our music and who we are and help change society beyond us.” That’s heavy stuff but all one has to do is look in your eyes to know you mean it. Do you have a master plan, and how can the Sexual Side Effects’ music change the world?

One person at a time. It takes a long time, but we have a whole lifetime. When a teacher has a positive life-changing effect on a student or a social worker or whoever, it’s that moment when they have a purpose greater than themselves. Music is our purpose in life. To help others, and to share it with others makes it even more amazing. It’s a universal language that connects us all, regardless of barriers.

Finally, you’re just having a helluva lot of fun, aren’t you?

Why yes! It’s been a mountain load of hard work though. I worked my fingers to the bone the last couple of years and realized I need to stop and smell the roses. So this year I have dedicated to having more fun in everything we do. I think part of having Franken-Party! is my need to throw down at an epic party, too!

If you miss Franken-Party in Atlanta, here are the preliminary dates for the Franken-Tour:

1/25 – Atlanta, GA – The Drunken Unicorn
2/7   – Knoxville, TN – Preservation Pub
2/8   – Birmingham, AL – The Nick
2/9   – New Orleans – TBA
2/10 – Houston, TX – Cactus Music In-Store
2/11 – San Antonio, TX – The Thirsty Camel
2/12 – Fort Worth, TX – Wherehouse
2/13 – Austin, TX – Parish Underground
2/14 – Houston, TX – Mango’s
2/15 – Baton Rouge – The Library (ex. North gate tav)
2/16 – Mobile, AL – Alabama Music Box
2/28 – Nashville, TN – 12th + Porter
3/1   – Cookeville, TN – Miracle Mountain Farms
3/7   – Carrollton, GA – The Alley Cat
3/23 – Asheville, NC – Boiler Room
3/24 – Charlotte, NC – The Saloon

More Dates TBA. Check the Sexual Side Effects’ Website  and like their Facebook page for updates.

Friday, July 22

Dig out the glitter bodysuit and platform heels and get yourself down to The Masquerade for Gilded Trash, a glam rock theme party to be remembered featuring live music from The Sexual Side Effects, The Unsatisfied and Starbolt 9; classic hits from T. Rex & Bowie to Iggy & Eno; burlesque by The Chameleon Queen; the scandalous banter of Dax Exclamationpoint!; foot-pounding grooves by Glitterdome‘s DJ Tiny Tears; body-painting; gilded go-go dancers, glam-inspired art by Chris Buxbaum; glam-orous vendors; and much more. Get a sneak preview from Kool Kat of the Week Amber Taylor, show mastermind and vocalist/guitarist for The Sexual Side Effects here.

The Stumblers make it a rockabilly/Southern roots night in The Basement at Graveyard Tavern in East Atlanta. Read ATLRetro’s Extra Kool Kat of the Week interview with lead singer/rhythm guitarist Keith Martin here. Eighties multi-platinum heavy metal band Dokken rocks Wild Bill’s in Duluth. Country chanteuse Emmylou Harris plays Concerts in the Garden at the Atlanta Botanical Garden. Rod Hamdallah is at Fat Matt’s. Callanwolde‘s popular Tango Night is back including introductory lessons in the sexy Argentine version from Tango Rio‘s expert instructors at 8 p.m., followed by an open tango dance party at 9:15 p.m. Catch an IMAX movie and dance to soulful jazz standards performed by The Kayla Taylor Quartet at Fernbank Museum of Natural History’s Martinis and IMAX. And last but not least, the wacky cast of Cineprov! bait and tackle Humanoids of the Deep, a sensationally schlocky 1980 horror flick about half-man/half-fish mutations starring then-hottie Doug McClure, at 8 p.m. at Relapse Theatre. Free admission if you wear a bathing suit!

Last but not least, a high school ritual gets an undead makeover in a ‘50s setting in ZOMBIE PROM, this weekend only at Fabrefaction Theatre. The girl-loves-ghoul rock ‘n’ roll off-Broadway musical is fun for the entire family and performed by actual high school students as the culmination of a two-week theatre education program. The opening night show is at 8 p.m., and additional performances are at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Sat. and 3 p.m. on Sun.

Saturday July 23

What’s that, Artie? A steampunk theme night with a Wild West twist? That’s the wild, wild premise behind The Artifice Club‘s Weird West Saloon, at The Solarium in Oakhurst. The frontier-inspired festivities begin at 5 p.m. with a Trading Post Market, with doors opening officially at 7 p.m. and entertainment lasting to midnight culiminating in an after-party at McGowan’s Oakhurst Pub. There will be gambling and a quick draw tournament to benefit the Dream Power Therapeutic Equestrian Center, and featured acts included Blair Crimmins and the Hookers (read an ATLRetro interview with Blair about this ’20s-ragtime-inspired band here), DJs Swivel and Doctor Q, emcee and sheriff comedienne Sabrina Pandora and a bevy of burlesque beauties…er sexy saloon dancing girls including, Fonda Lingue, Ruby Redmayne, Tupelo Honey and Talloolah Love, who treats you lucky ATLRetro readers to an exclusive preview here.

Americana classic Dex Romweber and sister Sara throw a party mix of originals and obscure nuggets from rock n roll’s dusty closets at the Star Bar for the release of the Dex Romweber Duo‘s latest album, IS THAT YOU IN THE BLUE. It only gets better with local rockabilly faves The Blacktop Rockets, classic rock-inspired The Booze and Chattanooga-based garage rock band The Bohannons also on the bill.

Meanwhile over at the Plaza, Blast-Off Burlesque are throwing a BEACH PARTY tonight for their third Taboo La-La sin-sational film series. Much more than a rare chance to see the classic 1963 frolic with Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello in 35mm on the big-screen, there’s a zany and sexy preshow featuring special guests Grinder Nova and The Chameleon Queen as the float-tastic Alotta Wood, as well as a Twist-Off Contest, a Hula Hoop Contest, and Twister games and beach party-inspired cupcakes from Atlanta’s own The Sugar Dolls, who were kind enough to serve up a tasty sneak preview of the treats they’ll be bringing here.

Eighties hit makers Huey Lewis and the News try to take you Back in Time to when it was Hip to Be Square at Classic Chastain. Capitol City Opera players sing Broadway standards in ON THE LIGHT SIDE, a themed night of lighter music that has become a 20-year tradition at the vintage Callanwolde mansion. The Reverb-O-Rockets deliver Chicago style-blues “straight, no chaser” at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack. And of course, DJ Romeo Cologne transforms the sensationally seedy Clermont Loungeinto a ’70s disco/funk inferno late into the wee hours.

Sunday July 24

Alick Gerard & the Dixie LTD play blues “dunch” between 1 and 4 PM at The Earl. Learn Beginning Vintage Hair Styling from award winning pin-up girl D’lilah D’lite from 1 to 3 p.m. at SpinARella Pole/Dance/Fitness. The class is part of the Syrens of the South‘s ABCs & 123s of Burlesque Class Series. GET DELICIOUS AGAIN at 8 p.m. at the Plaza Theatre as Jim Stacy (Palookaville, Starlight Drive-In, AM Gold, Greasepaint, etc.)  samples Atlanta’s Asian eateries in the latest installment of his unconventional culinary series serving up Atlanta’s Hidden Restaurant Treasures. If you can’t make thisFREE screening with special foodie guests, tune in or set your DVR to PBA 30 also at 8 p.m. Nature is Dangerous and It will Hurt You: A Benefit for Jessica Miller features some a great line-up of local blues and rockabilly bands, beer specials, Fat Matt‘s BBQ, raffle prizes and more from 2:30 p.m. to late at Blind Willie’s, including Bill Sheffield, Rocksploitation, Nat King Coal Miners, Bob Page and Co., The Shadows, Rod Hamdallah, Joe McGuiness Trio, The Electromatics, and The Stooge Brothers. Blair Crimmins and the Hookers headline Unplugged in the Park at the Park Tavern.

Ongoing

The latest revival of Tony Award-winning musical FIDDLER ON THE ROOF is at The Fabulous Fox through Sunday June 24.

VIDAL SASSOON: THE MOVIE not only chronicles the life of the rock star hairdresser/artist but also features lots of ’60s/’70s fashions and hair styles. Playing through Sun. July 31 at Cinefest.

At the High, RADCLIFFE BAILEY: MEMORY AS MEDICINE, the most comprehensive exhibition of the Atlanta artist’s works to date, opened last Sunday June 26 and runsthrough Sept. 11. Read more about the artist and this powerful exhibition that in last week’s Kool Kat. JOHN MARIN’S WATERCOLORS: A MEDIUM FOR MODERNISM, a companion exhibit also at the High this summer through Sept. 11, surveys the work of the man named America’s number one artist in a 1948 LOOK magazine survey. While his name is not a household one today, this exhibition reminds us of his important place in the modernist movement and why watercolors became such a powerful instrument for avante-garde art in the hands of him and other artists in the Stieglitz Circle,including Georgia O’Keefe.

MODERN BY DESIGN, the High‘s other Retro exhibition, celebrates three key moments in modern design and also the Museum of Modern Art, New York‘s (MOMA) collection history. The works on loan from MOMA cover “Machine Art” (1934), “Good Design” (1950-55) and “Italy: The New Domestic Landscape” (1972), with the latter addressing modernism in the context of 1960s and ’70s counterculture.

The Museum of Design Atlanta (MODA)‘s newest exhibit WaterDream: The Evolution of Bathroom Design, runs through Sept. 24 in the dynamic new Midtown space. Displays take visitors through a four-part journey into the bathroom from the birth of minimalist aesthetics in 20th century design to current concepts.

Get a rare chance to view original manuscript pages from the last four chapters of ATLANTA’S BOOK: THE LOST GONE WITH THE WIND MANUSCRIPTat the Atlanta History Center. The new exhibit, which opens today and runs through Sept. 5, is part of a series of activities celebrating the 75th anniversary of the publication of the international bestseller and also includes foreign and first edition copies, the desk Margaret Mitchell used while writing it and select images.

Tune back in on Friday for Weekend Update. If you know of a cool happening that we’ve missed, send suggestions to ATLRetro@gmail.com