Review: Thunderpussy tracks on “Danger Diva”

Danger Diva is the story of a rock singer who allows her voice to be surgically modified (with the inevitable unexpected results), set in a futuristic Seattle that’s just around the corner. Making her cinematic debut Thunderpussy lead singer Molly Sides stars as “Devi,” who gets more than she bargained for in agreeing to the unorthodox vocal treatment.

Happily for Thunderpussy, the band themselves are featured in a few key scenes. And for those who can’t wait for a second album from the group to arrive, the recently released Danger Diva soundtrack should help to tide you over a little bit. Mind you, there’s only two Thunderpussy songs. “Takin’ You Over” is the rocker, starting out in fine form with Sides posing the pointed question, “Anybody out there still want to be human?” It’s a litany of everything that’s contributing to our current state of devolution (“Voluntary surveillance/Fake reality/Facial recognition/No such thing as free”), with Sides offering this cheery summation: “You’re all gonna die!”

“Make Me Moan,” as you might guess by the title, is one of those swampy, bluesy numbers (getting a bit wilder on the choruses) that Thunderpussy does so well. There’s also a short bit of a number called “What Are You Gonna Do?” that gets interrupted in the movie by a fracas breaking out. The rest of the album is filled out by the film’s score, written by Regan Remy. A few of her pieces (side one of the vinyl album) also feature vocals from Sides. They’re especially nice to have, giving you the chance hear Sides sing in gentler way than we’ve heard her approach her work with the Thunderpussy record, revealing that she’s a lot more than a rock ‘n’ roll screamer. Remy’s atmospheric score also holds up nicely sans visuals; “Revolting Diva” in particular gives you an idea of what happens when Devi’s enhanced voice turns out to have a mind of its own.

And when you buy the album, you get a copy of the DVD as well; such a deal! Check dangerdiva.com for more info.

 

Gillian G. Gaar

Gillian G. Gaar covers the arts, entertainment, and travel. She was a senior editor at the legendary Northwest music publication The Rocket, and has also written locally for The Seattle Times, The Stranger, and Seattle Weekly, as well as national/international outlets such as Rolling Stone, Mojo, Q, and Goldmine, among others. She has written numerous books, including She’s A Rebel: The History of Women in Rock & Roll, Entertain Us: The Rise of Nirvana, Return of the King: Elvis Presley’s Great Comeback, and World Domination: The Sub Pop Records Story. Follow @GillianGaar on Twitter.

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