BITCH (Eng.)
– First off, thank you so much for answering this interview. Tell us a bit how do you feel right now and how has been for you and your band this half year.
WE’VE HAD SUCH GREAT SUPPORT THIS YEAR, WITH METAL BLADE RE-MASTERING “DAMNATION ALLEY/BE MY SLAVE”, MY NEW BAND LINE-UP, THE RECENT EUROPEAN TOUR, AND NOW THIS STRING OF SHOWS COMING UP AT THE END OF JULY WITH FELLOW METAL BLADE LABEL-MATES, MALICE AND HERETIC. I’M HAVING A GREAT TIME!
– I had the chance of seeing you at KIT, and I must thank you for that, as I belong to that generation that started with your firsts albums. How did fit feel for you the experience of playing KIT?
PLAYING KEEP IT TRUE WAS AMAZING. BEFORE WE PLAYED OUR SET, WE HAD AN AUTOGRAPH AND PHOTO SESSION. THE FAN TURN-OUT FOR THAT WAS AWESOME. OUR SET WENT REALLY REALLY WELL, AND THEN AFTER THAT, WALKING THROUGH THE CROWD, I COULDN’T
TAKE MORE THAN TWO STEPS WITHOUT SOMEONE WANTING AN AUTOGRAPH AND/OR A PHOTO WITH ME. I WAS TRULY FLATTERED AND HONORED.
– If I’m not mistaken, you will soon re-release «Be my Slave/Damnation Alley» and a DVD through Metal Blade. The DVD also features your show at KIT. Tell us a bit about these projects.
METAL BLADE HAS DECIDED TO RE-MASTER THE COMBINATION DAMNATION ALLEY/BE MY SLAVE RELEASE, ALONG WITH ALOT OF GREAT ‘”EXTRAS”, SUCH AS A BITCH T-SHIRT, FOOTAGE OF OUR RECENT KEEP IT TRUE PERFORMANCE, FOOTAGE OF SOME OUR OF SHOWS FROM BACK IN THE 80’S, AND BONUS TRACKS THAT WERE RECORDED BUT DIDN’T MAKE IT ONTO THE RELEASE.
– Talking about BITCH is talking about one of the Metal foundations and beginnings with feminine voice. How did this project arise? Back then during the early 80’s.
In 1980, I WAS LOOKING FOR ANOTHER MORE ROCK BAND TO SING WITH AFTER THE BAND I WAS CURRENTLY IN CHANGED THEIR STYLE FROM NEW-WAVE/ROCK TO SKA. ORIGINAL BITCH GUITARIST DAVID CARRUTH, AND DRUMMER ROBBY SETTLES HAS JUST MOVED TO CALIFORNIA FROM TEXAS AND WERE LOOKING TO START-UP A HARD ROCK/METAL BAND. THEY ORIGINALLY HAD IN MIND AN ALL-MALE BAND CALLED “BITCH”, BUT WHEN THEY ANSWERED MY AD, MET WITH ME AND HEARD MY VOCALS ON PREVIOUS RECORDINGS, THEY KNEW IT WAS A PERFECT FIT. BITCH WAS REALLY THE FIRST FEMALE-FRONTED METAL, LEATHER & STUDS BAND ON THE L.A. SCENE BACK THEN.
– Did you have always clear what you wanted to do? You had some problems with such an explicit name and those metaller shows with some sexual content.
AFTER WE CAME UP WITH SONGS SUCH AS “LIVE FOR THE WHIP” AND “BE MY SLAVE”, THE IMAGE OF THE BAND AND THE BETSY BITCH CHARACTER JUST KIND OF EVOLVED. IT WAS CONTROVERSIAL AT FIRST, BUT AS TIME WENT ON, IT BECAME LESS AND LESS TABOO – ESPECIALLY TAKING INTO CONSIDERTAION THE TONGUE-IN-CHEEK MANNER IN WHICH WE WERE DOING IT. SAME STORY FOR THE BAND NAME OF BITCH. IT WAS CONSIDERED A BIT RACY AT FIRST, BUT IS MORE OF AN ACCEPTED TERM NOW – ESPECIALLY FOR A DOMINANT WOMAN.
– Metal Blade was, so to speak, the label that brought you to fame; you did some gigs with bands as WASP, ARMORED SAINT or SLAYER. How were those shows like and what are your memories from that period?
THAT PERIOD OF THE L.A. METAL SCENE IN THE EARLY 80’S WAS SO MEMORABLE. WE HAD A BLAST PLAYING WITH OUR LABEL MATES, 
ARMORED SAINT, SLAYER, METALLICA, LIZZY BORDEN, ETC. METALLICA AND SLAYER ACTUALLY OPENED FOR US ONCE OR TWICE. WE WERE ALL ONE BIG METAL FAMILY AND THERE WAS ALWAYS A SHOW GOING ON AT SOME COOL CLUB, NO MATTER WHAT DAY OF THE WEEK IT WAS. THE AFTER-PARTIES WERE LENGENDARY AS WELL!
– Between «Be my Slave and «The Bitch is Back» were 4 years of difference. Why did it took you 4 years to brought something new?
WRITING SONGS, JUST PLAYING GIGS AS OPPOSED TO RECORDING, BASS PLAYER CHANGES, ETC. ETC. WE NEVER ACTUALLY BROKE-UP; JUST LAID LOW FOR A WHILE.
– Then, in 1988, you released an album just with your name; an album (musically) a bit different from what we were used to. Why that change and why was that your latest album?
WE CHANGED THE BAND NAME TO “BETSY” FOR ONE RELEASE, JUST TO SEE IF THE MORE MAINSTREAM BAND NAME MIGHT MAKE SOME SORT OF DIFFERENCE IN TERMS OF COMMERCIAL VIABILITY AND ACCEPTANCE, BUT IN THE LONG-RUN IT MADE NO DIFFERENCE, AND WE EVENTUALLY RETURNED TO THE ORIGINAL – AND BETTER – BAND NAME OF “BITCH”. THE “BETSY” RELEASE WAS NOT THE LAST RELEASE – IT WAS “A ROSE BY ANY OTHER NAME”, WHICH FEATURED PREVIOUSLY UN-RELEASED MATERIAL AND RE-MIXES.
– And well, since that year until you came back again to the scene; what have you been up to? Were you still involved with music or were you doing other different activities?
I’VE NEVER NOT BEEN INVOLVED WITH MUSIC. BITCH HAS ALWAYS BEEN TOGETHER, ALBEIT IN DIFFERENT PERSONNEL FORMATIONS. I WAS ALSO RECENTLY SINGING WITH L.A. 80’S METAL BAND WITCH, FILLING IN FOR THEIR ORIGINAL SINGER WHO WAS UNAVAILABLE. I
WAS SINGING WITH AN ALL-FEMALE BAND CALLED “SISTER STRANGE” WHO PLAYED SOME GIGS AND RECORDED A LITTLE BIT. I WAS HELPING OUT SOME FRIENDS WHO NEEDED A SINGER FOR THEIR AC/DC TRIBUTE BAND, ETC. ETC. JUST KEEPING MYSELF OUT THERE, MUSICALLY-SPEAKING
– And already getting into these latest years, you come back with your nom de guerre ready once again to recover the BITCH we all love; how and why did you come up again with this idea?
PRIOR TO BITCH AS IT IS NOW, MY ORIGINAL DRUMMER, (AND BROTHER-IN-LAW) ROBBY SETTLES AND I HAD PUT TOGTHER A DIFFERENT LINE UP WITH 2-GUITARS. OUR ORIGINAL GUITARIST AND FELLOW-FOUNDING-MEMBER, DAVID CARRUTH, DIDN’T WISH TO CONTINUE WITH THE BAND. WE PLAYED SOME SHOWS AS THIS LINE-UP, AND STARTED WORK ON AN UPCOMING RELEASE, BUT IT WAS AT THAT TIME THAT ROBBY CONTRACTED LEUKEMIA AND ULTIMATELY PASSED AWAY FROM IT A LITTLE OVER A YEAR AGO. I REALLY WASN’T SURE WHAT I WAS GOING TO DO AT THAT POINT. MY CURRENT BASS PLAYER, STEVE GAINES, WAS ALSO PLAYING GUITAR FOR AND FRONTING A BAND CALLED “ANGER AS ART”. HE PRESENTED THE PROSPECT OF GOING FORWARD WITH BITCH WITH HIS BAND AS MY MUSICIANS. THAT BRINGS US UP TO DATE.
– How was that come-back like? And how did you feel in the current Metal world?
I HAVE THE DISTINCT PLEASURE OF HAVING THE MOST AWESOME BAND BEHIND ME. THE OLD SONGS ARE SOUNDING BETTER THAN EVER AND WE HAVE PLANS TO GET TOGETHER EVENTUALLY ON SOME NEW MATERIAL. OUR RECENT EUROPEAN TOUR WAS AWESOME AND I COULDN’T ASK FOR A BETTER BAND TO JOIN ME IN COMPRISING THIS LATEST PHASE OF “BITCH”.
– I see there are in your band some ABBATOIR members; do you have a stable line-up or they do just accompany you?
AS I SAID, STEVE GAINES IS MY GUITAR PLAYER, AND YES – HE WAS PREVIOUSLY IN ABBATOIR. I AM HAPPY TO MAINTAIN THIS BAND LINE-UP AS LONG AS THEY WANT TO BE MY BAND. THEY’RE INCREDIBLE MUSICIANS, PERFORMERS, AND DEAR FRIENDS OF MINE. I COULDN’T ASK FOR A COOLER GROUP OF GUYS.
– We have talked about your inmediate projects but, what about the future? What are your plans for the upcoming years? Will you release something new?
WE ARE IN AGREEMENT THAT WE WOULD ALL LIKE TO RECORD TOGETHER IN THE NEAR FUTURE. RIGHT NOW WE HAVE SOME GIGS COMING UP – PARTICULARLY AT THE END OF JULY, WE HAVE THREE SHOWS IN THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AREA WITH MALICE AND HERETIC. I’M REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO THESE SHOWS.
– So nothing else form our side, that’s all, just wish you the best and hope to see you again at some show and, personally, thank you for taking a picture with me at KIT.
I WOULD LIKE TO FINISH UP BY SAYING THANKS TO THE FANS AND TO THE JOURNALISTS FOR THEIR SUPPORT, AND FOR STILL HAVING INTEREST IN BITCH. IT’S INSPIRING AND VERY AFFIRMING FOR ME AS I CONTINUE MY ROLE AS BETSY BITCH. THE BITCH IS MOST DEFINITELY BACK!
