Whoredrobe Reveal Themselves With Punk Rock Attitude
Photo Credit: Daniel Takacs - www.danielscameraroll.com - IG: @daniels.camera.roll
You better remember Montreal punk group Whoredrobe, consisting of Tara Cohen, Magali Demers, Julia Hill and Natty Filth, because their punk rock attitude is here to stay.
Entering 2024 with a debut EP under the belt, titled Mirror Games, the band are on the rise with no signs of stopping now. From the origins of lead single “Dead Girl” to the music they listen to when they need a moment of inspiration - we cover it all in our latest interview with Whoredrobe who’s sneering headbanging tracks left us with a lasting impression.
REVERIE: Hi Whoredrobe! We’d love to know where the name for the band came from?
Nat: The name was just something catchy that I’d come up with while spitballing ideas for a different band. Whoredrobe can mean many things; it might make you think of a sexy, skimpy, lingerie-style outfit, or a closet full of fishnet & lace. But that’s a bit of a trap - we’re sort of questioning whether you can really even say that something you wear makes you a “whore.” It seems like men/people with patriarchal values are quick to call you a whore if you wear something revealing, but also we know and have heard women be called whores or be reduced to that “slur” regardless of what they wear. We’re sex positive and believe sex work is valid and that the people who do it are not less-than because of it. So we’re reclaiming the word, reclaiming women’s sexuality, and at the same time kind of saying it doesn’t matter what you wear at all, people are going to say what they say and think what they think. It’s just about the way you look at the world.
REVERIE: Can you share the origin story of the band?
Julia: Natasha and I have known each other for a while since Natasha used to date my cousin. I was also roommates with Tara’s girlfriend, so I met Tara hanging around my apartment and knew she was a killer guitar player. Then, me and Natasha signed up for a lotto band show at Turbo Haus, where you pick names out of a hat and get assigned to form a band for one month. At the end of the month there was a show. Natasha and I met Magali there since her partner at the time was in my band.
Nat: When Julia heard the word “Whoredrobe,” she decided a band by that name had to be formed. And of course it had to be an all-woman punk band. She reeled in Tara and Magali for guitar and drums (at that time she’d only jammed with each of them once or twice).
Tara: Ya, what Nat said. Julia messaged me one morning saying she wanted to form a band around the name Whoredrobe. She asked if I wanted to play guitar in the band, and I actually got the message the day my previous band split up, so the timing was perfect.
Magali: I met Julia one fateful night at that lotto band show at Turbo Haus. At this time, I was only starting to learn drums and she asked me to play in this band! I was hesitant at first because I didn’t think I’d be able to play that well, but I did say yes, and here we are.
REVERIE: Congratulations on the killer new EP Mirror Games! Are there any themes or inspirations that influenced the release?
Magali: Personally I feel that this EP orbits a lot around the theme of bashing any self doubt.. Writing songs for this EP plus also learning to play the drums at 30 years old, was all about pushing further, not led by fear, and seeing what I and we really could create. It’s uncomfortable at times. It’s about vulnerability and change.
Julia: For me, the record really feels like a cross between seriousness and unseriousness. It’s all about like, taking feminine rage that we feel for real issues to a place of incredulity. I was definitely inspired by Otoboke Beaver when writing a couple of the songs, but the main inspiration for us is usually a cross of feminine rage and like horror fantasy.
Nat: These songs, to me, are also about calling out power tripping in relationships (Mirror Games, No Idea), people or systems that feel entitled to our bodies (Riot Kissing, Family Planning), and empowerment through bodily autonomy (Family Planning, Slut Prayer). Julia came up with the bass line and name for “Dead Girl,” and had an idea to make it about an autopsy. But when I wrote the lyrics, I actually based them on a story I’d recently heard about a local girl back home (in the States). She was someone who had been really struggling, and one day made a thoughtless decision that tragically ended her life. I never knew her, but I heard that she was pretty punk. I know that, like us, many of the folks that come to our shows maybe have struggled or do struggle with mental health. While the song is written and sung in a sort of accusatory tone, I have all the sympathy in the world for the youth that we lose daily to a lack of mental health support. I wanted to write an anthem about why it's important to not lose your life to something kind of negligent, or to self-neglect. I decided to pair the punchy riffs in this song with lyrics that are just as punchy. Sort of inspired by Danny Elfman’s lyricism in Oingo Boingo, actually, I wanted to take a macabre topic and infuse it with some spark of life, and even humor. It's a different way to talk about death, which I like.
REVERIE: Why did you pick “Dead Girl” as the lead single (other than the fact that it RIPS!!!)
Magali: Yeah, I think we wanted to release something and “Dead Girl” was our freshest song. And it does slap, we love that tune.
Tara: That one just came together pretty quickly! I also feel like it really encompasses our sound, and it's quick and catchy which works great for a single.
Julia: I think picking “Dead Girl” for the single was like a way for us to just pick a single. When mixing, we had like 3 songs that were done and three that needed another couple tweaks before they were ready, and we did want to pick a single so we went with “Dead Girl.” I think all of the songs are really strong so it was sorta random.
REVERIE: We love that you are shredding it up and bringing the riot grrrrl sound to Montreal. Are there any artists you've been listening to or local loves that you’d like to shout out?
Tara: I’ve been listening to a lot of Scowl, Code Orange, The Distillers. Shoutout to Media Diet from Montreal!!!
Nat: Otoboke Beaver, Lingua Ignota, Show Me The Body, Light Asylum, GHÖSH (now defunct, sadly, but used to be based in Philly, and I went to school with the vocalist, Symphony. Big shoutout to her for being a big-sis kind of creative role model when we were younger!!). Shoutout to local acts Glowing Orb, Fresh Wax, Kennedy, Truck Violence.. The list of talented people in this city could go on and on!
Julia: Poolgirl (I work with the lead singer, Miranda, and we have been friends for some time), Lucy’s Delirium, Birds of Prey, Marontate (self plug lol), OOOH NOOO (I’m just rattling off a list of friends at this point) The SAD etc.
Magali: Shout out Scarlet Wives! And Jetsam, we toured with them last summer and that was a rad time. Cold Authority, Family Man, No Waves; congrats on playing Osheaga this year… Shoutouts to all our musical friends out there <3
REVERIE: What’s next for Whoredrobe? Tour? Summer festivals? MORE new music because we can't get enough?
Magali: No next tour in sight yet. I think this year will be centered more on songwriting.
Tara: We’ve been working on a bunch of new songs, although I think we wanna get back to playing more shows before we go back in to record. We have shows lined up monthly until the summer, so come out and you might hear some new stuff!
Julia: We are playing Pouzza Fest in Montreal in May, that’s the next thing for sure. We are thinking about taking some more time off after May to write another project.