Vivian Girls love Abba

Vivian Girls love Abba

21 July, 2011
by: Domzig

Burning down the house...

I can’t help but be a little bit in love with the Vivian Girls. With their love of obscure DIY punk bands, cutesy approach to song-writing and general aura of radness, they’re like the girlfriends everyone wishes they had.

Emerging from Brooklyn’s underground scene a few years ago with a sound that took the best bits of the Shangri-Las, Jesus and Mary Chain and Television, Vivian Girls' rise to fame was nothing less than stratospheric. Lumped in with bands like No Age, the Mae Shi and Times New Viking, there was a time when you literally couldn’t go a week without seeing some music mag singing their praises. Hell, even the normally reserved Pitchfork gave their debut album a rare 8.5/10 whilst declaring their music officially ‘kick ass’.

Since then, it’s safe to say things haven’t been plain sailing. Weathering various line-up changes, the band’s second record was considered a bit of a failure. But despite the choppy waters the Vivian Girls have powered through, and with their new album, ‘Share the Joy’, the band have moved into more experimental territories. Adding a hefty dose of American post-punk muscle to their previously dreamy shoegaze, the result is a record that throws surprises at you round every corner, from the long Wipers-inspired wig outs of ‘The Other Girls’ to the girl group-esque melodies of ‘Take It As It Comes’.

With all this in mind, I decided to ask them about the cream of '70s disco. I even surprise myself sometimes.


So we checked out the video ‘I Heard You Say’ and we reckon it has a bit of an Abba feel to it (If only for the fur coat/snow field shots). Are you guys fans of ABBA?

It's funny you say that because not too long ago my mom got really into ABBA and told me that she thought ABBA and Vivian Girls were very similar – I considered it a great compliment. So yes, we are fans of ABBA.

You guys released a new album in April. A lot of the reviews we’ve read have commented on it feeling a lot more experimental than the last one. Is this something you agree with?

Totally. We don't want to be tied to any particular style, and as a band we try to operate on a foundation of freedom. For ‘Share The Joy' we wanted to push our boundaries a little bit. But in the future it might go back in the other direction. Who knows?

There’s also a couple of longer songs on this album. Are the Vivian Girls moving towards seven-minute Wipers' ‘Youth of America’ style songs?

Yeah. Everything the Wipers did is perfect. We take a lot of examples from them.

You’ve had to change drummers twice in recent years, and most of you seem to be in other bands (Coasting and La Sera for example). Does it ever get weird having to juggle projects?

The fact that our line-up changes or our side projects are even something to be commented on is baffling to me. Literally almost every band I can think of has had at least two line-up changes (as we have) and/or a few side projects. But to answer the question: it's not usually hard at all, because our schedule as Vivian Girls is booked months in advance. So it's easy to plan around that.

What’s the worse/best thing about touring as an all-girl band? Is it like a big sleep-over all the time, or is it constant arguments over the hair dryer?

Well... none of us have ever toured in an all-male band, so it's hard to compare. It's definitely not like an all-day slumber party. Touring is hard work, but there are a lot of good times too.

OK. Quick fire round. Can you name three bands from New York everyone should be listening to?

Widowspeak, Dutch Treat, the K-Holes.

And lastly, if you had to start a Vivian Girls youth group, what qualities would you want to promote?

Freedom to do whatever you want all the time, respect for others, a childlike worldview.

Vivian Girls play XOYO tonight alongside Mazes and Veronica Falls. You can check out the new album on Spotify.

Click here for more live music in London.

Domzig