baD WAITRESS
Bad Waitress is a fierce and playful punk rock slap to the face comprised of four young Toronto women. It isn't just a coincidence that they're all women either: vocalist/guitarist Kali-Ann Butala moved to Toronto from the Northwest Territories five years specifically with the desire to play with other women. The band’s May 2017 EP, Doll Creatures of the Valley, which was mixed and mastered by Kali-Ann, plays along this theme in a cheeky and subversive way, with the biting “We’re Girls,” (“We’re girls/We’re here/We’re ready to fight”) to the witchy chanting of “Devil’s Vagina,” and the EP’s titular track, “Doll Creatures of the Valley,” which begins with eerie, doll-like voices before the heavy guitar takes over.
But it would be wrong to pigeonhole the artists-formerly-known-as-Nude-Dogs as just girl punk. Their influences may include such punk stalwarts as Fugazi and Gang of Four, with comparisons to acts like 7 Year Bitch and Babes in Toyland, but there’s something a little extra mixed in there, too. Butala’s Howlin’ Wolf tattoo is what she and guitarist Katelyn Molgard initially bonded over. The whole band – rounded out by drummer Eva Moon and bassist Jessica Maxwell – describe themselves as inseparable, and the enjoyment they have from making music together is certainly palpable. Their live shows are vicious and fun, regularly self-booked, and maybe best characterized by the direct missive from their song “Fuck This,” which opens with the chant: “F-U-C-K/What’s the words we wanna say” before launching into the song at full force. The band’s contagious energy would get the point across anyway, but the track is a short, but not very sweet, mission statement: “I just wanna say/Fuck This.”
With a planned release of April 2018, Bad Waitress’ new EP, Party Bangers: Volume 1, moves away from the different vibes of Doll Creatures and into a heavier, party-focused sound, resting on a commitment keep having fun as loudly and rowdily as possible. – Elena Cremonese