Drama - vocalist
Pep - bass ("bassorama")
Raina - bass
Crash - drums
In a world that witnessed the monstrous rise of Celine Dion's Titanic hit, "My Heart Will Go On", one Los Angeles based band have dared to recapture the songs magic pop/punk style.
Tainting the sacred tune with humour might have aroused protesters, but the only protesting came in the form of college radio listeners calling to request the reincarnated song. The frisky foursome has started with an iceberg crash and is determined to keep fans with the release of their new indie 6 song CD, with no guitars in sight.
Switchblade Kittens is a three girl, one guy band with 2 bass players, a drummer and a vocalist. It was actually, Drama, the singer who came up with the concept of a double bass band after a bad band break-up with the former lead guitarist in her last band.
"I just thought, I can't take one more band where the lead guitarist feels that because she plays guitar, her guitar should dominate the whole band in every song. It is like the whole ego problem is attached to the 'lead guitarist' label," stated Drama.
Drama formed Switchblade Kittens with Pep, (the token male) a bass player from Miami, who was the only person open minded enough to try the idea Drama envisioned for a new bass. Pep plays the bass ("bassorama") which "secret formula" is to run the bass through an effects processor that creates a driving sound that some fans mistake for a guitar.
The other half of the duel bass guitars and the second cause for attention is Switchblade Kittens bass player, Raina. Raina plays the traditional bass that joins with the bassorama to create the unique sound of the kittens.
Pep explains how he met Raina:
"It was odd. She was just sitting there playing bass in the rain oblivious to the world around her. Apparently, her car broke down and she was waiting for someone to pick her up. So while she waited she just took out her bass and started playing it on a bench in the rain."
Drama and Pep walked up to her and explained that they had just lost their bass player and asked her to join Switchblade Kittens. Not a scaredy cat, the strange girl on the bench agreed to join, and from that day the girl was known as Raina (the female form of rain). With the addition of a bass player the band had a two bass combo like no other band.
The new sound of the pair of basses impressed the makers of ARIA basses. The company gave Switchblade Kittens an endorsement deal complete with a bass specially made for the unusual sounds of the bassorama. The Kittens are the top band in ARIAs promotional campaign and are featured in the international ARIA ad that is printed in publications such as Guitar One and Guitar World Magazine. At the NAMM (North American Music Merchandisers conference) Switchblade Kittens signed autographs for fans that came from as far away as Japan to see them. This ARIA endorsement has helped the Kittens shed some fur, to leave their mark around the globe.