Exclusive Q and A: Cherri Bomb Separate The Girls From The Boys

posted in: Exclusive InterviewsRock

Being in an all-girl rock band requires three key things: tough skin, business savvy, and, most importantly, an insane amount of talent. The four young ladies who make up alt-rock group Cherri Bomb have got all three down to a science. For Nia and Rena Lovelis, Miranda Miller, and Julia Pierce, rock stardom is just over the horizon, making it even harder to believe that their average age is just fifteen. Guided by manager Sam Maloney (drummer for Hole, Mí¶tley Crüe, and Eagles of Death Metal) this group of rock prodigies have already shared the stage with some of their idols, like My Chemical Romance and the Foo Fighters, and released a full-length album, This Is The End Of Control. We caught up with Cherri Bomb at the Mansfield, Mass. date of the Vans Warped Tour to learn more about their influences, fashion inspiration, and plans for the rest of the year. Boys, take note…this is how it’s done.

OS: You guys have made history this year. How does it feel to be the youngest all-girl band to play this tour?

JP: It feels really good because we’ve always wanted to play Warped Tour, but we didn’t know when that would ever happen. Not only because we’re young and we’re girls does that make it feel special, but also being with other bands that we look up to, that we can kind of make friends with…that’s also really cool.

OS: Are there any bands on this tour that you really love and grew up listening to?

JP: I like a lot of the bands on the line up. Sleeping With Sirens, Of Mice and Men, Falling In Reverse…

OS: Were you nervous at all to come out on this tour? It’s notorious for being a rough experience, but it can be especially scary being the only young girls on a huge tour filled with rock bands…

MM: We prepared really hard for this. We rehearsed constantly and we put the show together. We knew it was going to be hard and there’s a lot of challenges on Warped Tour, but we were so excited. There’s no room for nervousness.

OS: Tell us about working with your manager, Sam Maloney.

NL: She helps us a lot, she gives us a lot of advice. She leads us away from any potholes. She’s a great manager and she’s also a musician, so she knows a lot about both sides of the business, which is amazing.

OS: Who would you say are your biggest influences? Do all of the band members listen to the same music, or do you have a wide variety of tastes?

NL: Our musical taste is all over the place. I really like Marilyn Manson, A Perfect Circle… [Julia] likes a lot of hardcore bands. But we kind of all go everywhere, from Regina Spektor to Korn.

OS: You’ve gotten the chance to hang out and play with some of your favorite musicians like the Foo Fighters and Smashing Pumpkins. What have those experiences been like?

MM: It’s been really surreal for us, because we’ve been listening to these bands since we were born. Getting to meet them and share the stage, they’ve all been so inspiring!

OS:  Your song “Shake The Ground” is on the Avengers soundtrack. What is it like to be on the same album as Soundgarden and Bush?

JP: It’s really awesome because not only are we on just any soundtrack, it’s the Avengers soundtrack. I mean, when I found out, I screamed, I freaked out, [laughs] Because, yeah, we’re on the same CD as Soundgarden, Rise Against, Evanescence, Bush…the list goes on and on, and that movie is one of the biggest movies in the world. So it’s a big deal! It’s surreal, it’s hard for even me to believe.

OS:  You guys definitely look like rockstars already. Where do you find your clothes? Who do you look to for fashion inspiration?

MM: We all have different styles, Nia and Rena are more apocalyptic, sort of…Julia is more grunge.

JP: I get a lot of my inspiration, fashion-wise, from a lot of Tumblr blogs, actually! It’s really cool.  If only I could afford clothing like that…[laughs] But I try my best!

OS: What are your plans for the rest of the year?

MM: Right after Warped Tour, we’re going on tour with Lostprophets, and then we’re going to do U.K. Warped Tour in November

Check out the official music video for “Spin” below: