Double Duchess Takes To The PrideFest Mural Stage…Kendall Finds Out The Nitty & The Gritty

Double Duchess take to the Mural Stage at Seattle PrideFest 2013, this Sunday, June 30 at Seattle Center!

Sigh.  My last interview before Seattle PrideFest.  Always a bittersweet time when all the work is coming together, all the deadlines looming, all the excitement brewing, and, BOOM!  It’s gonna be over before we know it!  

Saved this interview for last.  Love me some Double Duchess!  They are absolutely, positively, FIERCE.  Made up of band members Krylon and DavO, these two are on FIYAH.  Tearing up the queer scene all across the country the last couple of years, Double Duchess has been keeping busy with an extensive tour schedule and the release of a new single and video a couple months back (“Deviant”).

My first exposure to them live was at our (Qulture Qreative) parties in Palm Springs this last year.  It might have been a few too many trips to the bar, but I can swear that Krylon did the death drop. Right there in the dirt, fires burning all around her!  I know this probably sounds like some psychedelic trip, but trust me, you had to be there.  It happened!

Double Duchess are edgy, charismatic, and, well, if you haven’t already caught them on one of their trips through town this last year, you’re just gonna have to come down to the Mural Stage at Seattle PrideFest this Sunday and see what all the commotion is about.  …and if you have seen them before, I know exactly why I’ll see you there!

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L.A. Kendall: You both have careers and experience before Double Duchess, yes?

Double Duchess: Yes- Krylon, while living in NYC, was a Club kid and in the vogue scene in the 90’s before moving to Berlin to do more performance art events and shows. DavO co-fronted a live hip-hop/rock/funk act on the East Coast (Baltimore/Annapolis) that toured heavily and has also had lots of production and DJ experience.

LAK: How did Double Duchess come to be? Give me the “Behind The Music” biopic….

DD: We had recently met through a mutual friend, and one day we were driving across the Golden Gate Bridge and somebody cut us off. We both got really sassy together, and later that day embodied that spirit over a track that DavO had been kicking around. We starting creating together very organically.  People just started saying  “you guys are gonna make more songs right”? So we did.

LAK: Last year you released your debut EP “Hey Girl”. What has the response been like?

DD: People really love the energy and rawness of the EP. It’s fun but not too funny. It’s a great entry release for us. Really upbeat and balls to the wall (if you will).

LAK: What would you say influences your music?

DD: I’d say queer life in general.  We have different challenges, realities, and social expectations than heteros do- so often times we are celebrating that, but also looking at redefining that.

LAK: You have a new single/video out for “Deviant”. Loving it by the way. I think I see some familiar faces in the video. What inspired this track?

DD: I think we really wanted to capture the elegance of ballroom culture, but still keep it very Raw and minimal for the clubs. Very “Real Housewives of Atlanta” meets the old money of “Dynasty”.

LAK: Rumor has it this single is just a taste of a whole new EP coming out later this year. Please, do tell me this is true.

DD: It is! We are at the tail end of our Kickstarter campaign (runs till July 4th) in order to raise some funds to record our first full-length release. We don’t expect it out until the new year.  However, we may stagger out a track or two before then.

LAK: I hear there’s a ‘whole new sound’ for fans to look forward to?

DD: There is. We are working with an old friend, Chris Cosgrove, from a band called Future People in LA, who is co-writing a few tracks with and is also engineering and producing this with us. The songs will be of the highest quality, and creatively cover a wide sound and audience for us.  There are definitely still a few quintessential DD tracks in there though.

LAK; You’ve been to Seattle quite a bit in the last year. What do you think of the queer scene here in the Emerald City?

DD: We’ve big fans of Seattle. We LOVE Pony and Chop Suey (Jodi & Marcus), and were very excited to be part of Mo Wave this April.  An all queer music festival makes us very happy indeed. Oh and the boys are C-U-T-E !

LAK: Looking forward to playing the Mural Stage at PrideFest?

DD: We are most definelty. This will be our first (and hopefully not the last) official pride show we’ve done. We kinda love outdoor festivals- it’s a nice break from venues and club spaces.

LAK: Can we expect at least one death drop? (Please?)

DD: Get your camera’s ready- the dips and drops will be all over the stage. Makin’ em Gag, honey!

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Oh, I’m already gagging girl!  Bring those cameras!

Double Duchess performs at 2:25 pm on the Mural Stage at Seattle PrideFest this Sunday, June 30, 2013.

Video for “Deviant”:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awPpHIoCC3E

More on Double Duchess:  http://www.doubleduchess.com/

DJ LA Kendall:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/DJ-LA-Kendall