Frank Gutch Jr, January 2013
You gotta love a band which bitch slaps you into submission and No Small Children does just that and more. Lisa Parade emerges from the cloud of smoke better than ever and I could not be more thrilled. Who is this Lisa Parade, you ask? She is in reality one Lisa Joy Pimentel and is former drummer with the legendary all-girl group Heidi which had a shot at major label fame but were tossed aside for one reason or another (like major labels ever need a real reason, the bastards). Not long after that group split, Lisa ended up on the West Coast with a band of her own— The Lisa Parade, a name she adopted as her own. Two excellent albums later— and I do mean excellent— and in spite of the exposure afforded her by placing Beautiful Possibility as the theme for the short-lived Miss Guided TV sitcom, Lisa applied herself to everyday life for a short time before hitting the clubs for the occasional gig with friends and family. Which eventually led to No Small Children.
They are loud and proud, sports fans, and prefer to rawk rather than rock but do both with elan. I knew from the preview track, Wenches and Bitches, that this power trio had the goods but didn’t know until the recent release of their Dear Youth EP how really good they are. Talk about bitch slaps! Dig this!
“Women delivering rhythm from our souls
Some people think that we’re wenches, we’re bitches
Livin’ the life though we are kind of old
It might be true that we’re wenches, we’re bitches…..
And that’s just the chorus! Later, they end a verse with
We are wily, wenchy, bitchy
Madonna whorish dames (ha)”
No apologies, just steamrollin’ rock ‘n’ roll with a pinch of punk and a dash of metal. This is at the top of my list for 2013 even if it was (kind of) released in 2012. If it is too late to make my end of the year list, it isn’t for next year’s (or this year’s, by the time this is posted). You can preview and purchase MP3′s here, but there will be physical product available soon. Stay tuned.
An Aside: Jilly Blackstone
Heidi fans remember Jilly as the frontman (erm, woman) for that band. I came upon her through posts and mentions by Lisa Parade when I discovered Lisa’s, uh, excellent— yes, excellent— albums, Out of the Funbox (which includes a stunning pop gem titled Girl, among other outstanding songs) and Finding Flora. I stalked Lisa, you might say, and I ended up stalking Jilly too. Jilly was thrilled that I had found Heidi and told me she had many stories to tell (I had asked) and we kept in touch off and on over a two or three year period. It was usually just me checking in on her through Facebook or email or her sending profuse apologies for not having contacted me for long periods, but it was enough because I knew that soon we would dive into the story behind Heidi and uncover her plans for her musical future. For a short period, she even posted a few demo tracks she had recorded by herself and we discussed the positives and negatives in terms of her future direction.
Then, I heard little. There was the occasional short message saying that she was not doing well (she was very ill, I came to find out) and that her life was a battle. It was a battle she eventually lost. I didn’t know until Lisa posted a short tribute to her dear friend on Facebook. It was a sledgehammer to the heart. Jilly was such a positive and delicate person to me and had been ready to talk music at the drop of a hat and to realize that she was truly gone was, to say the least, a true bummer.
More than likely, I will never hear those demos again nor will I hear the Heidi demos which she had promised me (but about which I was sworn to secrecy). Those are very small things next to the fact that I will not be allowed the pleasure of watching her develop, musically. She had a path in her head which was leading her toward her musical vision and she had barely started.
The reason I bring that up here is that Track 3 of No Small Children‘s Dear Youth EP was written by Jilly. Jill Considine, actually, for that was her real name. Titled Mystical, it is just that— to me. Lisa and Jilly were very close. So when Lisa sings Jilly’s lyrics, it is both magical and mystical. It is a tribute, both painful and joyous, and brings tears to my eyes and a pain to my heart.
It is a only a small part of what Jilly deserves. An anthem written by and sung for a wonderful person. Lisa Parade, if few others know what a magnificent track this is, I do. Jilly would be proud.
AND I just did a little searching on the Net and found Jilly’s MySpace page. She gives a rundown of her music career and there is music, including her version of Mystical. Stop by and listen if you want to know more about her.