A metal band with a name like Rumble Steelskin has a duty to raise hellish mischief. And this Santa Cruz outfit proves tenacious enough to deliver.
Fronted by Anna Carlson, a sexy blond Amazonian superwoman who can annihilate audiences with a smoldering glance – or a foot in the ass – the band draws comparisons ranging from No Doubt to Hole to Metallica.
Founding member and lead guitarist Jimi Cardarelli sums up his band’s sound: “like Courtney Love singing for Megadeath.” For Cardarelli – who underwent a transformation from being Jimmy to “Jimi” due to his reputation for shredding Hendrix covers – the road to Steelskin was no fairytale. He was homeless in Santa Cruz in the ’90s after the dissolution of his first band, Vacuum. Now sober for 16 years, he finds songwriting inspiration from his hard past, like in the power ballad “Wall of Glass,” about a stint in jail.
The song is personally nostalgic for Cardarelli and musically nostalgic for the listener: The ascending electric guitar evokes a bygone era of ’70s hard rock. The heavy metal hymn takes you to a hazy basement where Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath play.
Rumble Steelskin is touring to support Stick It In, an album they recorded at Carlson’s studio in Santa Cruz. They plan to release another by the end of the year.
The band tackles heavy topics with dark humor. Carlson penned a sludgy feminist anthem about a gang of women who take revenge on a rapist. “We found you at a sleazy bar/ put you in the back of our car/ you’re our captive/ it’s eye for an eye.”
The band’s momentum continues to grow after playing the Catalyst, Crow’s Nest and Bocci’s Cellar this year, among other venues; this Friday, they play Planet Gemini in Monterey.
Popular Salinas hard rockers Heavy Hands open with an eclectic sound owed to an interest in a breadth of genres, including classic rock, classic metal, thrash, alternative, hip-hop and indie rock. Their song “Torso Girl,” about a girl with no arms or legs, is skillfully arranged, infectiously melodic (without sparing a throbbing breakdown) and oddly romantic.
Cardarelli of Rumble Steelskin is eager to play an all metal show in Monterey, where loud live music was once greeted with trepidation. “We’re going to treat it like an arena,” he says.
RUMBLE STEELSKIN 9pm Friday, April 29. Planet Gemini, 2110 N. Fremont St., Monterey. $8. www.planetgemini.com
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