BeatRoute Magazine Alberta print e-edition - November 2016

FEMME WAVE
PEACH KELLI POP
In Defense of Cute:
the uniting force of power pop
by Arielle Lessard
The dreamy power pop ladies from Peach
Kelli Pop (PKP) are getting ready to join
Femme Wave for their first time in Calgary.
At the core of PKP is Allie Hanlon, who delved
into Ottawa’s DIY scene with her twin sister and
learned drums at age 15, recently relocated to
L.A. where she’s signed to Burger Records. While
Ottawa “helped [her] gain the confidence and
experience” she needed to start playing in bands,
she’s happy to be using her fresh start to explore
some creative freedom and make new relationships
– like those with bandmates Gina and Sophie
Negrini and Mindee Jorgensen.
For those that are unfamiliar with Peach Kelli Pop’s
magic, PKP loves Japan and Japan loves them. PKP
puts out albums proficiently while keeping within a
central visual theme of bright colors, pins, illustration,
romantic neon, and smiles all around – things that
might be considered Kawaii, or “cute” for English
speakers. Though the definition can be expanded
with a quick Wikipedia search, with original meanings
that include “one’s face is aglow,” “dazzling” or even
“able to be loved” and “lovable.”
Hanlon addresses issues of dismissing “cute” too
quickly, saying “people will [sometimes] listen to your
music for five seconds and decide lots of different
things about you and your music, which is frustrating.
We have high pitched vocals and it sounds really
feminine, but [at the same time] I’m 29, I’ve been
touring and playing in bands for over a decade, I’m
proud of our live show and how technically proficient
we are at playing. I think when people see us live, they
think this is a group of people that have paid their
dues. Hopefully by seeing us [and] really listening
to the music, people can see that there’s more than
what they perceive to be cute.”
The real misgiving may be categorizing cute, poppy
energy as easy to pull off or somehow dismissible,
when in fact being “lovable,” engaged, fueled-up and
rosy can be infinitely hard to sustain. Peach Kelli Pop
is the perfect embodiment of those fiercer qualities,
and demonstrates vividly that cool, imaginative,
thoughtful women often travel in groups and support
one another creatively. In this way, and in direct
alignment with Femme Wave’s mission, there is a rich
collective togetherness that can grow out of these
platforms. Hanlon notes that the best parts about
being in a creative field are “getting to work with other
people, playing live and going on tour with your
friends and [ultimately] seeing people appreciate the
work that you’ve shared.”
When asked about her current projects, Hanlon
dives in with excitement, and notes that she’s taking
her time to work on the fourth Peach Kelli Pop
album, having released three since 2010, they’ve been
on a feel-good roll. Freshly back from a trip to Tokyo,
Hanlon played six shows and stayed for 12 days, “so
it was kind of like a vacation tour” where the girls
“played shows and explored and hung out, so it was
really magical.” They’ll also be going to Hawaii for the
first time in February to play for a group of kids that
fundraised through Failed Orbit Records to fly bands
over, with Hanlon fully appreciating how “cool [it is
for] people that really love music to [find ways to]
have different bands that they normally wouldn’t get
to see.”
She also found time to do some work for the
Cartoon Network with Victor Courtright, who approached
her to do thematic music for Get ‘Em Tommy.
Courtright himself is a high-octane illustrator and
animator whose previous work has crafted a cartoon
character called, quite literally, Officer Baby Teeth.
“I was really excited about it and he showed me the
different clips, the tone of his show, and I worked on
it with a friend and fellow artist Natalie James.”
Hanlon makes time for PKP by working a day
job in the art world at a small business alongside
illustrator Tuesday Bassen, who comes from a “similar
background of punk music and an alternative scene.”
Hanlon, who’s “open to so many different things,”
raves about the girls she works with and the positive
work atmosphere, “it’s really meaningful work with
fun people! Things are constantly growing and changing,
and [my] day to day is very fluid.”
Peach Kelli Pop delves happily into issues like
power, money, self-empowerment, beauty standards,
broken hearts, and princess castles without ever
losing an eternal sense of fun and their power pop
roots. Hanlon says, “I always write from my heart and
what I’m experiencing so there’s definitely a variety of
topics that come out. So I think that if I’m feeling frustrated
about something, it will come out and it may
end up being something other girls can relate to.” Boy,
can we ever. Lyrics like “she’s held together with glue,
she’ll never disagree with you” from Plastic Love make
for danceable feel-good songs with a soul.
PKP’s latest collaboration with SHEVIL, a collective
of female filmmakers in L.A., to produce a music
video for their most recent Halloween Mask LP
messes with beauty standards, and highlights the
dazzling, bright monsters that make up PKP. Using
smoky, kaleidoscope composite footage of all the
band members’ faces, as well as monster masks and
projected cartoon faces. Hanlon notes that they
chose to work together after “the girls that run [SHE-
VIL] stood out… because they had a clear idea of the
music video they wanted to produce and they even
had a budget written out… I was really impressed by
how organized they were and especially how great
their ideas were.”
In a similar vein as Femme Wave, “they also run
a monthly night for female-centric music, female
performers, stand-up comics and bands… that’s
something that I always try and kick my friends to,
because it’s so fun.”
For other artists, and budding musicians, Hanlon
recommends “focus[ing] on having fun, because it’s
harder to create when you’re focused on things that
can stress you out, whether you’re getting certain
opportunities that you’re hoping for, or what other
bands are doing. So just focus about what makes
you happy about making music, and enjoy the entire
process.” Fans worldwide are evidently pleased that
Hanlon is happy with the entire process and always
manages to produce marvellously art that’s as cute
as it is potent. On a wishful note, Hanlon’s dream
collaborators include, without missing a beat:
“Joey Ramone!
Joan Jett!
Kim Deal!”
One would hope that Peach Kelli Pop won’t do
away with any of their charm or cuteness anytime
soon.
Peach Kelli Pop perform at Dickens on Friday, November
18th.
BEATROUTE • NOVEMBER 2016 | 25