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Witches of the Week #8: Flames of Durga




1- Where is the band from and what's the best thing to do there?

We’re born and raised in L.A., growing up in Silverlake and Echo Park, which is also where Flames Of Durga was birthed. We love playing shows, going to shows, being mermaids at the beach, checking out all kinds of art and hiking with our dogs. We had the opportunity to buy a house and decided we wanted a place where we could get loud and work from home. Joshua Tree stole our hearts and last year we found an awesome pad that we’ve been working on since. We intuitively decided to ditch our small LA apartment and move to Joshua Tree in March 2020, then a few weeks later quarantine hit! Good timing I guess, even tho we still have our shared music studio in east LA, and our heart goes out to our friends and family living in the big city.

2- What does your name stand for and what was the runner up?

We knew we wanted the element of fire and a goddess name to represent our music. We were brainstorming one day and thought “Flames of..” and then we discovered the Hindu fire goddess Durga. As soon as we did we knew that was it. Goddess Durga is a personified force of badassery and fierce femininity at it’s finest! She’s a slayer of demons, a creator, destroyer and protector. That kind of energy we can get behind.

3- Describe your sound using a movie title.

Sucker Punch

4- Describe each band member using a meal.

Cecilia: Pizza with jalapeños & magic mushrooms
Beah: Chilaquiles with a side of waffles
Nate: Chicken Cordon Bleu

5- Name 3 bands who would headline your dream fest?

The Runaways
Black Sabbath
Nirvana

6- For or not being described as "female fronted”?

We are for it! There is still an imbalance in the music industry of male dominance and blatant sexism. Plus, our global climate continues to be dominated by masculine egos and we feel like it is our duty as women to stand up for the fierce and unapologetic feminine that has been suppressed for generations. It’s not about being dominant over the other sex, it’s simply about working together as equals. We yearn to inspire other women to start their own bands or to feel empowered in their own skin and fiercely pursue their passions.

7- Are you signed on a label and why?

We’ve started out as a DIY band and continue to be one. We are open to signing with a label but for now we continue to work hard representing ourselves all on our own. When the right label comes along we’ll be stoked to join forces.

8- What's the most punk thing you've seen on tour/in a show?

Beah: Echo Park Rising music fest always falls on or around our birthday, August 19th. One year we barely made it to our set on time due to a long night of birthday shenanigans the night before. If you’ve seen our live show you know we bring a whole lot of energy. That show was a ton of fun, but after the first song I felt nauseous while singing and couldn’t help but puke on stage! We like to play barefoot and Cecilia didn’t notice until she stepped in it mid song. It ain’t punk or rock n’ roll if it ain’t dirty! Haha, after my abrupt puke storm I felt a whole lot better and brought the heat with Ceci and Nate and the rowdy crowd in Little Joy, one of my favorite bars in Echo Park.

Cecilia: On tour when I had to pee but we were trying to get to the next venue on time. Nate didn’t want to stop. When ya gotta go ya gotta go so I took matters into my own hands. I pissed in a cup, which takes way more strategy then for dudes, all while in the van on the highway. I then dumped it out the window but all the piss splattered all over my arm! Not sure if I’d consider that punk, but tour may cause you to give less fucks. I miss the road but not piss on my arm.

Nate: When I was high on acid at a Slayer show and the mosh pit was insane! There were several dudes with Slayer freshly carved into their chest.

Beah & Cecilia: We also had an epic crowd surfing experience at Punk Rock Bowling, the last night of the fest, barely surviving a whole weekend. A rather large stranger lifted each of us up on his shoulders and onto the crowd as At The Drive In ripped it. That was pure bliss.

9- Best quarantine activities?

Playing music! This quarantine is the best excuse to immerse ourselves into our song-writing cave and continue to work on our craft! We also love getting out into nature. The desert is a very inspiring place and continues to be for our song writing and musical journey.
We’ve also started using our sewing machine and are excited to design and make some new performance wear!

10- What's the best way to support your band?

Buy our music, merch and add us to a playlist! Our music is available on iTunes, Spotify & wherever else you stream music. Follow our social media to watch live streamed shows and Durga banter. We also just made Flames Of Durga face masks so keep a look out for those! All proceeds directly support our band and mean the world to us. xoxo






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