Q. Good morning Brett. So tell us about the Linda Lindas.
A. Best band on the planet. Full stop.
Q. Really? You're serious?
A. Dead serious. Four supremely talented multi-instrumentalists with a pitch perfect chemistry that transcends the sum of its parts. But don't call them punk. Yes, they perform punk as well as it has ever been performed, but they're equally adept at pop, rock, and all their permutations.
Q. So let's talk about the members. Tell us about Bela.
A. Bela is an enigma because she appears to mostly keep to herself. She's a really good rhythm guitarist, an important job in a band, and she commits herself totally to the service of the music. She wrote a song called Monica which starts out as a sweet, silly song about her cat, but quickly moves into deeper waters, exploring the bond between humans and their pets. I really like her fashion sense. Bela rocks.
Q. And Lucia?
A. Lucia is a Capricorn-Dog like me, so there's that. She has a quirky stage presence that is quite endearing, and she has a sweet, sentimental voice that nevertheless packs a punch. She went on Kimmel, the biggest stage of her life, sang lead on Claudia Kishi, pulled this incredible, soul crushing charisma out of her hat, and sang like an angel. She's a really good lead guitarist, and she wrote a song called Never Say Never which is almost too beautiful to bear. She's classically trained, and there is an impressive list of classically trained musicians who have ripped rock a new one. Lucia will be on that list someday; she's almost there now.
Q. Eloise?
A. Best bass player on the planet. Full stop. She is the showiest band member, but she's never a show-off; she draws attention to the band, not to herself, and when it is time for someone else to front the band she happily moves to the background. She's the punkiest member of the band but she wrote a sweet, hopeful song about the pandemic called Missing You where she sings about wanting to eat dinner at her grandma's place. Her vocals range from a bratty growl to a bratty howl, or from an angry growl to an angry howl, or from a joyous growl to a joyous howl, whatever is needed, sometimes all in the same song.
Q. Mila?
A. Best drummer ever. Full stop.
Q. You're serious?
A. Dead serious. And from what I've heard from their concert at the Palladium, she was the best drummer ever two years ago, and since then she's improved. She's an incredible timekeeper; she could synchronize an atomic clock, but her timekeeping isn't mechanical or robotic, it is passionate, inspired, and imaginative (timekeeping, imaginative? YES). And she has a tremendous instinct for what is needed in a song and just gets it done. I'm sure she could show off if she wanted, but she always drums in service to the music. Okay, maybe she shows off a little bit during No Clue but that's her right; she wrote it.
Q. Favorite Linda Lindas moment?
A. Wow, there are so many to choose from, but one moment I really love is from the Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) concert. During the last song, Big Mouth, after Eloise howls her first soul-shattering shreik, while she and Lucia are blazing away on their guitars, they turn to look at each other, and Lucia offers her back to Eloise. Eloise moves in and they touch backs at the shoulder for about a second, grinning like banshees. It is, of course, an ancient rock star cliche, but when they do it it is an acknowledgement that they are catching lightning in a bottle and that they are, indeed, the best band on the planet.
Q. Favorite original song?
A. That's a hard one, they're all so good, but I have to go with No Clue, especially as it was performed at LAPL. Great lyrics, wonderful vocal performance by Mila, as good a drumming performance as has ever been recorded. But, man, Never Say Never is so freaking gorgeous. And Claudia Kishi...
Q. You've sold us. So where should we start?
A. Start with the viral video of Racist, Sexist Boy at LAPL, then I suggest the Kimmel performance, then the performance video from the premier of the film Moxie, and end with the full LAPL concert. You'll be so wrung out you'll have to have someone pick you up off the floor.
Q. Final thoughts?
A. I found a video online of one of their very early performances. They. Were. HORRIBLE. It was the most god-awful thing I've ever heard try to pass for music. But I realized how much hard work they must have put in to get to where they are now, and it deepened my admiration for them even more.
Q. Thank you, Brett, for this illuminating interview.
A. It was my pleasure.
